My Favorite Ballads

I found this list difficult to put together. I am not a huge fan of ballads, and I think I may be cheating a little here. So someone can feel free to set me straight. Some of the songs on my list may not be true ballads. In rock and roll circles ballads, other than being slowed down, usually have themes of relationships and romance. Some of these songs do not fit that criteria, but there are many definitions of ballads out there. In any event, these are slower songs by rock bands and here are 5 of my favorites.

5. Ride On, ACDC. Question for you. Has ACDC ever recorded another slow song? I love this one. It's unmistakably ACDC, but still so different than most everything else they ever recorded. This slow song perfectly suits the mood if you are tired, wore out, haggard, and just want to crash out for a while.

4. Every Rose Has its Throne, Poison. An eighties classic ballad. I can’t count how many parties I have been at where someone strummed this one out on an acoustic guitar and everyone sang along. Pretty simple stuff too, I’ve seen non-guitar players learn this one in no time. My favorite memory of this song is from the movie Bill and Ted’s Bogus Journey. When Bill and Ted were asked the meaning of life, they looked at each dumbfounded for a moment and then proclaimed “Every rose has its throne, just like every night has its dawn…..”. Their answer was deemed acceptable. This song was a huge hit for Poison and reached number one. It seemed for a while the thing to do for a hard rock band in the eighties was to release an acoustically driven ballad. Many of them didn’t work for me, but for some reason this one did.

3. Wanted Dead or Alive, Bon Jovi. First question I will ask put forth to you all is this considered a ballad? It’s a slow rocker, but not a romantic one. It’s actually one of my all time favorite songs. Back in the day I loved the video and the lyrics. I still think the song is great.

2. Wheat Kings, The Tragically Hip. The Tragically Hip are known for their hard rock alternative music, but they have put out a few slower numbers that I have enjoyed (Long Time Running, Fiddler’s Green, Pigeon Camera, Scared, Ahead By a Century), but this one tops my list. It tells the true story of a man wrongfully convicted of murder. After twenty years in jail the verdict was overturned and he was released. As a teacher of English, I have often used this one with my students for an example of narrative poetry and the imagery throughout.

1. Elderly Woman Behind the Counter in a Small Town, Pearl Jam. And the award for the longest song title goes to….Pearl Jam. As a side note does anyone know a song title longer than this one? I lost interest in many of the alternative bands that burst onto the scene in the early nineties, but I did stick with Pearl Jam. From their second release comes this slow haunting acoustic track about….well, an elderly women behind the counter of a small town. Every now and again a song hits you and you can instantly relate to it. Growing up in a smaller town as a child I often visited a small convenience store to buy candy, hockey cards, etc. The same lady served me for years until I left town for the big city and college life. Years later I returned as an adult, only to find the same person serving me. We stared at each other, but didn’t really talk. This song describes that moment to me.

I have put forth a few questions throughout this post, please feel free to answer any of them or share your favorite ballads.

Bon Jovi Thoughts

This third album from Bon Jovi was a massive hit
and put them on the map to stay over 20 years ago.

My wife is a huge Bon Jovi fan. I’ve always liked the band, and although they never topped my list of favorites, I have enjoyed them over the years. I have seem them perform on two occasions, my wife zero. Both my concert experiences were before our marriage and both were amazing shows. We have to make an effort to see them sometime in the next couple of years for my wife’s sake, and I am sure I won’t be disappointed in the concert either.

I have begun to respect Bon Jovi more as a band over the years. There is no questioning their lasting power and their ability to release solid records and put off great live shows to large audiences. They have changed, but never in a sudden and drastic way. They have evolved, but are still Bon Jovi.

