Simply Unforgettable
Thereâs a soft side to everyone including your favorite cold-hearted rockstars. Itâs not just that though because âpower balladsâ are the cash cows that never fail to line their pockets. In a nutshell, itâs a sure sell (do you have any idea how much hairspray, spandex suits and platform boots cost?). You see, for hard-rockinâ musicians, theyâre not exactly too keen on adding overly-emotional stuff in their catalog and we totally get that.
Besides, thereâs a reason why these songs received massive airplay and are regular fan favorites â theyâre catchy tunes and itâs fairly easy to sing along to them. Are they cheesy? Maybe. But to be fair, some of them are seriously good of course, provided you keep an open-mind and not judge them even before listening.
Also, who doesnât love a good drama? And these power ballads have tons of them â from love lost to longing.
Warning: these MAY range from âEh, okayâ to âHow about no?â
10. Skid Row â âI Remember Youâ
This may not be their best song but itâs sure in the top five. It turns us into a big ball of cheese because we just love it. Part of the reason is Sebastian Bachâs jaw-dropping vocals â oh and did we mention his live vocal performance is as good as the recording, if not better?
This track showcased his range.
ââI Remember Youâ was the #1 prom song in the United States of America in the year 1990âŠ.You talk about making memories! Literally the whole country of America did their prom dance to âI Remember Youâ one year, and thatâs a real heavy memory to beat.â â Sebastian Bach
Anyone who was a teen in the late â80s surely heard this often on the radio. It was a chart-topping hit and most probably, itâs also everyoneâs favorite ballad at the time of its release. Admit it, you know the lyrics by heart.
9. Whitesnake â âIs This Love?â
Itâs hard to think of power ballads and not include this epic tune from Whitesnake. Sure, the title is like a promise that the songâs going to be tolerable, at best, but hey it delivers. Besides, itâs not every day you get to hear a track that talks about love and still rocks hard. With this, you get the best of both worlds.
Interestingly, this was originally written for Tina Turner.
âBefore Iâd left [for the south of France] a friend at EMI had asked me for any ideas that would work for Tina Turner. So that was where the original idea for âIs This Loveâ came from.â â David Coverdale
âIs This Love?â was a huge hit for the band and it peaked at #2 on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart. It remains one of the greatest and most well-loved ballads of all time. It does give us a glimpse into the soft underbelly of David Coverdale and well, who can resist that?
8. Poison â âEvery Rose Has Its Thornâ
When glam metal rockers Poison released âEvery Rose Has Its Thorn,â youâd think they were going bubblegum pop because of the reaction of some fans. But after all the doubts, skepticism and feelings of betrayal, the initial shock proved to be fruitless. As it turns out, itâs one of the bandâs greatest musical moments.
The song itself is well, sad, and just full of drama. But Bret Michaels shined here. And as it turns out, it became their biggest hit.
âWhen we played Every Rose⊠for our label and management they told us it would end our career. They were like: âThis song is not Poison. It starts with an acoustic guitar, and youâve got this cowboy thing going on and itâs just sadâ.â â Bret Michaels
Not only did it chart but it became one of their signature songs. Who would have thought Michaelâs relationship problem could turn into a classic?
7. Def Leppard â âLove Bitesâ
When we mentioned earlier that stuff like this sells, itâs an absolute fact. This song was released at a time when power ballad was everything. It dominated the radio stations and everyone who went to prom had to dance to at least one of these tracks.
Def Leppardâs âLove Bitesâ was their only single to ever top the US Billboard Hot 100. Just like Poison, when this song was brought to their attention, they didnât know what to make of it because it wasnât something theyâve done before and itâs not exactly âDef Leppard.â
âIt was just a standard rock ballad but it had something else going for it. Lyrically, it kind of painted a picture, and in a song you always want to do that, paint a picture. âOn a dark desert highway,â the first line of âHotel California,â great song, it just paints an image for you straight off the bat and thatâs the sign of a really good song. It takes you right there. âLove Bitesâ did that as well.â â Def Leppardâs Phil Collen
For every band with their first power ballad, itâs always a huge risk â but these songs have proven that most of those paid off nicely.
6. Warrant â âHeavenâ
Like the previous groups, this power ballad became Warrantâs most commercially successful single. The response was so overwhelming even Warrantâs own producers were surprised with its success. You see, songs like this have a certain appeal even to skeptical listeners â those who swore they donât like ballads.
The lyrics are dramatic and emotional, something you donât think youâll ever hear from bad ass rockstars. But hereâs Jani Lane in all his bluesy glory, singing his heart out.
