Talk:Power ballad

Queen?

I feel it was inappropriate to leave not even one of my Queen additions to the list. I feel that Queen were one of the pioneers of Power Ballads, so I am lobbying for the inclusion of at least "Play the Game." Thanks 65.248.164.214 (talk) 17:00, 16 April 2008 (UTC)

If you are going to remove ALL of my Queen additions to the list, then you should change the title of the article to "80's Hair Metal Power Ballads." With the exception of the Styx and the Raspberries songs, all of the rest are out of the 80's, a deplorable time in music, IMO. 65.248.164.214 (talk) 17:52, 30 April 2008 (UTC)

From Scandal - I also added Who Wants To Live Forever on the list, yesterday... but, someone removed it. Queen had MANY power ballads, yet some people just can't accept it. Maybe they are homophobic? In fact, on the second power ballad album link on the page, Queen is listed a couple times on the power ballad compilation album! —Preceding unsigned comment added by 75.68.22.246 (talk) 16:25, 24 June 2008 (UTC)

Thank you for coming to my rescue. I love Queen, and the shallow biases of some Wikipedia editors will diminish my love of Queen not one bit. Queen were pioneers of the power ballad, with at least 10 examples I can cite off the top of my head. Oh well, there's no accounting for bad taste, or bias. 65.248.164.214 (talk) 14:58, 7 July 2008 (UTC)

Just wanted to add some of the many Queen power ballads I could think of off the top of my head: Teo Teoratte, White Queen (As It Began), Play The Game, You And I, It's A Hard Life, Save Me, Life Is Real, Bohemian Rhapsody, It's Late, Spread Your Wings, Don't Try So Hard, and In The Lap Of The Gods (Revisited). 65.248.164.214 (talk) 17:41, 14 July 2008 (UTC)

I added "We Are The Champions," with citation. Let's see if it sticks. 65.248.164.214 (talk) 15:34, 14 July 2008 (UTC)

• Referencing from Wikipedia itself is NOT proper citation.Dp76764 (talk) 16:36, 14 July 2008 (UTC)

The Wikipedia article I cited was itself cited from an outside source. But just so all can be well, I redirected my citation to the same citation the album's Wikipedia page uses. Thanks for the info, even if it did come with an ALLCAPS attached. Whew! If italics and bold are available, we should all make use of them, and keep the shouting to a minimum.65.248.164.214 (talk) 17:36, 14 July 2008 (UTC)

• Blah, it was only 3 letters long, hehe btw, you should register a username. It engenders trust! ;) Dp76764 (talk) 17:54, 14 July 2008 (UTC)

Point given. :) 65.248.164.214 (talk) 20:30, 14 July 2008 (UTC)

Queen R.I.P...So It Goes

There is apparently no accounting for the bias of some editors of this article. I get the feeling that no matter how many times I could add a valid and deserving Queen song--with citation, I might add--it would still be deleted by someone who somehow thought this article was titled "80's power ballads."

It doesn't seem to matter that Queen did some of their best power ballads in the 80's.

Imagine that.

It doesn't seem to matter that Warrant covered "We Will Rock You" as a tribute to Queen. It doesn't seem to matter that Def Leppard performed "Tie Your Mother Down" at the Freddie Mercury tribute concert in 1992 on-stage with Queen guitarist Brian May. It doesn't matter that Gary Cherone and Nuno Bettancourt of Extreme both love Queen, and performed at the above-mentioned tribute concert as well.

Axl Rose adores Queen, and Guns n' Roses performed at the 1992 tribute concert too. Brian May recorded a solo album with Eddie Van Halen; and both Bruce Dickinson of Iron Maiden, and Dream Theatre have covered "Bohemian Rhapsody," in whole or in part. Blind Guardian covered the Queen power ballad "Spread Your Wings" as well. I need not go on, as my point is made.

Queen has plenty of Glam, Prog, and Hair Metal cred, not that it seems to matter, of course. Nothing matters except the narrow biases of those who delete. I am not accusing every editor; only those who delete without research. Do the research, see if what I am suggesting is accurate, and leave it well alone if it is; it's that simple. End of line. Hi Ho. 65.248.164.214 (talk) 16:35, 21 July 2008 (UTC)

Exceptional contribution. 79.79.177.192 (talk) 18:33, 27 February 2009 (UTC)

Brian May: co-popularizer of two-hand tapping

Over this past week or so since I posted the "Queen R.I.P." comment, I have been thinking about Queen's 80's hair metal credibility. I found that I had overlooked perhaps the most important contribution to the 80's that Queen's guitarist Brian May made: he was one of the first guitarists to popularize two-hand tapping in a rock format. He did this with his solo to the 1977 song, "It’s Late," from Queen's News Of The World album ("It's Late" is a bonafide power ballad, by the way...from a band that supposedly didn't record any, according to some editors of this page). This song was recorded well before the first Van Halen album, although I am sure that Eddie Van Halen was using the technique in the clubs that his band were playing in at the time. Therefore, I consider Mr. May a co-popularizer of the technique, not its inventor. To be honest, the technique was first used in classical music over a hundred years ago, so Mr. Van Halen is no more its inventor than Mr. May.

