Editing Lightning to the Nations (section)

==Legacy and influence==
The album brought Diamond Head to the forefront of the [[new wave of British heavy metal]] scene and was a big influence on many later metal bands, including [[Metallica]] and [[Megadeth]]. The former have covered songs such as "The Prince", "Sucking My Love", "[[Am I Evil?]]", "It's Electric", and "Helpless" throughout their career and recorded most of them. Versions from various periods were compiled on Metallica's album ''[[Garage Inc.]]''. As a result, Diamond Head became relatively well-known to Metallica fans and enjoyed exposure to a broader public than similar NWOBHM bands from the late 1970s and early 1980s.

In 2008, the Japanese metal magazine ''[[Burrn!]]'' rated this album as the third-best "[[riff]] album" of all time, behind [[Black Sabbath]]'s ''[[Master of Reality]]'' and [[Slayer]]'s ''[[Reign in Blood]]''.<ref>[http://www.diamond-head.net/DHnews36.htm Lightning To The Nations 3rd in Greatest riffs album' poll]</ref> The ''Guitarists' Book of Heavy Metal'' ranked the track "Am I Evil?" at {{Numero|5}} on its list of the best metal riffs behind [[Iron Maiden]]'s [[The Number of the Beast (song)|"The Number of the Beast"]].<ref>[http://www.diamond-head.net/newsarticles/article35.htm Am I Evil voted 5th] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080523110136/http://www.diamond-head.net/newsarticles/article35.htm |date=23 May 2008 }}</ref>

In 2017, ''[[Rolling Stone]]'' ranked ''Lightning to the Nations'' 42nd on their list of "The 100 Greatest Metal Albums of All Time".<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.theprp.com/2017/06/21/news/rolling-stone-share-choices-100-greatest-metal-albums-time/|title = Rolling Stone Share Their Choices for 'The 100 Greatest Metal Albums of All Time'|date = 21 June 2017}}</ref>