âIt sucks that I get labeled as a ballad writer, but I figure, if I write good ballads, then screw it, I write good ballads. Iâve never been one of those people that think if itâs not X amount heavy, that itâs not cool.â â Jani Lane
He has a good point. One great ballad is still a thousand times better than five mediocre rock songs. Just ask all these groups on this list.
5. Bon Jovi â âAlwaysâ
One of Bon Joviâs main selling points is of course how hot JBJ is. So imagine him singing âAnd I will love you, baby, always / And Iâll be there forever and a day, always / Iâll be there âtil the stars donât shine / âTil the heavens burst and the words donât rhymeâŠâ in all his sexy glory.
Itâs hyper-emotional, we know, but itâs a lovely track and a definite crowd favorite as evidenced by the numbers â more than 3 million copies sold worldwide.
âItâs a sick little twisted lyric. So many people feel itâs so romantic and so wonderful, but truthfully, this guy is practically a stalker. Heâs a sick human being.â â Jon Bon Jovi
Wow, okay, somehow we didnât think the guyâs a creep. We thought it was just him professing his strong love for the girl. Clearly, JBJ had other ideas. Still, the song sold big time and is still a classic hit.
4. Meat Loaf â âIâd Do Anything For Loveâ
How can we forget Meat Loafâs epic ballad masterpiece people are still singing more than two decades after it was first released? It served as his comeback song and man, what a way to announce his arrival! It was a massive success â it topped the chart in several countries and earned platinum status.
It even gave Meat Loaf his Grammy Award for Best Rock Vocal Performance, Solo.
âIt sort of is a little puzzle and I guess it goes by â but theyâre all great things. âI wonât stop doing beautiful things and I wonât do bad things.â Itâs very noble. Iâm very proud of that song because itâs very much like out of the world of Excalibur. To me, itâs like Sir Lancelot or something â very noble and chivalrous. Thatâs my favorite song on the record â itâs very ambitious.â â Meat Loaf
By now you probably know the music industry is very hard to please. And in line with that, this song actually made it to numerous WORST lists. Also, over the years there were speculations about what the âTHATâ in âI wonât do thatâ refers to. Maybe thatâs part of the appeal, no?
3. Journey â âOpen Armsâ
Journeyâs biggest hit is also one of their signature songs. Even though it has been covered by other artists, itâs hard not to think of the original version and of course, Steve Perryâs spine-chilling vocal performance.
The thing is, behind every ballad thereâs always a band member whoâs against it. For them, they feel like theyâre abandoning their style and betraying their fans but hey, some of them eventually come around. For Journey, it was guitarist Neal Schon who wasnât exactly thrilled at the prospect of performing a track which he thought âsounds kinda Mary Poppins.â
âI had to keep my head down on the console when âOpen Armsâ was on. There is one line in the song that I always wanted to be a certain way. I have ideals about certain things. The line âwanting you nearâ â I just wanted that line to go up and soar. I wanted it to be heartfelt. Every time it would come by I would just have to keep my head down and try to swallow the lump in my throat. I felt so proud of the song.â â Steve Perry
Well he should be proud, itâs a beautiful track and an unforgettable one at that.
2. Guns ân Roses â âNovember Rainâ
This is Guns ân Roses at their finest. GnR with all their bad boy image and typical rock lifestyle is not immune to the allure of power ballads. And they took this to the next level too with the help of an orchestra. It was nothing short of majestic.
It was released in 1992 but according to Tracii Guns, Axl Rose has been working on âNovember Rainâ since 1983, around two years before GnR was formed. Well, all that hard work definitely paid off because it was commercially successful after selling over a million copies.
âWhen we were doing that EP for L.A. Guns, like â83? He was playing âNovember Rainâ â and it was called âNovember Rainâ â you know, on piano. The guitar solo is amazing. Way back then. It was the only thing he knew how to play, but it was his. Heâd go, âSomeday this song is gonna be really cool.â And Iâd go, âItâs cool now.ââ â Tracii Guns
Only GnR can make something this dramatic still sound kick ass. Oh and donât even get us started on the phenomenal music video. Thatâs seriously one for the books.
1. Aerosmith â âDream Onâ
The ultimate power ballad is Aerosmithâs stellar tune âDream On.â It was the bandâs first major hit and until today, it continues to remain a staple in any classic rock radio station. Itâs an incredibly touching tune thatâs difficult not to love.
This song also showcased Steven Tylerâs talents â from singing to playing the piano part. The man was a musical powerhouse.