Brian May's use of the technique was less speedy and less flashy than Van Halen or Eddie's legion of imitators who followed...Mr. May used the tapped notes to reach high up on the fretboard and cover intervals that simply could be reached with the left hand alone. As with so many of his solos, Mr. May is here, once again, a guitarist of great taste, subtlety, and nuance.

So I again lobby for the inclusion of just one single Queen song to the list. They belong there, as not only pioneers of the power ballad, but also those who knew how to do a power ballad right: with the soft and gentle verse, and the overpowering, crushing bombastic chorus. Queen’s artistic heyday might have been in the mid-to-late 70’s, but their commercial pinnacle was reached in the 1980’s with their appearance at Live Aid, recording the Highlander soundtrack, and the final huge tour that followed as Freddie Mercury’s health declined. They were one of the few 70’s groups to not only survive the coming of MTV, but to thrive in the new environment it came with. The question now remains; what (or whom) is keeping them off the list? 63.215.26.141 (talk) 06:06, 27 July 2008 (UTC)

Just for the record, Steve Hackett of Genesis did it on 1971's Selling England By The Pound. There may even be earlier incidents of it. Luminifer (talk) 04:49, 31 August 2009 (UTC)

And Boston too!

I was listening to Boston's "Hitch A Ride" this afternoon, and I thought...they belong on any serious list of power ballads too...if "More Than A Feeling," "Hitch A Ride," and "The Man I'll Never Be," aren't power ballads, what songs are? I realize that the list seems to have been discontinued at this point, but I wanted to comment anyway. 65.248.164.214 (talk) 22:12, 9 September 2008 (UTC)

Untitled discussion

Here's an interesting article about the history of power ballads. Power Me Ballad Me

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Is Metallica's "Fade to Black" really a good example here? I've tried to limit the examples to songs that would have had extensive radio exposure and that most people would recognize. Every band has songs that are beloved by fans but relatively unknown to the general public. I think this is probably one of them. "Nothing Else Matters" is in the VH1 countdown list, and the band gets their due here.

Also, the gist of the paragraph is that "power ballad" was applied retroactively to songs which predated the power ballad craze. If I'm not mistaken, "Fade to Black" was 1984, definitely too late for the point of the paragraph.

where is Aerosmith when the list of notable bands that have made power ballad comebacks?

they are the best example out there having sold tens of millions of records off their power ballad based comeback. --Trweiss 14:49, 9 November 2005 (UTC)

Personal curiosity here: although it's not by a heavy metal band, would it be fair to label Green Day - Wake Me Up When September Ends as a power ballad? The definition given in this article (interplay between clean and distorted guitar, power chords, "confessional" lyrics) seems to promote a strong yes, but I've never heard it called such. --CannedLizard 17:14, 3 January 2006 (UTC)

I really think a reference to the Finnish band HIM is most appropriate here. Consider the main body text, "...the phrase power ballad was more accessible and appealing than the phrase metal love song."

and then consider this 1990's group is known for self styled "Love Metal", indeed it is the name of one of their albums. Perhaps they best exemplify the modern 1990s take on 'power ballards'? --

I don't think "Wake Me Up When September Ends" is a power ballad. It's sort of like "Stairway to Heaven," i.e. an actual [not power] ballad that evolves into a harder-rock song. I think the power-ballad in its classic form is a slower-tempo song that may begin more quietly (the vocalist usually still sounds histrionic, and the instruments synthetic) but moves quickly up to a big, plodding/majestic chorus that suddenly arrives with loud guitars and metal-style vocals. Someone should have mentioned 1984's "Almost Paradise" by Nancy Wilson and Mike Reno as a prototype. Another good example is "I Want to Know What Love Is" by Foreigner. Most of the earlier examples, like the Raspberries and Eric Carmen songs, have more subtle vocals, a less jarring transistion to the chorus, or less guitar distortion. I would call these influences on the style. I agree that "Beth" by Kiss is just a plain old ballad.

--albalb 07 July 2006

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Question is if the VH1 Top 25 Power Ballads List should be included at all, as several of the songs on it does not confirm to the definition given here. Most notably is Beth by KISS, which in it's original version on the album Destroyer (and all versions I have heard) is a piano/symphony ballad through and through. There aren't even any drums (Peter Criss was busy singing I guess).

--EdVogue 19 April 2006

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What is VH1 anyway ? Some US radiostation? The article doesn't explain, and assumes it common knowledge

-- 88.159.73.50 15:23, 3 June 2006 (UTC)

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I second EdVogue's opinion - several songs don't even fit into the category. It seems more like advertisement to that obscure station than anything else (has anyone else even heard of that before?).--ForemanDomai 00:03, 28 July 2006 (UTC)

Wildflower by Skylark an early example?

I just finished writing a stub article on the band Skylark, and included a description of their most famous song, Wildflower, which I described as an early example of a power ballad. It's not as heavy as some later examples, but with its combination of a Freddy Mercury-esque vocal and the Pink Floyd/Moody Blues guitar/percussion, I think it fits as at least a proto-example. It was released in early 1973, charted no. 8 on Billboard, and was quite original for the time. I also think the lyrics were very typical of early-70s (Journey, Styx, etc) examples.--Anchoress 08:54, 22 April 2006 (UTC)

Where is the complete list of power ballads?

