Songs

• "Blackmail the Universe" has numerous quotes from the movie Thirteen Days
  Thirteen Days (film)
  Thirteen Days is a 2000 docudrama directed by Roger Donaldson about the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962, seen from the perspective of the US political leadership. Kevin Costner stars, with Bruce Greenwood featured as John F. Kennedy....
  
  , which was about the Cuban Missile Crisis
  Cuban Missile Crisis
  The Cuban Missile Crisis was a confrontation among the Soviet Union, Cuba and the United States in October 1962, during the Cold War...
  
  .
• "Die Dead Enough
  Die Dead Enough
  Die Dead Enough is a 2004 song by the American thrash metal band Megadeth, written by Dave Mustaine. It was the first single off of their 2004 album, The System Has Failed, which was released on September 14, 2004...
  
  " was released as a single, and was originally set to be featured in the movie Saw
  Saw (film)
  Saw is a 2004 American independent horror film directed by James Wan. The screenplay, written by Leigh Whannell, is based on a story by Wan and Whannell. The film stars Cary Elwes, Danny Glover, Monica Potter, Michael Emerson, Ken Leung, Whannell and Tobin Bell...
  
  , but it was not used for undisclosed reasons.
• "The Scorpion
  The Scorpion (song)
  "The Scorpion" is a 2004 song by the American thrash metal band Megadeth, written by Dave Mustaine. It was the third and final single off their 2004 album The System Has Failed, which was released on September 14, 2004...
  
  " was released as a single.
• "I Know Jack" only consists of a sample of Texas
  Texas
  Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
  
   Senator
  United States Senate
  The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
  
   Lloyd Bentsen's
  Lloyd Bentsen
  Lloyd Millard Bentsen, Jr. was a four-term United States senator from Texas and the Democratic Party nominee for Vice President in 1988 on the Michael Dukakis ticket. He also served in the House of Representatives from 1949 to 1955. In his later political life, he was Chairman of the Senate...
  
   famous response
  Senator, you are no Jack Kennedy
  "Senator, you're no Jack Kennedy" was a quotation used during the 1988 United States vice-presidential debate by Democratic vice-presidential candidate Senator Lloyd Bentsen to Republican vice-presidential candidate Senator Dan Quayle. Jack Kennedy was a reference to John F. Kennedy, the 35th...
  
   to Indiana
  Indiana
  Indiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is...
  
   Senator Dan Quayle
  Dan Quayle
  James Danforth "Dan" Quayle served as the 44th Vice President of the United States, serving with President George H. W. Bush . He served as a U.S. Representative and U.S. Senator from the state of Indiana....
  
   during a 1988 vice-presidential debate.
• "Back in the Day" was featured in the Duck Dodgers
  Duck Dodgers (TV series)
  Duck Dodgers is an American animated television series, based on the classic cartoon short Duck Dodgers in the 24½th Century, produced by Warner Bros. Animation from 2003 to 2005. The series aired on Cartoon Network and starred Daffy Duck as the titular character...
  
  episode "In Space, No One Can Hear You Rock".
• "Of Mice and Men" was released as a single. The lyrics are autobiographical, telling about Mustaine's life between the ages of 17 and 25 years old. The title of the song is taken from the famous novel of the same name
  Of Mice and Men
  Of Mice and Men is a novella written by Nobel Prize-winning author John Steinbeck. Published in 1937, it tells the tragic story of George Milton and Lennie Small, two displaced migrant ranch workers during the Great Depression in California, USA....
  
  .
• "Shadow of Deth" consists of Mustaine reciting Psalm 23. The Latin phrase heard at the beginning of the track, "Auxilium meum a Domino," translates to "My health comes from the Lord."
• "My Kingdom" contains a number of quotes from the movie Excalibur
  Excalibur (film)
  Excalibur is a 1981 dramatic fantasy film directed, produced and co-written by John Boorman that retells the legend of King Arthur and the knights of the Round Table. Adapted from the 15th century Arthurian romance, Le Morte d'Arthur by Thomas Malory, Excalibur features the music of Richard Wagner...
  