The first time I saw Bon Jovi was towards the end of their tour supporting the Keep the Faith album. I thought this was a strong recording and offered at least 4 or 5 radio friendly popular singles, all of which were played that night. The show I saw would have been one of the last base guitarist Alec John Such played with the band. There have been reports that the rest of the band was displeased with his performance and he was dismissed of his duties. One thing that has always annoyed me is that they have never officially replaced him. I think Hugh Macdonald has been playing base with them ever since. However, he is never listed as an official member of the band, he is always listed as “with Hugh Macdonald”. I like a band to be a band, a complete unit, and if there has to be a lineup change, then so be it.

Bon Jovi started the concert that night with the lead off track from the Keep the Faith album, I Believe. In addition to their singles from that record, they played all the hits from New Jersey and Slippery When Wet. Jon, by himself, played one from his first solo release and the band accompanied him for Blaze of Glory from the same album. They played a couple from their earlier efforts, Runaway and In And Out of Love, and because the show was in December, a holiday song was added to the setlist. There was no denying that it was a very entertaining show.

I don’t own every Bon Jovi recording, but in any event here are my top 10 Bon Jovi songs.

10. I Believe. This song from the Keep the Faith recording is, for the most part, what I like my Bon Jovi songs to be, just fun easy optimistic songs.

9. Livin’ on a Prayer. This song and You Give Love a Bad Name were massive hits from the Slippery When Wet album. I prefer this one.

8. Lay Your Hands on Me. It’s a great arena rocker from the New Jersey album. Sounded great both times I saw them live.

7. Have a Nice Day. I never owned this album of the same name, but I loved this single.

6. Keep the Faith. A bit of a different song for them. I was surprised it was released as a single. I really liked it and it was nice to hear them put out something that wasn’t as radio friendly for a change.

5. Raise Your Hands. One of my favorite rockin’ tracks from their breakout Slippery When Wet album.

4. Who Says You Can’t Go Home, Another single from the Have a Nice Day album. A great feel good happy song.

3. Lost Highway. A nice mid tempo title track from their latest release of the same name. Strangely enough I was hearing this song a lot during a rather dark period in my life when dealing with a serious family illness. During the many drives to and from the hospital this song somehow seemed just right.

2. Summertime. A great upbeat feel good happy song. Probably the “happiest” song on the Lost Highway album.

1. Wanted Dead or Alive. I have always loved this song. Love to play it on guitar too. A great slow rock anthem.

My Summer Soundtrack

One thing I love about music is the memories associated with it; a song or an album can instantly take you back to a certain time and place. Often when I hear a particular track I will instantly remember a certain time and what was going on in my life.

One of the funniest examples for me was during the holiday season. My friend and I were just teenagers and at the time really into Def Leppard’s Hysteria album, and during the break from school we were really stuck on the song Armageddon It. That season we listened to that song over and over to the point that we starting calling it a Christmas song. Now, over 20 years later, anytime I hear that song I think of the holidays. In fact, it stirs up more festive feelings in me than most traditional holiday music.

As this summer winds down I (I hate to say that), any of the songs below may remind me of the previous few months.

10. Take Me Home, Danko Jones. I wasn’t a big fan of the album it came from, Never Too Loud, but this song stuck with me a little. If I was ever on a short drive by myself, and wanted to listen to one or two songs, I often played this one.

9. Never Walk Away, Journey. This double CD set surprised me. The lead off track from the disc containing new songs in the set is another I may have played on short drives. Journey delivered on this release, a lot of the songs were fun summertime music.

8. Cheap Champagne, Sloan. This song comes from their album titled Parallel Play. It is a fun summer sounding album all round. This is one of my favorite tracks on it.

7. The Pretender, Foo Fighters. I was a little late getting the Foo Fighter’s latest release, Echoes, Silence, Patience and Grace. This is one great album start to finish and throughout the summer I have listened to it a lot. The lead off song here is just the first of many great ones on the record.

6. Longest Days, John Mellencamp. This is another album that surprised me. I played the entire disc through many times over the last couple of months. When we were camping during those quiet moments at night when the kids were sleeping, it sounded great. This lead off track is one of my favorites on the album.