--Aeternus 17:36, 26 June 2006 (UTC)

It was taken out, given a second chance, and taken out again. Apparently, there were songs on the list that were not really power ballads, and it was felt that it was better to get rid of the entire list, instead of debating which songs belonged on the list and which ones did not. It was a really long list of dozens of songs. There were too many songs and it did not meet the standards of Wikipedia. 204.80.61.10 15:50, 10 July 2006 (UTC)Bennett Turk

Then don't delete it, help to make it better. I'm not telling you that, I'm asking people here to help make it meet the standards. That way, it doesn't get deleted. Also, a good way to make it would've been to include most Alternative Rock, Hard Rock, Heavy Metal, AOR, and Pop/Rock ballads.

I'd suggest it would make more sense to create a separate article, and go from there. If you really want to. Luminifer (talk) 04:50, 31 August 2009 (UTC)

power ballads

I think the definition for Power Ballad has changed as of late which is leaving out songs that are true power ballads. Power ballads are arena type songs with the repeating chorous that you just want to pump your fist to.

Who doesn't want to pump their fist and belt out the chorus of Love Is On The Way.... or Don't Know what you got... just songs that make you feel empowerd.... i'm not going to say the list below isn't a decent list... but at least 1/2 of those songs in my mind aren't even power ballads, and 3 or 4 of the others aren't that great of a definition of one.... here's a few that should definitely be considered

Cinderella - Don't Know What You Got
Saigon Kick - Love Is On The WAy
Forigner - I Want To Know What Love Is
Head East (Not sure if it's them or Rainbow, or who) - Since You've Been Gone

Agree with what the guy before me put, which is below this. groups like Cinderella were power ballad type gorups, not metalica....

To me the turn powerballad is the one's by eighties hair metal bands. Songs like "every rose has its thorn" by poison and "forever" by kiss. Not Metallica songs.

Hit Parader recently listed the top 10 power ballads of all-time and the choices were:

1. Home Sweet Home

   Motley Crue

2. Every Rose Has Its Thorn

   Poison

3. Beth

   KIss

4. I Don't Want to miss a thing

   Aerosmith

5. Is This Love?

   Whitesnake

6. I Saw Red

   Warrant (Personally, I think Heaven is the 
   better power ballad)

7. Never Let You Go

   Steelheart

8. I Remember You

   Skid Row

9. November Rain

   GUns N' Roses

10. Wind of Change

    Scorpions

My pick for the best power ballad of all-time would have to be Home Sweet Home by Motley Crue and it has been documented that it was the first power ballad. Motley Crue is credited with the development of the first power ballad ever.

sorry but that is incorrect. Even if Motley Crue is credited with the first power ballad it is clear that it is not. they may have open it up as a genre, may have redefined it, or even defined it in the first place but they did not develop the first power ballad.

and metallica can write power ballads. though i disagree with the statement made in this debate saying that a power ballad must be a distict departure from the groups main volume of work. i do not agree. Journey, in my opinion, for good reason, is considered the King of the power ballad, nearly every single they released was intended as a power ballad, only because they were a rock and roll band with a rock and roll sound. they rocked hard but they rocked power ballads. so it cannot be argued that a power ballad must be a departure from a band's typical sound although that can happen, such as metallica and early aerosmith and the rolling stones. a power ballad is does not have to be dark but it can be. i believe that the most important feature of a power ballad is the crescendo and the emotional feel of the song, it doesnt have to be a love song but it does have to, at least make an obvious attempt, be emotional. 169.231.3.118 06:16, 29 January 2007 (UTC)Shelley

Darker songs - can they be power ballads?

I would previously have considered Metallica's One and Fade to Black to be power ballads, but both are most definitely not love songs. Pantera's Cemetary Gates, too, I don't consider a love song. Do songs such as these count? Thedangerouskitchen 14:47, 22 August 2006 (UTC)

Disagreed. Wind of Change isn't a love song, but is still a power ballad. They don't have to be love songs. However, "Haunted" by Evanescence and "Would?" by Alice in Chains might be considered power ballads, but could also be considered too dark.

while it is not a main requirement if a song is too dark that it cannot be relatively accessible to the public, it is not a requirment it is worth noting it can be like a tipping point kind of thing, if a song may or may be a power ballad and it is or is not easy to be accessible even if they are not written for the public, public acceptance is not a defining factor as whether or not they are a power ballad it is an indicator, albiet one that is wrong a good amount, such as most metallica, guns n roses, and pantera power ballads

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If this article gets cleaned up, its worth noting that the Motley Crue's "Home Sweet Home" was not the first power popular 80s metal power ballad. Both Night Ranger's "Sister Christian" and Dokken's "Alone Again" charted in 1984, and I'm sure their videos were aired on MTV, so the oft repeated factoid of "Home Sweet Home" being the first power ballad aired on MTV seems to be false. Xndr 15:18, 24 August 2006 (UTC)

