Back in July 2012, I posted by Top Ten Hair Band Power Ballads. With some minor changes, this edition parrots my original post.
In 1985, Mötley Crüe released "Home Sweet Home" -- one of the few gems on the relatively flat Theatre of Pain album -- and unwittingly started the trend that would, for better or worse, encapsulate the hair band genre. They were certainly not the first band (or even the first hair band) to have ever released a power ballad, but they were the first hair band to release a successful power ballad. The song itself didn't chart particularly high (#86 on the Billboard Hot 100), it ruled MTV with its iconic "life on the road" video that itself was groundbreaking at the time. Record companies noticed the success of the song and video, and soon every hair band had a power ballad on its record and even more females at its concerts.
Ironically, the power ballad's success spelled doom for a lot of hair bands because they were pegged as ballad bands (Mr. Big and Extreme come to mind), while audiences and Top 40 radio ignored the other nine harder rocking songs on their albums. In addition, many of these band's hardcore fans didn't like the power ballads because they thought the band was selling out and turning away from its harder rocking roots. Frankly, while I understand the latter argument, I find it disingenuous. Sure, you want your favorite bands to continue rocking on every song, but you also want them to be successful, which for many of these bands meant that they had to release a power ballad. It is what it is. Also, let's be honest, all of these songs are awesome, whether you want to admit that you sing along to them when you're alone in your car or not.
"But GMYH, what exactly is a power ballad, and shouldn't you lose some weight?" Well, fair reader, a power ballad is a slower tempo song that usually (but not necessarily) starts with acoustic guitars and/or piano and little, if any, percussion. The song builds, usually into a chorus, which has electric guitars, loud and impassioned singing, and more percussion, but then the song often takes it back down a few notches for the verses. And yes. Weight Watchers worked very well, but then I kind of stopped working out as much, or at all, for that matter. And let us never forget the drinking.
It is important to note the distinction between a ballad and a power ballad. A ballad is a song that never really kicks into electric guitars, loud singing, or percussion. Hence, no "power." Sometimes it's a fine line, but this list is about power ballads, not ballads, so songs like "To Be With You" by Mr. Big, "More Than Words" or "Hole Hearted" by Extreme, "When the Children Cry" by White Lion," "Love Is On the Way" by Saigon Kick, and (as much as it pains me) "Patience" by Guns N' Roses are not on this list.
By the same token, sometimes it's hard to figure out if a song is actually a power ballad or just a standard kickass rock and roll song. I made some judgment calls. For instance, I was wavering on whether "Wanted Dead or Alive" by Bon Jovi, "18 and Life" by Skid Row, "Headed for a Heartbreak" by Winger, "Love Walks In" by Van Halen, or "Don't Cry" (original or alternate lyrics) and "November Rain" by Guns N' Roses are power ballads, but ultimately decided that they are not. This is just something you're going to have to deal with.
With that, here are the ten best hair band power ballads, along with a slew of honorable mentions. Because I love you so much, I'm including all of them on the playlist at the end of the list. Raise your lighters, people -- or at least your Zippo app.
Honorable mention (alphabetical by artist): "High Enough" by Damn Yankees; "Love Bites" by Def Leppard; "Alone Again" by Dokken; "Carrie" by Europe; "House of Pain" by Faster Pussycat; "Love of a Lifetime" by FireHouse; "Close My Eyes Forever" by Lita Ford and Ozzy Osbourne; "Give to Live" by Sammy Hagar; "Forever" by Kiss; "Don't Close Your Eyes" by Kix; "Ballad of Jayne" by L.A. Guns; "Without You" by Mötley Crüe; "Mama I'm Coming Home" by Ozzy Osbourne; "I Won't Forget You" by Poison; "Something to Believe In" by Poison; "Givin' Yourself Away" by Ratt; "Fly to the Angels" by Slaughter; "Still Loving You" by Scorpions; "Honestly" by Stryper; "I Saw Red" by Warrant; "Sometimes She Cries" by Warrant; "Is This Love?" by Whitesnake
10 (tie). "Bringin' on the Heartbreak" by Def Leppard
I wrestled with whether this was a power ballad, since it's all electric, but concluded that it was. Then I wrestled with whether it was a better power ballad than "Love Bites," and that was a tougher call, but I think it this is simply the better song.
10 (tie). "Don't Know What You Got (Till It's Gone)" by Cinderella
This is Cinderella's biggest hit, overshadowing some really good blues-based rock. Nonetheless, it's a strong power ballad that was prominently featured not only on MTV, but also in a dream I had about physician-assisted suicide.
