Power ballads...

Dudess

... are fupping quality. They're cheesy etc but one of the most enjoyable things in life is rocking out to a power ballad - screw being a purist. So what power ballads do you like? Both sexes are capable of delivering an awesomely OTT power ballad but my list contains mostly gals - I don't know why.

Pat Benatar - Love Is A Battlefield, We Belong (less airplay these days than Love Is A Battlefield but even better - melodramatic to a fault and even featuring a children's choir, the ultimate power tool).

Tina Turner - We Don't Need Another Hero (Thunderdome) (from the Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome soundtrack. Also featuring a children's choir. Awesome!)

Heart - These Dreams, Alone, and to a lesser extent All I Wanna Do Is Make Love To You (these chicks are probably the creators of the power ballad).

Robin Beck - For The Very First Time (a Coca Cola ad classic).

Jennifer Rush - The Power of Love (the massiveness of the hair, the PVC-ness of the clothes, the drama of the video - they don't make 'em like that anymore).

Whitesnake - Here I Go Again, Is This Love? (Dave Coverdale was all man but not afraid to show his feelings).

REO Speedwagon (yes, I admit it!) - Can't Fight This Feeling Anymore, I'm Just Gonna Keep On Loving You (songs to really make you "mullet" over - heh).

Foreigner - I Wanna Know What Love Is (that dude was in so much pain and dammit, he wasn't gonna hold those feelings in).

Berlin - Take My Breath Away (from a simpler time before Tom Cruise went batty and filmed various homoerotic scenes for Top Gun, on whose soundtrack this classic features).

KnifeWRENCH

I like "Love Is A Battlefield" but I've always hated "Take My Breath Away"

But the Ultimate Power Ballad for me is "Total Eclipse of The Heart".

I've promised myself I will sing scream it at a karaoke event some day!

Dudess

Hmmm... a very obvious one but neglected by me as I just don't like it. That vid though, aces the power ballad test - a church, an altar boy choir, a storm, the church turning upside down etc...

Jim Steinman, who wrote and produced that song, may have worked with Meatloaf (I don't hate all his stuff but I hate most of it, it sucks) and Celine Dion (:eek:) but I'm prepared to forgive him as he could do "power" like possibly nobody else...

Pigman II

Showing your age there Dudess. I betya even have an old wooden tennis racket to play air guitar with as well!

noby

square_igloo wrote: »

I've always hated "Take My Breath Away"

It was the death of the band too.

Dudess

Pigman II wrote: »

Showing your age there Dudess. I betya even have an old wooden tennis racket to play air guitar with as well!

Three of them! And swingball rackets too...

KnifeWRENCH

The video freaks me out a bit - especially when their eyes glow! Doesn't appear to make any sense...

I just love how the song is so dramatic and ridiculously OTT. Bonnie Tyler sings "passionately" one could say!

Xavi6

Dudess wrote: »

... are fupping quality. They're cheesy etc but one of the most enjoyable things in life is rocking out to a power ballad - screw being a purist. So what power ballads do you like? Both sexes are capable of delivering an awesomely OTT power ballad but my list contains mostly gals - I don't know why.

Pat Benatar - Love Is A Battlefield, We Belong (less airplay these days than Love Is A Battlefield but even better - melodramatic to a fault and even featuring a children's choir, the ultimate power tool).

Tina Turner - We Don't Need Another Hero (Thunderdome) (from the Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome soundtrack. Also featuring a children's choir. Awesome!)

Heart - These Dreams, Alone, and to a lesser extent All I Wanna Do Is Make Love To You (these chicks are probably the creators of the power ballad).

Robin Beck - For The Very First Time (a Coca Cola ad classic).

Jennifer Rush - The Power of Love (the massiveness of the hair, the PVC-ness of the clothes, the drama of the video - they don't make 'em like that anymore).

Whitesnake - Here I Go Again, Is This Love? (Dave Coverdale was all man but not afraid to show his feelings).

REO Speedwagon (yes, I admit it!) - Can't Fight This Feeling Anymore, I'm Just Gonna Keep On Loving You (songs to really make you "mullet" over - heh).

Foreigner - I Wanna Know What Love Is (that dude was in so much pain and dammit, he wasn't gonna hold those feelings in).

Berlin - Take My Breath Away (from a simpler time before Tom Cruise went batty and filmed various homoerotic scenes for Top Gun, on whose soundtrack this classic features).

How can you like these but not 'Winds of Change'?!?!

Does 'Total Eclipse of the Heart' count?

Wreck

Can't believe the true heavyweight of the power ballad has been ignored - Meatloaf. Bat out of Hell is one of the all time classics.

Creature

Ah you can't beat a bit of Whitesnake or Journey to finish off that homemade classic rock playlist.

Damn you Dudess you've got me humming Here I Go Again now...

ntlbell

Try and get some male ones in..