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I Notice that rock ballad redirects here and that this seems to be the only page relating to ballads in any popular music. I do not think all ballads are power ballads. It mentions that the term power ballad has declined from use but "ballads" in rock music exist everywhere past and present. Ballads from soft rock artists such as Elton john - tiny dancer, Candle in the Wind, your song etc. and Billy Joel - She's always a woman, Just the Way you are, New York State of Mind, Summer Highland falls etc and more recent artists like John Mayer and people don't write power ballads but they write ballads. These pieces do not seem to fit in anywhere? Does anyone want to make a page explaining what a ballad is? 04:03, 10 September 2006 (UTC)

Female power ballads

I removed this paragraph because the artists discussed were all pop singers. A power ballad is the expression by rock and metal artists of vulnerability, overwhelmingly male vulnerability. Even if female singers can be included, such as Lita Ford, Celine Dion can't be included because she's a pop singer. The whole point behind the concept of the power ballad is the performance of a musical identity supposedly antithetical to the artist's "normal" musical identity. Celine Dion's normal musical identity is the ballad style -- she doesn't really do anything else, and certainly isn't venturing into unusual territory when she sings a ballad. Unless you can find enough significant female rock singers to mention, I'd simply leave the whole thing alone. - Pillsbur 19:39, 7 October 2006 (UTC)

If any woman can pull off a Power Ballad, it would have to be Pat Benetar. She actually has several. "Shadows of the Night" stands out in my mind. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 208.54.94.16 (talk) 05:32, 19 August 2009 (UTC)

Earth Song?

Earth Song is it a power ballad? it's kinda of gospel —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 212.71.37.81 (talk) 22:05, 31 December 2006 (UTC).

No, earth song is pop. cannot be a power ballad. 169.231.3.118 06:03, 29 January 2007 (UTC)Shelley

Love Hurts?

"Love Hurts" as recorded by Nazareth, is an early example of the musical style. Lyrically its not a love song, but everything else from the wailing vocals to the guitar solo sounds eerily like Nazareth got a sneak peek at the 80's power ballad rulebook. --67.135.240.36 13:24, 10 January 2007 (UTC)

Yeah I think its a great example of an 80's sounding power ballad from the 70s. The lyrics are very much about love and heartbreak actually, and that vocal style of the singer sounds a lot like Cinderella to me, at least in terms of intensity. Xndr 20:33, 10 January 2007 (UTC)

ya love hurts is a great example of a power ballad, i dont know why anyone would argue otherwise, to assume that a power ballad had to be from the 80's or later is insane. the power ballad was concived decades before that. "Hey Jude" by the Beatles probably being the most popular example. Love Hurts is a power ballad. 169.231.3.118 06:03, 29 January 2007 (UTC)Shelley

"Love Hurts" is one of my favorite rock ballads. I wondered why it wasn't mentioned. --Yancyfry 04:24, 1 April 2007 (UTC)

Another Day

Is it Dream Theater's song Another Day a power ballad? --Λeternus 18:30, 20 January 2007 (UTC)

Hear, hear! Another Day is a power ballad if there ever was one. 65.248.164.214 (talk) 21:38, 1 April 2008 (UTC)

Christina Aguilera ? kelly clarkson ?

Is this insane or what ? A power ballad is a ROCK ROCK ROCK ROCK BALLAD, and not a pop ballad ! gosh the article is so poor its embarrasing to see a whole paragraph talking about "hurt". Hurt is downright pop, and kelly clarkson at hardest is rock-pop. Get the article out. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 202.160.36.100 (talk) 12:39, 28 January 2007 (UTC). i agree power ballads are reserved for rock groups, the power ballad was concived by rock and roll bands who wrote slow dance numbers for whatever reason 169.231.3.118 05:59, 29 January 2007 (UTC)shelley

That's right, pop hasn't nothing to do with power ballads... --Λeternus 19:30, 29 January 2007 (UTC)

Violence?

The following line in the introductory paragraph: "They are usually confessional nature and differ from metal's more lyrical themes of hedonism, violence, or the occult". I have to protest this, particularly the word 'violence'. The vast majority of metal lyrics are certainly not violent in nature. Killyourtv 13:11, 29 March 2007 (UTC)

Definition too narrow

I hate to contradict many on this talkpage, but the term power ballad is commonly used, at least by musicians, to describe pop songs such as Whitney Houston's unavoidable remake of "I Will Always Love You" & its innumerable imitators (but not Dolly Parton's original). That may offend the sensibilities of some users (I personally despise that song), but it's fact nonetheless. Power ballad as a term isn't a genre, it's a descriptive phrase used across sub-genres; and derives from the much older use of ballad as more or less a synonym for "slow tune" or "love song". —Turangalila (talk) 04:47, 6 April 2007 (UTC)

18 and Life?