9. "I'll Never Let You Go" by Steelheart
I went a little bit off the grid with this one, but it is an underrated song, even though it rose as high as #14 on the Billboard charts in 1991. It's a great song. Lead singer Mike Matijevic has an unbelievable vocal range, which is evident in this song. Some of the notes he hits are Mariah Carey-esque. He hits one note at about the 3:25 mark that makes your balls re-ascend. You may also recognize his voice from the movie Rock Star. He was the signing voice of Mark Wahlberg's character Chris "Izzy" Cole.
8. "Wind of Change" by Scorpions
Most of the songs on this list are about love or heartbreak, but "Wind of Change" is about much more. It was written in 1989, as Communist states and the Cold War were beginning to collapse, and it's about the resulting "wind of change" Glasnost brought, particularly in Russia. It wasn't released as a single until 1991, and it took off all over the world, hitting the Top 10 in 11 countries, the Top 5 in 10 countries, and #1 in 7 countries. It is the best-selling single by a German artist and one of the twenty best-selling singles ever worldwide. And it's still pretty awesome live.
7. "I'll Be There for You" by Bon Jovi
There are certain songs that will always remind you of a particular moment in your life. Whenever I hear "I'll Be There For You," I remember a spring 1989 grade school sock hop –- yes, a sock hop -– for the "upperclassmen" (grades 4-6). Instead of Danny and The Juniors, the DJ played contemporary Top 40 songs, including "I'll Be There For You." I was in fifth grade at the time, and when this song came on, a group of "popular" sixth grade girls formed a big circle with their arms around each others' shoulders, letting everyone –- including fifth grade boys with no shoes on -- into the circle. We swayed back and forth and sang "I'll Be There For You" together. It was a pretty solid Kumbaya moment. Then "Push It" by Salt 'N' Pepa came on, and it devolved into a Roman-esque orgy. What did the parents and teachers expect? The most difficult pieces of outerwear to remove were already off. The rest was a breeze. I just can't believe my little baby boy Leon is 28 now. Of course, I missed his birthday. I just wish I'd seen him blow those candles out.
6. "Love Song" by Tesla
Tesla was one of those bands that straddled the acoustic/electric fence very well. Some people think they're wrongly grouped in with the hair band genre, since they never wore make-up and, for the most part, they didn't dress like post-modern Parisian hookers, but a lot of their music was sonically similar to the hair bands' music, so there you go. "Love Song" is my favorite Tesla song. Jeff Keith has a gritty, soulful voice that lends itself well to both hard rock and power ballads. I've seen Tesla a few times over the years, and Keith hasn't lost anything (nor has the rest of the band, for that matter).
5. "Home Sweet Home" by Mötley Crüe
Like I mentioned above, this is the one that started it all. To have a list of top ten hair band power ballads without "Home Sweet Home" would be like having video camera and not filming your former Playmate wife blowing you in a car and then distributing it worldwide.
4. "Every Rose Has Its Thorn" by Poison
This is kind of the seminal power ballad. It has heartache, betrayal, and Bret Michaels. Hair band power ballad purists –- which I assume is a thing –- will probably decry me for not ranking this #1. To them I say, it's not the best hair band power ballad.
3. "Sister Christian" by Night Ranger
My internal debate with this song is not whether it's a power ballad -- there's not doubt about that -- but whether Night Ranger is a hair band. Genres are slippery concepts, and I think some bands have certain songs that fall into certain genres and others that don't. Right or wrong, I've always considered this a hair band song (as well as several of their other songs, such as "Don't Tell Me You Love Me"). Now that that's out of the way, let's focus on the song. What a killer chorus. When placed in the vocal chords, this is an excellent karaoke song. My buddy Daniel does a mean version that generally brings the house down, prefacing the song with the statement, "This song is about losing your virginity." It's not.
2. "Heaven" by Warrant
Jani Lane was a master at writing power ballads. "I Saw Red," "Sometimes She Cries," and "Blind Faith" are good examples, but "Heaven" is his crowning power ballad achievement. "Got a picture of your house / And your standing by the door / It's black and white and faded / And it's looking pretty worn." The imagery of the first lines draws you in, so you're paying attention when the bombastic chorus kicks in. Of course, the song became even sadder (and the chorus tragically apropos) after Lane died in 2011.
1. "I Remember You" by Skid Row
This is one of my favorite Skid Row songs, and it provides a showcase for Sebastian Bach's powerful pipes. For me, this is the quintessential hair band power ballad. The lows are soft and sweet with only and acoustic guitar and a soft drum, and the "power" is forceful, with a hooky, sing-along chorus and well-timed blasts of electric guitar, crescendoing into the gnarly bridge and a guitar solo, and ending with Bach's wailing on the repeating chorus.
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment