A thread for the worst ballads/power ballads by rawk bands

Def Leppard - Love Bites
http://youtu.be/0T1IVyXBGjM

Always skipped this on Hysteria

http://www.kuschelrock.de

what is that?

How do we separate the early 90s power ballads above (Mr Big etc) from their late 80s equivalents? Just more acoustic guitars?

I wasn't aware there was any differences

Kuschelrock means cuddle rock in German. It's a series of compilations that has now reached No. 26.

That song by Cheap Trick (so bad i forgot the name) should be included

KUSCHELROCK 26 - Tracklisting

CD 1

1. Coldplay - Paradise
2. Bruno Mars - Just The Way You Are
3. Israel Kamkawiwo'ole - Over the Rainbow
4. Roman Lob - Standing Still
5. OneRepublic - Secrets
6. Milow - You Don't Know
7. Ed Sheeran - The A Team
8. Christina Perri - Jar Of Hearts
9. Silbermond - Himmel auf
10. Max Herre & Philipp Poisel - Wolke 7
11. James Blunt - Goodbye My Lover
12. Rob Thomas - Little Wonders
13. Stanfour - In Your Arms
14. Walk off the Earth - Somebody that I used to know
15. Rebecca Ferguson - Nothing Is Real But Love
16. Beyoncé - Broken-Hearted Girl
17. Michael Bublé - Lost
18. Leona Lewis - Bleeding Love
19. Alanis Morissette - Guardian


CD 2

1. Lenny Kravitz - I'll Be Waiting
2. Sting - Fragile
3. Reamonn - Tonight
4. Nickelback - Lullaby
5. Sunrise Avenue - Hollywood Hills (Special version)
6. Colbie Caillat - Bubbly
7. Norah Jones - Come Away With Me
8. Take That - Babe
9. Melanie C - Northern Star
10. Glen Hansard & Marketa Irglova - Falling Slowly (aus «Once»)
11. Chris de Burgh - A Spaceman Came Travelling (new Version)
12. Livingston - Broken (aus « Zweiohrküken »)
13. Jonas Myrin - Craze (acoustik version
14. Lene Marlin - Sittin Down Here
15. Gipsy Kings - Tu Quieres Volver
16. Simply Red - Holding Back The Years
17. Lou Reed - Walk On The Wild Side
18. Sade - Your Love Is King
19. Madonna - Live To tell

CD 3

1. Robbie Williams & Nicole Kidman - Something Stupid
2. Mariah Carey & Westlife - Against All Odds
3. Joe Cocker - Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me
4. Seal - Love Don't Live Here Anymore
5. George Michael - Roxanne
6. Katie Melua & Eva Cassidy - What A Wonderful World
7. Celine Dion - Dance With My Father
8. Michael Jackson - Smile
9. Joana Zimmer - Everything I Do…
10. Jennifer Rush - Nights In White Satin
11. Pamela Falcon & Percival - Purple Rain
12. Selig - Knockin' On Heaven's Door
13. Xavier Naidoo - Don't Give Up
14. Laith Al-Deen - I'm On Fire
15. Anni B Sweet - Take On Me
16. Greg Laswell - Girls Just Wanna Have Fun
17. K.D. Lang - Halleluja
18. Chris de Burgh - In The Ghetto
19. Whitney Houston - Greatest Love Of All

none (or almost none) of those are power ballads. they're just schmaltzy pop songs.

yeah i don't see where there get the 'rock' from

Not enough swaggering thundercocks like Whitesnake on that CD

Well this 3CD collection is called TRUE POWER BALLADS - so don't blame lol

1. Addicted to Love Robert Palmer
2. Breakfast At Tiffany's (Album Version) Deep Blue Something
3. I Was Made For Lovin' You (Album Version) Kiss
4. Hole Hearted (Album Version) Extreme
5. Babe Styx
6. Cats In The Cradle Ugly Kid Joe
7. Baby I Don't Care Transvision Vamp
8. Chance (Single / Extended Version) Big Country
9. Since You Been Gone (Album Version) Rainbow
10. Don't Know What You Got (Till It's Gone) (Album Version) Cinderella
11. What's Up? (Edit) 4 Non Blondes
12. Womankind Little Angels
13. Show Me The Way (Album Edit) Peter Frampton
14. Black Hole Sun (Edit) Soundgarden
15. Let's Make A Night To Remember (Single Version) Bryan Adams
16. Wind Of Change (Album Version) Scorpions
17. If I Could Turn Back Time (Album Version) Cher

1. Easy (Album Version) Commodores
2. Leaving Me Now (Remix) Level 42
3. Stop (Edit) Sam Brown
4. Wouldn't It Be Good (Album Version) Nik Kershaw
5. Kiss The Rain (Radio Edit) Billie Myers
6. Head Over Heels Tears For Fears
7. Nights In White Satin Elkie Brooks
8. Love Hurts Jim Capaldi
9. Cry Godley & Creme
10. Sarah (Version 3) Thin Lizzy
11. Tempted Squeeze
12. We're All Alone Rita Coolidge
13. High On Emotion Chris De Burgh
14. Senza Una Donna (English Version) [feat. Paul Young] Zucchero
15. Music (US Single Version) John Miles
16. A Thousand Miles (Album Version) Vanessa Carlton
17. Cherish (Single Version) Kool & The Gang
18. Show Me Heaven Maria McKee