I'm not really sure if that's really a power ballad. I'll leave it on for now, but maybe we should discuss? FMAFan1990 00:40, 3 August 2007 (UTC)

Guns N' Roses is not Glam Metal nor did they write power ballads

GN'R did write ballads like the ones you listed but they are not power ballads The gutairs much more heavier than a tradional power ballad the lyrics trigger real mutiple emotions not wriiten just to gain commerical appeal and have fake "good time/ heartbereak lyrics of those phony Glam bands/ power ballads. GN'R were the extact opposite of glam/ power ballads. glam bands tried to act dangerous, volient, and full of sexually escapdes. While Guns N' Roses actually were all three The epitomized Sex. Drugs,and Rock N' Roll.TG 50 01:38, 19 September 2007 (UTC)

Blah blah blah. The article does not say a power ballad must be written solely for commercial reasons, neither does it say that it must be a saccharine romantic song, nor does it link the genre with glam rock. November Rain is a ballad that incorporates many hard rock features, which makes it a power ballad. That's it. Steinbach (fka Caesarion) 14:44, 2 June 2008 (UTC)

I agree with Steinbach. November Rain, as well as Don't Cry, are power ballads. Oh, and even if you argue that they aren't, the New GNR are most certainly power balladers - have you heard This I Love from Chinese Democracy? Classic power ballad. --85.167.60.144 (talk) 15:31, 17 December 2008 (UTC)

Now-a-day power ballads : Breaking The Habit - Linkin Park?

Couldn't that song be put in the section with the now-a-day power ballads? Lpfan4eva1990 (talk) 15:52, 16 December 2007 (UTC)

Where'd they all go?!

What happened to all the songs listed!? Now there's only about 8! What happened? Titan50 (talk) 14:47, 20 January 2008 (UTC)

It was junky, unencyclopedic, list-crufting and they were all justifiably removed for the sake of quality. 156.34.208.112 (talk) 16:52, 20 January 2008 (UTC)

Perhaps, but the whole article now has been pared down to the point where it's barely worth having, with two caution banners criticizing the tiny bit that's left. Sadly, one can learn far more about power ballads from reading this discussion page than from reading the article. I personally think it's time to end the discussion wars and put some meat back into this article, or else just kill it and not have an article on power ballads at all. - Mark Dixon (talk) 15:09, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

Signature Song?

The claim "In some cases, the power ballad may become the hard rock or heavy metal band's signature song." is quite pointless, at least without a source. Any song can become a signature song, so why could a power ballad not. Needs either a source or an example, otherwise it should go.91.152.48.20 (talk) 18:34, 27 January 2008 (UTC)

Uh, More than Words from Extreme is perhaps the archetype here, although it was more of a strict ballad, without any "power" at all. 65.248.164.214 (talk) 21:39, 1 April 2008 (UTC)

Possibly inadequate definition

I clicked on the link for the "Power Ballads" album, and it contained many songs by artists not remotely associated with hard rock or metal--Tina Turner, Roy Orbison, Bonnie Tyler, Phil Collins, and Lonestar, among others. This suggests that the term "power ballad" is sometimes used in a broader sense than the article indicates. marbeh raglaim (talk) 11:06, 3 February 2008 (UTC)

Absolutely. Unfortunately we're not going to find too many people here who can analyze the meaning of power ballad. Its mostly fans of hair metal who want to "take it back" from pop music and allow it to only apply to the glory days of hair. Language develops, but don't tell that to hair metal fans. Xndr (talk) 12:42, 4 February 2008 (UTC)

Since the term has no official definition, the only thing we can do is pay attention to usage. The fact that record companies have put out power ballad albums containing songs like "Making Love Out of Nothing At All" by Air Supply is relevant and contradicts the definition given in the article. Compilation albums like that seem to define the term as any song that starts slow and builds to a crescendo, even if it has nothing at all to do with heavy metal. Perhaps the strangest choice on the album is Huey Lewis's "The Power of Love." That isn't even a ballad, let alone a power ballad--it's a midtempo rock/pop song.

I realize that the most frequent definition is the one from the article, but even then there's a certain vagueness to the term. When I use the term, I usually include only songs that retain a metal feel, like "Nothing Else Matters" by Metallica, or "Still Loving You" by the Scorpions. To my ears, "More Than Words" by Extreme isn't a power ballad, it's an acoustic folk song by a group that normally does metal. But I'm aware that many would disagree with me.

A lot of confusion could be avoided if people simply used the term "metal ballad," but that seems to insult a lot of metalheads, who don't view any of these songs as true metal. I was recently reading an interview with Kurt Cobain, where he said that he preferred the softer music he did but felt pressured by fans to perform harder stuff. That's an observation worth thinking about for those who automatically assume a hard rock group that "goes soft" is selling out.