5. Go, Def Leppard. Finally, one of my long time favorite bands come back with a great album of original songs. And as fate would have it, Joe Elliot got sick back in April and had to reschedule Def Leppard’s Ottawa show for August. As luck would have it I was planning on visiting this city in that same month. The song Go is the lead off track, and apparently they added it their set list the night before I saw them. I love the track and was delighted to hear it live.

4. Summertime, Bon Jovi This one came along for me in the early summer phases. We have a tradition here at my home; every July 1st we celebrate Canada Day with great food, drinks and good times with 50 plus guests. I always make a mix of music for the event and this track was included. I recall standing in front of the BBQ, with the sun shining down, a cold beverage in hand while surrounded by many good friends and family as Jon Bon Jovi declared, “Feels something like summertime!” It was a near perfect moment.

3. Runnin Wild, Airbourne. This is one of many great songs from their album of the same name. I played this CD a lot in July, especially in my car. Be warned: This album may cause speeding!!

2. Straight to Hell, Great Big Sea. For readers who are not aware of Great Big Sea, they are a great Canadian traditional/folk/rock band. Their latest release Fortune's Favour is probably their most rockin' effort to date. The final track on it is a great rock song that tells the story of someone who makes a deal with the devil and exhanges their soul for a great life of partying first. It is humorous and a lot of fun, and it does rock. A full post on Great Big Sea is something I am planning on doing.

1. Vengeance is Mine, Alice Cooper. If Airbourne’s Running Wild was the album of July for me, then Alice Cooper’s Along Came a Spider was the album of August. I love this album and every song on it. Vengeance is Mine is the second track on it. Once I am listening to this one, I know I want to let it play through to the end, and often do.

What about you? What were you listening to this summer? Speaking of summer, enjoy the rest of it!

On the list and on vacation.

Hey everyone! I am heading off for a brief vacation, so no blog updates until the middle of next week. But thanks to everyone for visiting, I am really enjoying doing this and hearing from anyone who has left comments or emailed. A vacation wouldn’t be a vacation without some music in there somewhere. I’ll get the opportunity to check out Def Leppard this weekend and when I get back will have a post on the show. In the meantime I’ll sign out with a few notes, which may, or may not, interest you.

On the list of cool things to do I if you have the money and the time is the Pink Floyd cruise, being called the Great Gig in the Sea, setting sail to the Bahamas in May 2009. It will not feature any actual members of the band, but nightly performances from Think Floyd, the number one Pink Floyd production company in the United States. The cruise will also feature screenings of The Wall, trivia, games and more. Check out the Great Gig in the Sea website for details.

On the list of things to read is Steven Tyler’s autobiography, which he is set to pen. Rolling Stone reports that it will be the story of Steven’s career comeback. I guess he has to focus on the comeback because he probably can’t remember much about the early stages of his career. It should be an entertaining read.

On the list of upcoming things to watch is a new concert DVD from Bon Jovi set to be released by the end of 2008. My wife is the biggest Bon Jovi fan and I am guessing this one is going to be released just in time for the holiday season. Which also means I already know one item I will be purchasing for her. The DVD will feature footage from their last two nights of the Lost Highway tour at Madison Square Garden. We almost attended one of these shows, but our vacation plans had to be pushed back to August. So instead we will be catching Def Leppard, which is actually my preference. Lucky me!

All the best everyone. I’ll be back next week.

Entertainment Weekly and the 1980s

Entertainment Weekly recently published a copy of their popular magazine that revealed their choices for the “new classics”. The top 100 movies, albums, TV programs, and books in the last 25 years were ranked.

The choice for their number one classic album in the last quarter of a century was Prince’s Purple Rain. After some reflection, this was a decent selection. Prince is not normally of my personal taste, but I do respect the man’s musical ability. Purple Rain was also a strong album, a rockin’ album, and I admit to having owned the cassette. It is the only Prince album I have ever purchased.