1. Baby Can I Hold You (7" Edit) Boyzone
2. Higher Love (Single Version) Steve Winwood
3. Woman In Chains [feat. Oleta Adams] Tears For Fears
4. On The Wings Of Love (Album Version) Jeffrey Osborne
5. Baby, I Love Your Way Peter Frampton
6. Up Where We Belong (An Officer And A Gentleman/Soundtrack Version) Joe Cocker
7. What Kind Of Fool All About Eve
8. Will You? Hazel O'Connor
9. Something About You (Single Version) Level 42
10. All The Way From America Joan Armatrading
11. Hello (Album Version) Lionel Richie
12. Come Sail Away (Single Version) Styx
13. Kissing Gate Sam Brown
14. Could've Been (Album Version) Tiffany
15. Don't Cry Out Loud Elkie Brooks
16. More Than Words Extreme
17. I'm Not In Love 10cc

Kuschelrock means cuddle rock in German. It's a series of compilations that has now reached No. 26.

I had no idea there were that many remixes of "Winds of Change."

When people think of power ballads im sure they think of this rather than boyzone or james blunt
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3WAZ60xA9wo

that video was uploaded by wimpyliberalbuster32 so is he a wimpy guy who hates liberals but likes hair metal ballads? or does he think liberals are wimpy because they dont listen to real men music like hair metal?

i'm having nightmares about listening to those albums back to back though

18. Chris de Burgh - In The Ghetto

oh god

Germans sure do love the Burghmeister

How do we separate the early 90s power ballads above (Mr Big etc) from their late 80s equivalents? Just more acoustic guitars?

― Master of Treacle, Monday, 5 August 2013 16:52 (52 minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

I wasn't aware there was any differences

Even the early 90s songs are not in the same style. Compared to Firehouse, Extreme and Queensryche were like art-rock bands who did concept albums. It's not 100% obvious from those two songs in isolation, maybe, but neither is a typical power ballad by any stretch, although they're both slow songs by hard rock bands. "More than Words" is a decent Everly Bros pastiche. "Silent Lucidity" is a decent Pink Floyd pastiche that's not even about a romantic/sexual relationship in any obvious sense. It's no more of a power ballad than "Comfortably Numb" is. If they came out in the past decade, they'd both probably be considered 'indie' (Plain White T's vs Muse?).

I don't really have the energy to listen to a tonne of songs by Firehouse, Warrant, Creed, etc to pick out the actual worst, though.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z92bmlcmyq0

You've heard Mr Big and Firehouse and you pick "Sister Christian" as an all-time worst rock ballad?

Sister Christian is retroactively redeemed by that scene in Boogie Nights.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hDL7WAJF3yA

sorry, those songs are just interminably dull rather than cosmically bad

That Tigertailz thing might be a real contender in that it doesn't even sound as competent as Firehouse.

which does make it less nauseating to listen to tbf

kuschelrock is making my head hurt

i also can't believe there is a human alive with a still-beating heart who doesn't like "the flame" but whatever.

xxxxxpost: I once came across a compilation called The Best of Soft Metal which included, uh, "True" by Spandau Ballet among its tracks.

Bryan Adams, "Heaven," mostly for the ur-marshmellow snare sound.

<3 "The Flame"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K6qNNtVNeYs

I also love "Heaven" -- I belted it out in the car just yesterday, in fact! On my way to Target to get shelves for the closet. I mean, that's what these songs are good for.

"Every Rose Has Its Thorn" by Poison is awful.

I once came across a compilation called The Best of Soft Metal which included, uh, "True" by Spandau Ballet among its tracks.

― arctic mindbath (President of the People's Republic of Antarctica

hahahaha

What I'm saying is that there is no worst. They are all fun. Home Sweet Home, I Wanna Know What Love Is, bring it on.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6tJz3ozRA0Q

La Lechera: what about Tigertailz and Firehouse?

Like, I like Cheap Trick and Foreigner too.

Dunno Tigertailz, Firehouse sang Love of a Lifetime? If so, no -- that song is awful.

Yep.

I think Bon Jovi - Always might win this thread. Or one of Aerosmiths lame 90s ballads

http://www.allmusic.com/album/vh1-the-big-80s-power-ballads-mw0000669707

there's a world in which this hit the top five:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AuJqJ7j7HVY

one of LL's fave songs ever is on that
xp

this stuff was really mega popular in the usa, right?

Journey to blame?

weird how so many faceless rock bands had the standard #1 power ballad hit and Journey didn't.

well, members of Journey were in, as Robert Christgau said, the aptly named Bad English.

Did I not read somewhere that Journey was the biggest selling rock band of the 80s in the USA?