Somebody needs to clean up the article to reflect the differing usages of the term. marbeh raglaim (talk) 21:29, 5 February 2008 (UTC)

It gets better. I just looked at the page for the album Sixties Power Ballads, which is just a list of pop songs. "To Sir With Love," for crying out loud? Only the album Monster Ballads seems to fit the common definition of power ballads, though I've never really heard the term "monster ballad" used anywhere else. The bottom line is that most people use the term "power ballad" one way, the albums an entirely different way. I'm thinking of updating the article to mention this discrepancy, but it's hard to make it not sound like original research. But then, there is very little official information to help define this term. marbeh raglaim (talk) 14:37, 22 February 2008 (UTC)

"To Sir, With Love" is a fine song...and certainly in the mold of a power ballad, compositionally at least. Yes, it lacks the power chord guitar chorus...but Lulu's voice almost makes up for it, IMO. 65.248.164.214 (talk) 21:42, 1 April 2008 (UTC)

But it contradicts the common definition of a power ballad as a song rooted in heavy metal or hard rock. "To Sir with Love" isn't even really a rock song, let alone hard rock, and it came out long before heavy metal emerged as a distinct genre. To call it a power ballad is sort of like defining "Subterranean Homesick Blues" as a rap song. marbeh raglaim (talk) 12:41, 11 April 2008 (UTC)

more heavy metal ballads

(Coolguy12333 (talk) 20:04, 27 July 2008 (UTC)) maybe include songs from bands such as Metallica , Pantera

Be clear please!

Someone once wrote on this page that a power ballad does not have to be a ballad from a heavy metal band, but that it is more of a ballad with a lot of "power" and emotion sounding through it and that it can be from any genre. Is that true? Or not? Please make this clear, because right now, I don't understand it quite well. I mean, at first it was like this, and then someone wrote that message on the article page, but now it has changed back again. Is there a huge discussion going on about the definition of the term or something?--213.93.21.2 (talk) 20:21, 20 October 2008 (UTC)

Home Sweet Home

Why is Home Sweet Home mentioned as 'the first hair metal power ballad MTV played'? They actually played Def Leppard's Bringin' On A Heartbreak earlier - although Def Leppard isn't a hair metal band. Why is the 'first hair metal power ballad' worth mentioning on a page devoted to all power ballads? I suggest http://80music.about.com/od/genresmovements/p/powerballads.htm as a more useful source of information than the link in the article. Luminifer (talk) 07:14, 30 November 2008 (UTC)

Dokken had the song “Alone Again”, I feel it was the blueprint of 80’s metal hair band ballads. It was regularly played on MTV in 1984, well before “Home Sweet home”. The Scorpions had “Still Loving You”. While Dokken was definitely an 80’s metal hair band, The Scorpions being 80’s is more subjective.

  — Preceding unsigned comment added by GroundedRocks (talk • contribs) 01:38, 15 February 2022 (UTC) 

The source cited is clarifying the role "Home Sweet Home" played in bringing power ballads to Top 40 over-exposure, becoming the penultimate icon of 1980s power ballads. Sure there must have been power ballads aired on MTV prior, though we can only assume this is true without a cited source. In fact this page used to have a list of other songs, like "Still Loving You" and "Burnin' Heart" which predate, but then again wikipedia doesn't define Def Leppard, Scorpions, or Vandeberg as glam metal, nor were these songs hits on the same level. "Bringin' on the Heartbreak", a fine song, didn't have as much of an impact as Pyromania or other later songs that were power ballads. That link could be a good source for this article, though a published book of essays is going to have more weight than about.com. Another reason we need a cited source for "Home Sweet Home" is that this article is constantly edited with the false information that HSH was the first power ballad.

We really do need sources, and plenty of them, to show how the usage of power ballad has changed over time to include all kinds of genres of music, not just hard rock or glam metal. Somewhere along the way this article was decimated, right or wrong, so it needs a good rebuilding with sources. A lot could be added. Xndr (talk) 15:04, 1 December 2008 (UTC)

Thank you for that well-thought-out reply :) I agree... I think the wording is a little misleading though - you have to look at it carefully to realize that "the first hair metal power ballad played on mtv" and "the first power ballad played on mtv" are different things. Does anyone have any thoughts on wording it to imply that there may be earlier power ballads by non-hair metal bands, or something similar? Luminifer (talk) 05:43, 4 December 2008 (UTC)

Also (FYI) I'm not actually a huge fan of Def Leppard or that song of theirs, but it did bother me that it WAS an earlier power ballad that (probably) got some airplay on MTV...Luminifer (talk) 05:44, 4 December 2008 (UTC)

This clearly needs to be addressed again. The incredible bias this page has to having only one example, and heaping tons of praise on it and calling it the first needs to be dealt with. I tried to have it removed and my edit was identified as vandalism, with no explanation as to why. It's also full of weasel words (ex: it uses the word "often", and cites only one source, which is not easily verified). Luminifer (talk) 18:34, 31 August 2009 (UTC)

The content is currently supported by a reliable source. Peter Fleet (talk) 18:47, 31 August 2009 (UTC)

Point 1: There is clear lack of consensus about this text belonging there, considering the number of people who add what _they_ think are the first power ballad. This implies to me that nothing should be listed at all. Luminifer (talk) 18:57, 31 August 2009 (UTC)

Point 2: I have to assume that this is the text being referenced: Somehow, in 1985, Motley Crue's "Home Sweet Home" video - with its signature slow-mo concert footage, so we knew these guys still rocked! - became the first hair-metal Power Ballad aired on MTV. ... Note that it does not say that the power ballad is often cited - it only states the fact. So, 'often' should be removed (the article is being used to claim more than it actually does cliam). It uses the term 'hair metal' while the article says 'glam metal'. Lastly, why is the first 'hair metal' power ballad (genre-specific) worth mentioning, while the first power ballad of any other genre (or overall) gets no mention? This all seems to imply lack of NPOV to me. Luminifer (talk) 18:57, 31 August 2009 (UTC)