Queen - We Are the champions

Guns N Roses - november Rain

Robbie Williams - Angels

Prince - Purple Rain

Ben E King - stand by me

g'em

square_igloo wrote: »

Bonnie Tyler sings "passionately" one could say!

Ms. Tyler singing "Hero" ftw!!!

Dudess, I'll swap you a swing ball set for a hopper ball...

ntlbell

Wreck wrote: »

Can't believe the true heavyweight of the power ballad has been ignored - Meatloaf. Bat out of Hell is one of the all time classics.

hahaha, forgot all about him...

no Celine dion either scandless!

Dudess

Ah I mentioned the Loaf and Total Eclipse of the Heart in post #3.

Ooh yes, Journey. Don't Stop Believing - well could it possibly rawk more?

coady

Whitesnake are the kings of Power Ballads

on their album 1987 they have 3 . 2 already mentioned and also my favorite .. "looking for love"

Dudess

g'em wrote: »

Ms. Tyler singing "Hero" ftw!!!

Dudess, I'll swap you a swing ball set for a hopper ball...

I was crap at all that stuff - loloballs nearly killed me, as did rollerskates and skateboards. I sucked at hoola hoops too.

I wasn't bad at skipping and elastics though

KnifeWRENCH

I'd forgotten about MeatLoaf - "I Would Do Anything For Love..." would be another fantastic karaoke tune!

I got sick of that feckin' Journey song the 6 millionth time I heard it on the radio - damn you Tony Soprano *shakes fist* :mad:

coady

Journey also have a song called " only the young " would this be classes as a power ballad?

Wreck

coady wrote: »

Journey also have a song called " only the young " would this be classes as a power ballad?

Upload a video clip of yourself singing along and rocking out to it so we can decide

beerbaron

Have you all forgotten "Asia - The Heat Of The Moment" ??

chin_grin

Bonnie Tyler - Holding Out For A Hero..............ah the end of Short Circuit......gets me here everytime....

g'em

Dudess wrote: »

I wasn't bad at skipping and elastics though

Elastics!!!!! Yessssss!!! Oh the memories are flooding back now


The Cars - Drive; major lump in throat time

Edit - that's not really "power" though is it?

Xavi6

Foreigner and Mr. Mister were also good ones for an oul power ballad.

And Roxette - 'Listen to Your Heart' is amazing.

coady

here you go WRECK
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L7ZaD1NQ120

Wreck

coady wrote: »

here you go WRECK
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L7ZaD1NQ120

Rickroll?


Every Rose Has Its Thorn by Poison also deserves a mention. I'm actually singing along to it in my head right now.

coady

I hate rick roll , dont worry just the song I mentioned

Dudess

Def Leppard's Hysteria has some awesome power ballads on it - Love Bites ftw.

blastman

coady wrote: »

Journey also have a song called " only the young " would this be classes as a power ballad?

IMO, no, but you could include Lights, Who's Cryin' Now, Faithfully, Open Arms, etc., etc. by the same band

A Man I'll Never Be by Boston or I Remember You by Skid Row are real power ballads.

blastman

Dudess wrote: »

Def Leppard's Hysteria has some awesome power ballads on it - Love Bites ftw.

Two Steps Behind and When Love And Hate Collide...wimptastic!!

Dudess

Oh man, Boston! How could I forget More Than A Feeling?! It rocks like no other!

Jim Diamond - Should Have Known Better sucks but is SO a power ballad. Another song by him called I Won't Let You Down (with the group PhD ) has terrible verses but a pretty good chorus, then it gets really epic towards the end and is totally awesome!

Latchy

Cutting crews ' i just died in your arms ' and ' dont fear the reaper 'by blue oyster cult are up there with the best imo

Amazotheamazing

Time after Time

The greatest of them all.

Dudess

Don't Fear The Reaper is an absolute classic which makes beautiful use of the cowbell, but is it a power ballad? I personally don't think so. Where is the cheese, the melodrama, the big hair?

dr.bollocko

I wanna see a classic rock forum on boards.
I heartily endorse Power ballads.
Please show your support here!

Oh and

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0brHGJ6xqbk

BTW

Ruu_Old

Autograph-Turn Up The Radio.

Hair-check
80s-check
Cheese-oh hell yes, check

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yNb8po-ufu8

dr.bollocko

Dudess wrote: »

Don't Fear The Reaper is an absolute classic which makes beautiful use of the cowbell, but is it a power ballad? I personally don't think so. Where is the cheese, the melodrama, the big hair?

Total power ballad in my opinion.
And Freakiest outiest solo ever!

dr.bollocko

Oh my god. Did we forget poison? Every rose has its thorn?
ZOMG!
NOES!!!!
WE all fail.

Dudess

Calm down dr. It was mentioned several posts ago...

dr.bollocko

Dudess wrote: »

Calm down dr. It was mentioned several posts ago...

/comes back to life.
Every doctor sings a sad sad song.

