American thrash metal band Megadeth has released fifteen studio albums, five live albums, six compilation albums, one EP, forty-nine singles, ten video albums, and forty-four music videos. After he was fired from Metallica in 1983, guitarist and vocalist Dave Mustaine formed Megadeth along with bassist Dave Ellefson, guitarist Greg Handevidt, and drummer Gar Samuelson. The band toured and gained a following, signing with the independent labelCombat Records in late 1984. Megadeth's debut album Killing Is My Business... and Business Is Good!, sold very well for an independent release, and the group attracted the attention of major record labels. By the end of the year, the group signed with Capitol Records. Megadeth's first major-label album, Peace Sells... but Who's Buying?, was released in 1986. Before the recording of the band's third album, Mustaine fired Poland and Samuelson; they were replaced by Jeff Young and Chuck Behler, respectively. The new lineup debuted on So Far, So Good... So What! in early 1988. Later that year, Mustaine fired Young and Behler and replaced them with guitarist Marty Friedman and drummer Nick Menza. This lineup recorded Megadeth's fourth album, Rust in Peace, which was released in late 1990. The singles "Holy Wars... The Punishment Due" and "Hangar 18" reached the top 30 in Ireland and the United Kingdom. Megadeth's most commercially successful album, Countdown to Extinction, peaked at number 2 on the Billboard 200 chart, and was the band's first record to be certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America. Megadeth's biggest hit single is "Symphony of Destruction", which peaked at number 71 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and in the top 15 in Ireland and the United Kingdom. Youthanasia peaked at number 4 on the Billboard 200, and like its predecessor, it was certified platinum by the RIAA. The singles "Train of Consequences" and "A Tout le Monde", reached the top 30 on the US Mainstream Rock chart. The following year Megadeth released Hidden Treasures, an EP that featured previously released non-album tracks, including soundtrack and compilation songs. Cryptic Writings peaked at number 10 on the Billboard 200, and became the group's sixth consecutive studio album to be certified platinum in the US. The release scored the band's highest-charting single to date, "Trust", which peaked at number 5 on the Mainstream Rock chart. Later that year, Menza left the band and was replaced by drummer Jimmy DeGrasso. The following year, Risk was released, and was a critical and commercial failure. In 2000, Friedman left Megadeth and was replaced by guitarist Al Pitrelli. After signing with Sanctuary Records, the group debuted their new lineup on The World Needs a Hero. In early 2002, Mustaine suffered several injuries, which led him to announce in a press release that Megadeth had disbanded. In 2004, Megadeth reunited and released The System Has Failed. Although intended to be a solo album by Mustaine, outstanding contractual obligations with the band's European label EMI forced him to release one more album under the "Megadeth" name. The following three studio albums, United Abominations, Endgame, and Thirteen peaked at number 8, number 9, and number 11, respectively, on the Billboard 200. Megadeth's studio album, Super Collider, was released in 2013 through Mustaine's label Tradecraft. It debuted at number 6 on the Billboard chart, becoming the band's highest-charting album since 1994's Youthanasia. Megadeth's latest studio album, Dystopia was released January 22, 2016. On 12 February 2017Dystopia won the "best metal performance" category at the 59th Grammy Awards making this the band's first Grammy win after 11 nominations.
