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Power Ballads: Love them or Hate them?


fraroc
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33 members have voted

  1. 1. Do you love power ballads or hate them?

    • Love them.
      9
    • Hate them.
      3
    • I like a few here and there.
      17
    • I generally dislike them but there are one or two I tolerate.
      4
    • I have no opinion.
      0


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There's something so unbelievably corny and insincere about it. Very few have moved me. Heart and Journey are up there simply for the talent of both bands. It's like tying so hard to make something sound emotional, but at the same time you want it to be a big hit. It's like selling off you heartache for a number one single. To sound like a proper snob, I'd call it selling out kinda. To me, songs that often convey the best sadness are the ones that you discover as a deep cut.

 

Here is the flaw in your logic. How do you know that it was all ingenuine? Some ballads are very moving and musically powerful like No Stranger To Love and Love Bites, reading through some lyrics, I just don't buy that and I don't think it's true. I could be wrong though.

 

I'm a big fan of both Black Sabbath and Def Leppard and even I think No Stranger To Love and Love Bites are hugely ingenuine songs that were written just to be big hits. In Sabbath's case, it was an awful choice to record a song like that and it blew up big time in Iommi's face. It's a decent tune but to see Iommi playing on a song like that tops the list when it comes to cringeworthy moments.

 

I really like Love Bites. After having big hits with Bringin On The Heartbreak and Foolin, it was the next natural progression for Def Leppard to go full on 80s power ballad cheese and they pulled it off beautifully. But there is no way that song wasn't written with anything else in mind other than to be a huge hit. Even the band has admitted through the years that they wrote songs specifically just so they would get played on the radio. At least they were honest about it and mission accomplished since Love Bites was huge for them. It seems like both radio and MTV played it a couple times an hour back in the day.

 

Even though I enjoy me some power ballads, I think the majority of them are ingenuine but that still doesn't make me enjoy a good song any less. Look at Heart, they didn't even write songs like Alone, What About Love and These Dreams. Even though the band didn't want to do it, the record company kept pushing for them to record songs like that. It worked out for them in the end as they got a huge resurgence in popularity in the mid 80s because of it. Also, those songs worked because Ann and Nancy were talented enough to pull them off and make them their own. Because of Ann's powerful and emotional voice and Nancy's raw emotion on These Dreams, that is probably as close as you'll get to a power ballad being truly genuine.

 

In the case of No Stranger To Love, I know of a TON of people who label it more as a Glenn Hughes song more than a Sabbath song. In fact, he recorded his own version of the song, which is essentially almost the same as the Sabbath version but with a few minor differences.

 

If it's really the case that it was written just to be a hit, then that still doesn't change my opinion. Sometimes, lyrics to songs that that strike a chord with people who go through these kinds of issues. Why do you think I love Evanescence so much? Because their lyrics reflect real things that people feel and go through. How many times has your life been reflected in the lyrics of the songs you love?

 

You love Evanescence?

 

And why has this never been raised to my attention before?

 

EVANESCENCE RULES MY WORLD!

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I learned from power ballads that every rose has its thorn.

 

And every cowboy sings a sad, sad song. Because no one know cowboys like ... what's his face.

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Hate them, unequivocally. No exceptions. Home Sweet Home and Every Rose ... are probably the most obnoxious offenders (apologies to Goose), but anything that inspires the raising of lighters at a concert should be banned, IMO. Get enough Democrats in office and we can get anything banned in the interest of public safety. Not enough to make me go with Hillary or Bernie but it's a thought.

 

Edit: Well, one exception would be Journey's Don't Stop Believing, but Journey was all about power ballads anyway; they weren't betraying any bad-ass M.O.

 

I can't stand elitists like you. You're all responsible for the death of 80s style music and the fun of rock n' roll.

 

Your attitude, the attitude of modern rock and grunge are all responsible for tearing the heart and soul from music.

The old boy may be barely breathin', but the heart of rock and roll is still beatin'...
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I make no mistake, I love hair metal and I'm proud of that fact as well and I am personally sick and tired of the elitism against that genre by other metal and rock fans.

 

With that said, I f***ing LOVE power ballads. To me, power ballads are evidence that rock n' roll can have a heart and proves that the 80s wasn't ALL about sex and drugs. A lot of beautiful songs came out of that period and no one wants to acknowledge their existence.

 

Are you fukking kidding me buddy? Were we separated at birth?

 

I LOVE POWER BALLADS!!!!!!!

 

"ALONE AGAIN" DOKKEN

"LADY STARLIGHT" SCORPS

"BREAKING UP AGAIN" ACCEPT

 

ENDLESS!!!

 

You should write a Power Ballad Thread TOP TEN!

 

THIS THREAD RULES!

 

I ENDORSE IT AT ONCE!

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I make no mistake, I love hair metal and I'm proud of that fact as well and I am personally sick and tired of the elitism against that genre by other metal and rock fans.