  , and indeed the lyrics seem to roughly track the story of the film.
• "Strange Ways" is a KISS cover, however the first 20 seconds include part of the song "N.I.B.
  N.I.B.
  "N.I.B." is a song released by the British heavy metal band Black Sabbath. It first appeared as the fourth track on the band's 1970 eponymous debut album, Black Sabbath. The lyrics are in the first person from the point of view of Lucifer...
  
  " by Black Sabbath
  Black Sabbath
  Black Sabbath are an English heavy metal band, formed in Aston, Birmingham in 1969 by Ozzy Osbourne , Tony Iommi , Geezer Butler , and Bill Ward . The band has since experienced multiple line-up changes, with Tony Iommi the only constant presence in the band through the years. A total of 22...
  
  .

Music videos

• A video was made for "Die Dead Enough
  Die Dead Enough
  Die Dead Enough is a 2004 song by the American thrash metal band Megadeth, written by Dave Mustaine. It was the first single off of their 2004 album, The System Has Failed, which was released on September 14, 2004...
  
  ", the video featured only Dave Mustaine
  Dave Mustaine
  David Scott "Dave" Mustaine is the founder, main songwriter, guitarist, and lead vocalist for the American heavy metal band Megadeth. Prior to Megadeth, Mustaine was the first lead guitarist and a co-songwriter of the heavy metal band Metallica until he was fired from the band in 1983. In 2009, he...
  
  . This was because he was the only actual member of Megadeth at the time, as Chris Poland
  Chris Poland
  Chris Poland is an American guitarist, best known for being a former member of heavy metal band Megadeth.-Early career:...
  
  , Jimmy Sloas
  Jimmy Sloas
  Jimmie Lee Sloas grew up in Fairborn, Ohio & Isonville, Kentucky. He is an American session musician, producer and songwriter who plays bass guitar...
  
   and Vinnie Colaiuta
  Vinnie Colaiuta
  Vincent Colaiuta is an American drummer based in Los Angeles. Originally from Republic, Pennsylvania, he began playing drums as a child and received his first full drum kit from his parents at the age of 14...
  
   were only hired session players. The "Die Dead Enough" video was directed by Thomas Mignone.
• "Of Mice and Men
  Of Mice and Men (song)
  "Of Mice and Men" is a 2004 song by the American heavy metal band Megadeth, written by Dave Mustaine. It was the second single off of their 2004 album, The System Has Failed, which was released on September 14th, 2004.-Charts:-Personnel:...
  
   " was selected as the second video from the album, in this video the then-new Megadeth
  Megadeth
  Megadeth is an American heavy metal band from Los Angeles, California which was formed in 1983 by guitarist/vocalist Dave Mustaine, bassist Dave Ellefson and guitarist Greg Handevidt, following Mustaine's expulsion from Metallica. The band has since released 13 studio albums, three live albums, two...
  
   line up is shown performing - Dave Mustaine
  Dave Mustaine
  David Scott "Dave" Mustaine is the founder, main songwriter, guitarist, and lead vocalist for the American heavy metal band Megadeth. Prior to Megadeth, Mustaine was the first lead guitarist and a co-songwriter of the heavy metal band Metallica until he was fired from the band in 1983. In 2009, he...
  
  , Shawn Drover
  Shawn Drover
  Shawn Drover is a Canadian drummer, best-known for his work with the heavy metal band Megadeth....
  
  , Glen Drover
  Glen Drover
  Glen Drover is a heavy metal guitarist from Missisauga, Ontario, Canada. He currently resides in MississaugaOntario. Drover is best known as the former lead guitarist in Megadeth and King Diamond, as well as his own band Eidolon, along with his brother Shawn Drover.-History:Glen Drover began...
  
   and James MacDonough
  James MacDonough
  James MacDonough born on April 3, 1970 in Jacksonville, Florida U.S.A. is a professional bass guitarist. He has played with Iced Earth, Nevermore, and most recently, Megadeth....
  
  . The majority of the video was shot on January 20, 2005 in Los Angeles. Numbers of Megadeth fans turned up to be in the video through a "contest" held by Sanctuary Group who funded the video. The video follows the autobiographical lyric of the song.