Was there a power ballad prior to Home Sweet Home? I heard no one walking around in the 1970s referring to any rock numbers as power ballad. The term is a cliche-coin for a song marketing tool that some mid-1980s heavy metal bands with a glam visual style built their entire career around. The trash metal band Anthrax even did a parody of the power ballad on their Attack of the Killer B's album. The Detroit Metro News once did an article about the power ballad timeline claiming that Styx invented it with their 1973 track "Lady" But the article also claimed that Styx invented the first power ballad concept album and the first official homo-erotic power ballad. So, obviously, that article is meant to be a nonsense comedy poking fun at the term. If you do a Google search for the first power ballad it does not provide any links that are helpful to this article. But, interestingly enough, built into Googles own search mechanism is its "releated searches" list. And when you search for 'first power ballad' the first releated search that Google gives is "Motley Crue power ballad". That pretty much says it all. Aussie Ausborn (talk) 22:45, 31 August 2009 (UTC)

Actually, I'm sorry to have to point it out, but a lot of what you said is incorrect. If you even read up earlier in this discussion, the reason the Motley Crue paragraph is there is to specifically say that it is NOT the first power ballad - that this is a common misconception - but that it was in fact the first _very popular hair metal_ power ballad (as mentioned in the citation). Any claims beyond what is in the citation can't be made, and I believe that the claims made in the citation are not noteworthy enough, and inclusion of solely those claims violates WP:NPOV. Luminifer (talk) 22:53, 31 August 2009 (UTC)

I think User:Aussie Ausborn's observation is extremely accurate. In the 1970s and early 80s there was no such term as power ballad in reference to an certain song style or any specific song. It was only after Home Sweet Home and a few Home Sweet Home clones made their appearance into popular media that the term took off. It may be the personal opinion of a single user to try and retrofit the term onto one of their favourite band's songs from prior to the understood "power ballad era" but it just doesn't fit. Kudos to Peter Fleet for restoring the reference after an attempt was made to blank it. The book source supports the text but it should have another citation added to clarify. It shouldn't be to hard to find. As with most music pages, web sources are the last place to look. A citation similar to the one already present should be easy to find in one of the many national music periodicals. Wether B (talk) 00:23, 1 September 2009 (UTC)

I actually need to disagree here - even the cited source says it was not the first power ballad, nor does it even remotely imply that the term was coined around that time. Assuming that it was based on that source is very strong OR. Further, I need to suggest that I am not doing this because I'm a Def Leppard fan or anything of the sort - I just knew that the information as stated was wrong - that the song did not start the term, nor was it the first, and the sourced text and even the text in the article go out of their way to point out that it was the first power ballad by a very specific genre artist. The notability of this particular claim seems to disagree with NPOV to me, in that it is misleading to exactly the conclusion that you have presented. Luminifer (talk) 01:18, 1 September 2009 (UTC)

I feel that some outside eyes and interpretations are needed here, so I'm adding this tag. I ask that anyone who comes in here please read the entire discussion and not chime in with any presumptions they have before reading the entire discussion. Thanks, and hope this helps the article. Luminifer (talk) 01:22, 1 September 2009 (UTC)

I finally decided to look more into what this book says about the power ballad. That little piece about Motley Crue was not only misleading in this article itself, it also misrepresented much that the book has to say about the power ballad. I've tried to incorporate a little more of it - why didn't anyone do this before? Luminifer (talk) 16:27, 1 September 2009 (UTC)

The information you added is completely false and not supported by the Aaron writing at all. You have repeatedly re-added information that contradicts a given source in order to insert you own opinion. And added not one, but three links which all went to the same page and did not include any text or digital scan to show the text you are making up in the article. Please do not alter or invent text which is not supported by a reference. An administrator will be notified as to your activities. 81.178.36.21 (talk) 18:52, 1 September 2009 (UTC)

Please read the entire article before saying such accusations. I posted gbooks links to the exact pages that have the content I was discussing. You (and others) repeatedly remove the references I place, and then claim that the reference does not back it up. I will quote the article exactly, here:

• [1] At the top of this page, it begins line three "on, 1976 became the year the Power Ballad Broke". I almost verbatim copied that text out of there. (p132)
• [2] Here is the page that says Motley Crue's was the first hair metal power ballad aired on MTV, specifically. It starts around line 6. (p133)

I'm not sure what else to say here. I can't put the material back, as that would be edit warring, so hopefully someone else will. Luminifer (talk) 19:30, 1 September 2009 (UTC)

• [3] I forgot this link which cites the text about "rockers wanting to seem more sensitive"... Third paragraph. (p131)Luminifer (talk) 12:59, 3 September 2009 (UTC)

It's been a full week since I posted my google books links. Why was everyone so quick to revert changes but no one wants to actually discuss the article? Luminifer (talk) 14:55, 8 September 2009 (UTC)

Unless someone objects soon, I'm going to reinstate my changes. Luminifer (talk) 15:27, 9 September 2009 (UTC)

What about 1970's power ballads?

