Album

Killing Is My Business… and Business Is Good!

by Megadeth

Released17 May 1985

LabelMusic for Nations

Popularity66.6

Also cited12 June 1985

heavy metal thrash metal speed metal metal rock

Wikipedia ↗MusicBrainz ↗Apple Music ↗Deezer ↗Podcast cover

Killing Is My Business… and Business Is Good! is Megadeth's debut album, first released in the UK by Music for Nations, with a US release by Combat following in June 1985. Combat gave the band $8,000 to make it, but with half the budget gone on drink, drugs and food, they had to sack their original producer and finish the job themselves. The rough sound shows it.

Even so, the record drew strong reviews and helped establish thrash metal as a genuine branch of heavy metal. Its themes are death, occultism and violence. It includes "Mechanix", which Dave Mustaine also played during his time in Metallica, and a controversial cover of "These Boots Are Made for Walkin'". It is the starting point for everything Megadeth did next, beginning with Peace Sells… but Who's Buying? in 1986.

Killing Is My Business… and Business Is Good!: tracklist, credits and charts

8 tracks · 31:00

Tracklist

1Last Rites / Loved to DethDave Mustaine4:35
2Killing Is My Business… and Business Is Good!Dave Mustaine3:03
3Skull Beneath the SkinDave Mustaine3:45
4These BootsLee Hazlewood and Dave Mustaine3:43
5RattleheadDave Mustaine3:41
6Chosen OnesDave Mustaine2:53
7Looking Down the CrossDave Mustaine4:59
8MechanixDave Mustaine4:21

Produced by: Karat Faye, Jay Jones, Megadeth, Dave Mustaine
Recorded at: Crystal Sound, Indigo Ranch Studios, Indigo Ranch, Malibu, California, Crystal Sound Labs, Hollywood, California
Recorded: December 1984 – January 1985
Mixed at: Crystal Sound, Indigo Ranch Studios
Label: Music for Nations
Length: 31:00

Line-up

David Ellefson · bass guitar, background vocals
Dave Mustaine · electric guitar, piano, vocals
Chris Poland · electric guitar
Gar Samuelson · drums (drum set), timpani

Peak chart positions

Chart	Peak
US Billboard 200 · 2018	169
UK Rock & Metal Albums · 2018	3
US Tastemaker · 2018	5
US Hard Rock · 2018	14
US Top Rock Albums · 2018	32
German Albums · 2018	35
Japanese Albums Chart (Oricon) · 2018	35
Scottish Albums · 2018	36
Greek Albums Chart · 2018	48
Belgian Albums (Flanders) · 2018	79

All 13 charts

Australian Albums (ARIA) · 2018	84
Spanish Albums · 2018	93
Belgian Albums (Wallonia) · 2018	119

From MusicBrainz, Wikipedia and Wikidata. Only what the sources record is shown.

66.6

Popularity (0–100, vs the whole vault)

2.9k

ListenBrainz listeners

160k

Wikipedia views, last 12 months

18k

Deezer fans (all editions)

Also released on 17 May

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Full discography →

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The Sabbath Collection

More on Music for Nations

Creeping Death / Jump in the Fire

Metallica · 1987

Releases and pressings

How we know the release date wikipedia 1985-05-17 vs 1985-06-12 (musicbrainz+wikipedia alt)

Source	Date	Note
MusicBrainz	12 June 1985
Wikipedia infobox	17 May 1985 (GB)
Wikidata	June 1985
Wikipedia (other date)	12 June 1985 (US)
US release	12 June 1985	earliest US date
UK / Europe release	17 May 1985	earliest UK or European date

28 editions

Date	Country	Label	Barcode	Kind
—	US	Combat	088561801526	other
1985	FR	Music for Nations	5016583104627	other
May 1985	US	Combat	088561801540	original
12 June 1985	US	Combat	088561801519	other
1986	US	Combat	088561801526	other
1987	US	Combat	088561801526	other
August 1987	GB	Music for Nations	5016583104627	other
May 1988	GB	Music for Nations	5016583104634	other
1 December 1988	JP	CBS/Sony	4988009629452	other
1989	AU	CBS	9399746524927	other
1990	CA	Combat	07464908432	other
12 June 1990	US	Combat	088561801526	other
1991	US	Combat	088561801526	other
1992	IT	Armando Curcio Editore		other
24 November 1994	JP	Relativity Records	4988009754925	other
1995	US	—		other
25 October 1999	DE	Century Media	5051099603424	other
5 February 2002	US	Loud Records	088561904623	remaster
5 February 2002	XE	Loud Records	5099750788523	other
20 March 2002	JP	—	4547366003536	other
4 June 2009	DE	Century Media	5051099623026	other
25 February 2011	DE	Century Media	5051099623002	other
9 October 2013	JP	Legacy	4547366202328	other
30 November 2016	XW	Loud Records	5099750788523	other
6 June 2018	JP	Legacy	4547366356212	other
8 June 2018	US	Legacy	0886446577852	other
8 June 2018	US	Century Media	889854657314	other
8 June 2018	US	Legacy	889854630126	other

Cover art sources

itunes · upscaled: minor: best source 1446x1446, upscaled to 1500 (x1.04)

Source	Size	Verdict
itunes ✓	1446×1446	upscaled: minor: best source 1446x1446, upscaled to 1500 (x1.04)
deezer	1200×1200	upscaled
coverartarchive	1000×1000	upscaled
fanarttv	1000×1000	upscaled