The one time I saw Cheap Trick they introduced "The Flame" by saying how much they hated it, and that they were essentially forced to record it. It's unclear what or whom exactly was forcing them to play the song at that show.

when i was a kid, I didn't really listen to lyrics much, but from the bum warming his hands by the trash can fire in the video, I figured "where the down boys go" was to a homeless camp. like on some open letter to a landlord ish.

see also Skid Row

I did an air band to Bon Jovi's deep cut "Blood on Blood" in Gr 5, when I was 10. (Do they still do those in elementary schools??) I honestly had no idea when I was mouthing the words what "Danny knew this white trash girl/We each threw in a 10/She took us to this cheap motel/And turned us into men" was describing.

lol

sounds like a sorceress

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mh8MIp2FOhc

ugh

How about "You're All I Need"?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H2emMdFdeXA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GC-9NBhxTxw

Sean Morpheus 1 year ago

I have such a soft spot for the 80's ballads because they show and bring out the feminine side of these supposed hard guys who make womanizing an art form. They truly inside do feel mor for and about females than just the physical. And that is where the inspiration comes for alot of this romantic stuff. Yes some of it is contrived to make money at the time, but alot is also sincere and that is admirable. Guys need to start representing our gender better and showing females how special they are.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=219aiv7ZLiY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RuKPTtyrXY0

I still lol at them going "industrial"

Best tune selection itt of any ilm thread

I always wondered what music you were into and now we know

I aint been hidin

it all makes sense now you going from hair metal ballads to chris de burgh

the TKO

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iug0X6cJDDM

Silent Lucidity sounds to me more like a Pink Floyd The Wall rip than a true 80s power ballad.

Ha, I kept trying to make that point on this thread.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JkK8g6FMEXE

just made an entire playlist comprising only songs ITT

strangely i kinda think Steven Tyler's entire power ballad style during their 1987-1993 comeback period was a straight rip from Easy Like Sunday Morning.

Crying by Aerosmith is the worst offender.

Journey "Open Arms"
Michael Bolton "That's What Love Is All About"
Survivor "The Search Is Over"
Five For Fighting "Superman"
Bob Segar "Mainstreet"
Kid Rock "Only God Knows Why"
Hinder "Better Than Me"
Nickleback "If Everyone Cared"

so that's a list of bad songs.

the following are good songs:
Silent Lucidity
Love Song
Love Bites
The Flame
I Want To Know What Love Is
Heaven

The best Aerosmith power ballad besides "Dream On" is either "Angel" or "What It Takes" (not counting "I Don't Want To Miss A Thing" since they didn't write it).

What It Takes, sure.

Angel.....naaaaw

otm

otm

"Angel" is the definition of garbaggio.

i enjoy its cheesy bombast but the strings veer towards dentist-drill levels of shrill

I'm pretty partial to "Amazing" tbrr

zach classon 1 year ago

I remember in 5th grade I painted a picture of Surprise Attack in art class and i got an F cause i guess "there was nudity" cause the girls boobs hung out a bit but i gave myself an A on it:)

― christmas candy bar (al leong), Tuesday, August 6, 2013 7:30 PM bookmarkflaglink

so anyway let's talk about COOL power ballads or just ballads in general

the new shit on my sleepytime playlist...and you can judge it as shit or praise it, idgaf!

Richard Marx - Hold Onto the Nights (THE SOMETHING I'D BEEN LOOKING FOR IS RIIIIIGHT THEEEEEEEEREEEEEEEE)
Peabo Bryson - If Ever You're in My Arms Again (THIS TIMEEEE I KNOW IT'S FOREVERRR)
James Ingram - I Don't Have the Heart (*mega high falsetto at the end*)
Expose - I'll Never Get Over You (GETTIN OOOOVVVAAAAH MEEEE)
Queensryche - Open Road (this is Todd La Torre era, but serioussssly this song rules)
Laura Branigan - How Am I Supposed to Live Without You? (say Bolton, u die)
Nina - Foolish Heart (I like her version better than Steve Perry's!)
Cutting Crew - I've Been in Love Before (dude says "eyes" weird)
Phil Collins - Groovy Kind of Love (here come the FPs I'm sure)

Dio - Shame on the Night
Ann Wilson and Mike Reno - Almost Paradise
Def Leppard - Bringing on the Heartbreak

nowwww we’re talking

Neando & Losted your lists is almost all my faves!

Every Time You Go Away - Hall & Oates
Never Gonna Let You Go - Sergio Mendes
After All - Cher & Peter Cetera
Never Surrender - Corey Hart
She’s Like the Wind - Patrick Swayze
Heaven in Your Eyes - Loverboy
I Saw Red - Warrant
I Remember You - Skid Row
The price - Twisted Sister
Ballad of Jane - LA Guns
Love Song - Tesla

i kind of hate Paul Young’s version of Every Time, Daryl just sings it so much better than that square deadeyed limey imo

Shit I read that as "best and worst", those are some of my favorites.

I can't find a thread for best hard rock and metal ballads...

ok what i've been playing lately on sleepytime playlist which doesn't work because i don't sleep well anymore

Alias - More Than Words Can Say
Sheriff - When I'm With You (yes yes I know same singer on both of them)
Firehouse - Love of a Lifetime (hate away)
Steelheart - I'll Never Let You Go