 

With that said, I f***ing LOVE power ballads. To me, power ballads are evidence that rock n' roll can have a heart and proves that the 80s wasn't ALL about sex and drugs. A lot of beautiful songs came out of that period and no one wants to acknowledge their existence.

you know what? You make an excellent point. That was the fashion of the day, it just was. Look beyond the makeup & big hair folks. Although I am embarrassed I liked Motley Crue.
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There's something so unbelievably corny and insincere about it. Very few have moved me. Heart and Journey are up there simply for the talent of both bands. It's like tying so hard to make something sound emotional, but at the same time you want it to be a big hit. It's like selling off you heartache for a number one single. To sound like a proper snob, I'd call it selling out kinda. To me, songs that often convey the best sadness are the ones that you discover as a deep cut.

 

Here is the flaw in your logic. How do you know that it was all ingenuine? Some ballads are very moving and musically powerful like No Stranger To Love and Love Bites, reading through some lyrics, I just don't buy that and I don't think it's true. I could be wrong though.

 

I'm a big fan of both Black Sabbath and Def Leppard and even I think No Stranger To Love and Love Bites are hugely ingenuine songs that were written just to be big hits. In Sabbath's case, it was an awful choice to record a song like that and it blew up big time in Iommi's face. It's a decent tune but to see Iommi playing on a song like that tops the list when it comes to cringeworthy moments.

 

I really like Love Bites. After having big hits with Bringin On The Heartbreak and Foolin, it was the next natural progression for Def Leppard to go full on 80s power ballad cheese and they pulled it off beautifully. But there is no way that song wasn't written with anything else in mind other than to be a huge hit. Even the band has admitted through the years that they wrote songs specifically just so they would get played on the radio. At least they were honest about it and mission accomplished since Love Bites was huge for them. It seems like both radio and MTV played it a couple times an hour back in the day.

 

Even though I enjoy me some power ballads, I think the majority of them are ingenuine but that still doesn't make me enjoy a good song any less. Look at Heart, they didn't even write songs like Alone, What About Love and These Dreams. Even though the band didn't want to do it, the record company kept pushing for them to record songs like that. It worked out for them in the end as they got a huge resurgence in popularity in the mid 80s because of it. Also, those songs worked because Ann and Nancy were talented enough to pull them off and make them their own. Because of Ann's powerful and emotional voice and Nancy's raw emotion on These Dreams, that is probably as close as you'll get to a power ballad being truly genuine.

 

I didn't realize that, yeah a whole slew of guests helped record those albums. Crazy, good thing they returned to writing more original tunes, but having those hits afforded them that luxury. Great post (I really like Love Bites as well, not as much as Foolin' and Heartbreak, but pretty damn good)!!

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I make no mistake, I love hair metal and I'm proud of that fact as well and I am personally sick and tired of the elitism against that genre by other metal and rock fans.

 

With that said, I f***ing LOVE power ballads. To me, power ballads are evidence that rock n' roll can have a heart and proves that the 80s wasn't ALL about sex and drugs. A lot of beautiful songs came out of that period and no one wants to acknowledge their existence.

you know what? You make an excellent point. That was the fashion of the day, it just was. Look beyond the makeup & big hair folks. Although I am embarrassed I liked Motley Crue.

 

Don't be embarrassed! Well I'm 47 so I grew up with Motley Crue! I love them! Just went through a huge phase of all of their earlier stuff. "Too Fast For Love" to "Dr. Feelgood" RULES!!!!!

 

"You're All I Need" on "Girls Girls Girls" is an EPIC ballad.

 

"Miss Mystery" by BLACK N BLUE

 

I will sign off now.

 

I could actually list 100 killer power ballads.

 

"WINTER DREAMS" ACCEPT

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Depends on what band and what song.

Yeah. While it was fun to get all "Helz yeah!!!!" on page 1 here, there are probably four that I actually like...the ones I listed. And for the people that listed Journey...they don't count.
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Power Ballads?? Love them - easy vote.

 

So many good ones have been mentioned already (Hearts, Foreigners, Journeys, Poison's, Motley Crue's, "Alone Again" from Dokken, The Dam Yankee's) and I like them all. Plus, how about "Can't Fight this Feeling" from REO Speedwagon?? Another great one. How about "I Remember You" from Skid Row? Best song Skid Row ever did (IMO). Power Ballad??

 

As for Grunge, since that came up, I will toss my 2 cents worth of opinion in on it. Yuck!!! That sums it up for me. Growing up in the 70's and 80's I got to hear great new rock music all the time. Then Grunge came along. If you like it - good. Glad you enjoy it. But for me it greatly damaged my interest in rock music.

 

Now, instead of getting great new rock music all the time its a rare and special treat when something good comes out from an "old time" group I like (e.g. Rush, Priest, Maiden, Journey, Bob Seger) and a wonderful & shocking experience when I find a new group that I like (e.g. Nightwish).

 

But getting back to the topic - Power Ballads. Love them gets my vote.

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My favorites are:

High Enough (Damn Yankees)

Without You (Motley Crue)

Amanda (Boston)

Love Song (Tesla)

Love Bites (Def Leppard)

Sister Christian (Night Ranger)

And:

I Remember You (Skid Row)

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