Howard the Duck

Anyone mention Pat Benatar Shadows of the Night? Class song

Dudess

dr.bollocko wrote: »

I wanna see a classic rock forum on boards.

Gets a massive thumbs-up from me. And yes, while Patti Smith would puke all over her dog-eared Rimbaud collection at the thought of being in the same company as Foreigner, Heart et al, Because The Night is most certainly a power ballad.

Kayleigh by Marillion is another stormin', corkin' power ballad.

dr.bollocko

Then please show your support here!
Please? I need some mod love.
Ole Karl hates the idea.
I can see his point. But I think it isnt really represented in the existing forum structure. See how it goes.

Latchy

Dudess wrote: »

Don't Fear The Reaper is an absolute classic which makes beautiful use of the cowbell, but is it a power ballad? I personally don't think so. Where is the cheese, the melodrama, the big hair?

I was going to kick DFTR into touch but i am going with dr bollocko (below) on this

dr.bollocko wrote: »

Total power ballad in my opinion.
And Freakiest outiest solo ever!

Very freaky indeed and a bit out of sync with rest of track imo.

Maybe that's why it's in the half way house of power ballads

Dudess

dr.bollocko wrote: »

Then please show your support here!
Please? I need some mod love.
Ole Karl hates the idea.
I can see his point. But I think it isnt really represented in the existing forum structure. See how it goes.

I've given my support. Yeah, your suggestion has made Karl very cross indeed. I wanted to start a classic indie forum last year and it brought out the angry young man in him then too (to be fair, it wasn't a great idea - however this is a great one...)

Anyhoo, more power ballads: Don Henley - that man could record a very powerful ditty indeed. New York Minute (imagine the royalties 9/11 generated for him) and of course Boys of Summer - class. Probably not as bombastic as most power ballads - it has a gentler sound - but ticks the other boxes.

And Lynyrd Skynyrd's Freebird, although not a cheesy 80s power ballad (the prototype) it also ticks a lot of the boxes.

Xavi6 wrote: »

Foreigner and Mr. Mister were also good ones for an oul power ballad.

Mr Mister - Kyrie or Take These Broken Wings? It's a difficult one...

And Roxette - 'Listen to Your Heart' is amazing.

It Must Have Been Love is pretty powertastic too... Actually Fading Like A Flower is the best (imo). That pretty piano segment that sounds oh so mellow but then suddenly BAM!!! A mean geetar power-chord blows your eardrums...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XkDWWnK9JSQ
Then it goes and rips off More Than a Feeling in the chorus but hey, very few power ballads didn't.

Xavi6

Dudess wrote: »

Mr Mister - Kyrie or Take These Broken Wings? It's a difficult one...

Tis but I'd have to go with 'Broken Wings'. It's just so good.

Dudess wrote: »

It Must Have Been Love is pretty powertastic too... Actually Fading Like A Flower is the best (imo). That pretty piano segment that sounds oh so mellow but then suddenly BAM!!! A mean geetar power-chord blows your eardrums...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XkDWWnK9JSQ
Then it goes and rips off More Than a Feeling in the chorus but hey, very few power ballads didn't.

Yeah 'Fading Like A Flower' is pretty damn superb as well (although didn't some skanger turn it into a dance song about two years ago? Disgraceful). In fact, Roxette's greatest hits is an essential imo. Might go stick it on now actually.....

Climate Expert

I did a power ballad compilation there a while ago for a few friends. Check out this tracklist.

My work is done. I've carefully selected 14 of the finest power ballads imagineable. All more or less exact copies of each other due to my strick stylistic criteria.


1. When in Rome : The promise
2. Foreigner : I wanna know what love is
3. T'Pau : China in your hand
4. Berlin : Take my breath away
5. Cutting Crew : I just died in your arms
6. Alphaville : Forever Young
7. Cars : Drive
8. John Farnham : The voice
9. Heart : Alone
10. Bangles : Eternal Flame
11. Bonnie Tyler : Total eclipse of the heart
12. Scorpions : Wind of Change
13. Jennifer Rush : The power of love
14. Maria McKee : Show me heaven

http://rapidshare.com/files/110029625/Love_and_Pain.rar.html

Xavi6

Ah good call on John Farnham, though if he qualifies then so must Toto with 'Africa'?

IanCurtis

Dudess wrote: »

Pat Benatar - Love Is A Battlefield

That song is not a ballad :rolleyes:

IanCurtis

chin_grin wrote: »

Bonnie Tyler - Holding Out For A Hero..............ah the end of Short Circuit......gets me here everytime....

That's not a ballad either :rolleyes:

IanCurtis

This is a ballad:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MLxTEV5vpyg

Dudess

IanCurtis wrote: »

That song is not a ballad :rolleyes:

LOL - that really warrants the rolleyes symbol. Itching for a reason to act obnoxiously again are ya?!