There's nothing about power ballads that were recorded in the 1970's. Now there's only two sentences about hard rock and heavy metal songs recorded in the 1980's. What happened to the paragraph about the decade when power ballads first became popular? Power ballads probably date back to 1972, 8 years before the 1980. The paragraph on 1970's power ballads did include reliable references.204.80.61.110 (talk) 20:25, 23 December 2008 (UTC)Bennett Turk

If anyone can find this paragraph with references, I think it should definitely be restored. Luminifer (talk) 21:31, 24 December 2008 (UTC)

I don't think the term "power ballad" existed back in the 1970s. It would be interesting to search in a database to determine when the term arose. I don't currently have access to Lexis-Nexis, but I searched Google groups (which goes back to 1981) and the earliest reference to the term was from 1990.

Granted, you can retroactively apply the term to earlier music, and there are albums that do, like Sixties Power Ballads. But I still can't get past the fact that there's no official definition of the term, and in the media it seems to have two entirely separate definitions, one linked to heavy metal and hard rock music, the other having nothing to do with metal. marbeh raglaim (talk) 01:20, 2 January 2009 (UTC)

Maybe that distinction (which I've never heard of, but I believe you) should be explained in the article. Luminifer (talk) 21:51, 4 September 2009 (UTC)

Led Zeppelin

Everyone knows the first Power Ballad was 'Thank You' from 'Led Zeppelin II'

Re: 60's Power Ballads, Wall of Sound does not a Power Ballad Make...—Preceding unsigned comment added by 208.54.94.80 (talk) 05:35, 19 August 2009 (UTC)

No reference will ever be found to prove your opinion correct so the text has been removed. Wether B (talk) 10:38, 19 August 2009 (UTC)

Alice Cooper

I think you will find that the earliest power ballads were by Alice Cooper. Even if you would not cite 'The Ballad of Dwight Frye' or 'Alma Mater' (1971 and 1972 respectively) as power ballads, then surely it has to go to 'Only Women Bleed' in 1975. After that, Alice had many big hits in the late 70s with power ballads 'I never Cry', 'You and Me' and 'How You Gonna See Me Now?'. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 195.171.29.130 (talk) 08:31, 20 February 2020 (UTC)

Reference

I spent a lot of time finding a reference to Def Leppard's song on here - I notice it's been removed. Did anyone notice when? Luminifer (talk) 02:08, 31 August 2009 (UTC)

Found it - got moved on aug 6. Luminifer (talk) 02:16, 31 August 2009 (UTC)

Wasn't needed anyways. Listcrufting and example farming does nothing but hurt an article. The Real Libs-speak politely 02:45, 31 August 2009 (UTC)

It absolutely is needed as it supercedes the Motley Crue example, which I think, if anything, is the one that should be removed. Also, your edit did not remove the reference, you just moved it back to the wrong place. I'll put it back again, but please pay more attention to your edits in the future.. Thanks. Luminifer (talk) 02:52, 31 August 2009 (UTC)

The MTV link mentions the song but does not support that it was a power ballad. And the second link given fails WP:RS and shouldn't be used as a reference. Peter Fleet (talk) 17:48, 31 August 2009 (UTC)

This Page is Hurting

Just trolling Wikipedia for no particular reason, and I came upon this page. I understand there are (from what I can see here) numerous outstanding arguments. Unfortunatly, with much of the disputed content gone, this page looks to the average person to be lacking. In fact, I have never seen a page that is so central to the music genre being so... empty. Something has to be done. -174.103.224.13 (talk) 05:17, 2 September 2009 (UTC)

Feel free to suggest something or back up an idea that's been shot down :) Luminifer (talk) 05:22, 2 September 2009 (UTC)

New text

Just to be clear, unless someone objects, I will add back in the text people kept reverting, with the following references:

• [4] At the top of this page, it begins line three "on, 1976 became the year the Power Ballad Broke". I almost verbatim copied that text out of there. (p132)
• [5] Here is the page that says Motley Crue's was the first hair metal power ballad aired on MTV, specifically. It starts around line 6. (p133)
• [6] I forgot this link which cites the text about "rockers wanting to seem more sensitive"... Third paragraph. (p131

Any questions? Luminifer (talk) 14:50, 11 September 2009 (UTC)

The change I will place back is here[7]... Luminifer (talk) 14:59, 11 September 2009 (UTC)

Here goes. Luminifer (talk) 15:47, 14 September 2009 (UTC)

What About Meat Loaf???

Meat Loaf, a great American singer, has to be on the list. A great balladeer, his songs "I'd Do Anything For Love" (But I Won't Do That) is on SingStar Rock Ballads, and "For Crying Out Loud" is really a great a song; such passion in his voice. A great vocalist and he should be recognised for that commitment. Spranko13 (talk) 07:42, 12 September 2009 (UTC)

Actually, I agree. If you can find a published source saying that he is known for his power ballads, then feel free to put it in - but otherwise, someone will certainly remove it. Luminifer (talk) 17:22, 12 September 2009 (UTC)