Though "Hero of the Day" was the first song Metallica recorded for the album
Load
it was the second single from the album. It was their second consecutive number 1 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks chart.
The song is about children who look outside their homes for heroes when it's really their parents that should be their heroes.
Guitarist, Kirk Hammett, said that "Hero of the Day" contains one of his favorite guitar solos, not because it's particularly shreddy, but because it's melodic and lifts the song up to a different level.
Metallica "Hero of the Day" 1996