Cover art

The cover art by Mike Learn features Vic Rattlehead

Vic Rattlehead

Vic Rattlehead is the mascot of the heavy metal band Megadeth. Vic is a skeletal figure who embodies the phrase, "See no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil." His eyes are covered by a riveted-on visor, his mouth is clamped shut, and his ears are closed with metal caps.His image appears on several...

 at a podium in front of the United States Supreme Court building

United States Supreme Court building

The Supreme Court Building is the seat of the Supreme Court of the United States. It is situated in Washington, D.C. at 1 First Street, NE, on the block immediately east of the United States Capitol. The building is under the jurisdiction of the Architect of the Capitol. On May 4, 1987, the Supreme...

 selling a not-guilty verdict to George W. Bush

George W. Bush

George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....

. Saluting is Hillary Clinton, next to Bill Clinton

Bill Clinton

William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...

. Behind Bush in line is Dick Cheney

Dick Cheney

Richard Bruce "Dick" Cheney served as the 46th Vice President of the United States , under George W. Bush....

 holding a briefcase

Nuclear football

The nuclear football is a briefcase, the contents of which are to be used by the President of the United States of America to authorize a nuclear attack while away from fixed command centers, such as the White House Situation Room...

 labeled "plan B". Behind him is Condoleezza Rice

Condoleezza Rice

Condoleezza Rice is an American political scientist and diplomat. She served as the 66th United States Secretary of State, and was the second person to hold that office in the administration of President George W. Bush...

, Donald Rumsfeld

Donald Rumsfeld

Donald Henry Rumsfeld is an American politician and businessman. Rumsfeld served as the 13th Secretary of Defense from 1975 to 1977 under President Gerald Ford, and as the 21st Secretary of Defense from 2001 to 2006 under President George W. Bush. He is both the youngest and the oldest person to...

 and John Ashcroft

John Ashcroft

John David Ashcroft is a United States politician who served as the 79th United States Attorney General, from 2001 until 2005, appointed by President George W. Bush. Ashcroft previously served as the 50th Governor of Missouri and a U.S...

. The $100 bills on the cover depict Vic Rattlehead

Vic Rattlehead

Vic Rattlehead is the mascot of the heavy metal band Megadeth. Vic is a skeletal figure who embodies the phrase, "See no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil." His eyes are covered by a riveted-on visor, his mouth is clamped shut, and his ears are closed with metal caps.His image appears on several...

's face rather than that of Benjamin Franklin

Benjamin Franklin

Dr. Benjamin Franklin was one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. A noted polymath, Franklin was a leading author, printer, political theorist, politician, postmaster, scientist, musician, inventor, satirist, civic activist, statesman, and diplomat...

.

On several military installations, the cover art was deemed inappropriate and replaced by the back cover, which features a closeup of Vic Rattlehead

Vic Rattlehead

Vic Rattlehead is the mascot of the heavy metal band Megadeth. Vic is a skeletal figure who embodies the phrase, "See no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil." His eyes are covered by a riveted-on visor, his mouth is clamped shut, and his ears are closed with metal caps.His image appears on several...

 in flames, hovering above the city streets.

Track listing

Personnel

Dave Mustaine Dave Mustaine David Scott "Dave" Mustaine is the founder, main songwriter, guitarist, and lead vocalist for the American heavy metal band Megadeth. Prior to Megadeth, Mustaine was the first lead guitarist and a co-songwriter of the heavy metal band Metallica until he was fired from the band in 1983. In 2009, he...  – lead Lead guitar Lead guitar is a guitar part which plays melody lines, instrumental fill passages, guitar solos, and occasionally, some riffs within a song structure...  and rhythm guitar Rhythm guitar Rhythm guitar is a technique and rôle that performs a combination of two functions: to provide all or part of the rhythmic pulse in conjunction with singers or other instruments; and to provide all or part of the harmony, ie. the chords, where a chord is a group of notes played together... s, lead vocals Singing Singing is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments... Studio session musicians Chris Poland Chris Poland Chris Poland is an American guitarist, best known for being a former member of heavy metal band Megadeth.-Early career:...  – lead guitar on all tracks except "I Know Jack" Jimmie Lee Sloas – bass Bass guitar The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick.... Vinnie Colaiuta Vinnie Colaiuta Vincent Colaiuta is an American drummer based in Los Angeles. Originally from Republic, Pennsylvania, he began playing drums as a child and received his first full drum kit from his parents at the age of 14...  – drums Drum kit A drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person .... Bonus track "Strange Ways" Dave Ellefson – bass Marty Friedman – guitar Nick Menza Nick Menza Nick Menza is an American drummer best known for his work in Megadeth from 1989 to 1998, appearing on four of the band's studio albums.-Early life:...  – drums

Additional performers Tim Akers – keyboards Keyboard instrument A keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments... Darien Bennett – voice of the General on "Blackmail the Universe" Eric Darken – percussion Percussion instrument A percussion instrument is any object which produces a sound when hit with an implement or when it is shaken, rubbed, scraped, or otherwise acted upon in a way that sets the object into vibration... Michael Davis – sound effects Lance Dean – additional vocals Scott Harrison – additional vocals Charlie Judge – keyboards Celeste Amber Montague – voice of the Reporter on "Blackmail the Universe" Justis Mustaine – background spoken part Ralph Patlan – voice of the Politician on "Blackmail the Universe", additional vocals Chris Rodriguez Chris Rodriguez -Biography:Rodriguez was born on March 7, 1960, in Bronx New York, and moved to Nashville, becoming a veteran of the scene in the early 1990s. His debut album, Beggar's Paradise, was released by Sony in 1999, by which time he had collaborated on projects with country and CCM acts such as Amy Grant,...  – background vocals Robert Venable Robert Venable Robert Venable is a GMA Dove Award-winning producer, mixer, and engineer, currently based in Nashville, TN.-Biography:Growing up in Springdale, AR, Robert Venable performed in several bands and eventually made the decision that he wanted to pursue a career in music. He attended the Conservatory of...  – additional vocals Jonathan Yudkin – strings String instrument A string instrument is a musical instrument that produces sound by means of vibrating strings. In the Hornbostel-Sachs scheme of musical instrument classification, used in organology, they are called chordophones... , banjo Banjo In the 1830s Sweeney became the first white man to play the banjo on stage. His version of the instrument replaced the gourd with a drum-like sound box and included four full-length strings alongside a short fifth-string. There is no proof, however, that Sweeney invented either innovation. This new...

Production Produced Record producer A record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...  and recorded by Jeff Balding Jeff Balding Jeff Balding is an American audio engineer, mixer and record producer. Primarily known for his work with country music acts such as Faith Hill, Trace Adkins, and LeAnn Rimes, Balding has also worked with top rock acts such as Megadeth and Giant, as well as pop stars such as Amy Grant and Celine...  and Dave Mustaine Mixed Audio mixing (recorded music) In audio recording, audio mixing is the process by which multiple recorded sounds are combined into one or more channels, most commonly two-channel stereo. In the process, the source signals' level, frequency content, dynamics, and panoramic position are manipulated and effects such as reverb may...  by Jeff Balding Assisted by David Bryant, Ralph Patlan, Scott Kidd, Jesse Amend, Lance Dean, and Jed Hackett Additional recording by David Bryant, Jed Hackett, and John Saylor Mastered Audio mastering Mastering, a form of audio post-production, is the process of preparing and transferring recorded audio from a source containing the final mix to a data storage device ; the source from which all copies will be produced...  by Adam Ayan Digital editing by Mark Hagen and Jed Hackett Production coordination by Mike "Frog" Griffith Cover art by Mike Learn, based on a concept by Dave Mustaine Design by t42design

Charts

Album

Chart	Peak position
Billboard 200 Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...	8
UK	60
Austria	43
Canada	10
Denmark	38
Finland	12
France	28
Holland	32
Sweden	14
Switzerland	57

Singles

Year	Single	Chart	Position
2004	"Die Dead Enough Die Dead Enough Die Dead Enough is a 2004 song by the American thrash metal band Megadeth, written by Dave Mustaine. It was the first single off of their 2004 album, The System Has Failed, which was released on September 14, 2004... "	US Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks	21
2005	"Of Mice and Men Of Mice and Men (song) "Of Mice and Men" is a 2004 song by the American heavy metal band Megadeth, written by Dave Mustaine. It was the second single off of their 2004 album, The System Has Failed, which was released on September 14th, 2004.-Charts:-Personnel:... "		39

External links

• UnderGroundOnline interview with Dave Mustaine by Craine C
• Megadeth official site