However I write this entry to take exception to the lack of true 80’s hard rock on the list. For a time hard rock and hair bands reigned supreme and if you are going to pay tribute to the last 25 years, you should acknowledge all of the fads and phases. The only album I can find in the top 100 from this genre is Guns N’ Roses’ Appetite for Destruction coming in at number 30. Definitely should be on this list, perhaps even higher.

I can understand this is a list of 100 albums from all musical genres over the last 25 years and must have been difficult to put together. But I thought a few more from the “hair band generation” should have been presented. What about Bon Jovi’s Slippery When Wet or one of the biggest selling albums of the time, Def Leppard’s Hysteria? The only heavy metal album I can find there is Metallica’s self titled 1991 release. What about an Iron Maiden or a Judas Priest entry? They were, and continue to be, highly influential metal acts. The complete list of Entertainment Weekly’s choices can be found here.

Without our further ado, here are my top 10 hard rock/heavy metal albums released in the 80’s. My list is different than Entertainment Weekly’s, in that it covers the 80’s only and it is strictly a personal top 10 list of favorites from that time.

10. Slippery When Wet, Bon Jovi. Being a teenager at the time it was hard not to get into this. Still the most fun record they’re ever put out.
9. Open Up and Say Ahhh, Poison. This band doesn’t have a lot of strong albums, but this one plays start to finish as a great party record. And I partied to it often.
8. Permanent Vacation, Aerosmith. Successfully launched the band’s comeback and another great party album. One of the band’s strongest efforts too.
7. Appetite for Destruction, Guns N’ Roses. Gun’s N’ Roses exploded onto the scene while supporting this release. This is a fantastic hard rock album. For me, it was the only strong release the band ever put out, I did not embrace another G N’R record after this debut.
6. And Justice for All, Metallica. This is the one that turned me onto metal. I heard this and was immediately addicted. From here I went back and started listening to Iron Maiden and Judas Priest and have been in love with metal ever since.
5. Road Apples, The Tragically Hip. No other band has a complete body of work that I thoroughly enjoy as much as the Hip’s (with the exception of Iron Maiden). Road Apples was the first for me and is still one of my favorites.
4. Pyromania, Def Leppard. If you’ve read some of my other posts you’ll know of my affection for Def Leppard. This is the one that got me hooked on the band and hard guitar driven rock.
3. Turbo, Judas Priest. They are Masters of Metal. After Metallica got me into the genre this album, as well as others by Priest, soon followed.
2. Number of the Beast, Iron Maiden. One of my all time favorite bands. Once I started listening to this album I wanted all the rest of their material. Like the Hip, this band also has a huge collection of work, all that I enjoy thoroughly.
1. Hysteria Def Leppard. The long wait between Pyromania and this record did not disappoint. The album did represent the transition from a hard rock band to more of a pop/rock sound. However, it was the CD of my youth and the one disc I have listened from start to finish more than any other.

I’ve just decided lists are hard to do, so I can appreciate Entertainment Weekly’s efforts even more. I am looking at my list above and I can’t believe that Motley Crue’s Shout at the Devil and Van Halen’s 1984 are not there. Difficult, but still fun, what are your favorites from that time?

Great Music Found on Bon Jovi’s Lost Highway

Dare I say best Bon Jovi album ever. No. But I must admit, that after the first listen I was leaning in that direction. This is a very strong offering from the band, and certainly their strongest effort in the last 10 years or more. The band is to be credited with staying in the spotlight, evolving and yet staying true to themselves. And this album is an excellent representation of that. There is unquestionably a matured sound, but it is still Bon Jovi. I always admire when a band can pull off this feat.

The one thing that brought this album down for me was the overall mellow feel it has after a few listens, which is why I quickly changed my “best Bon Jovi album ever” thoughts. This is just personal taste however, and although the songs are strong, and there are upbeat tracks, I would prefer an overall livelier feel.

The album opens with the strong first single, Lost Highway, and then moves into one of the best Bon Jovi songs recorded in a long time, Summertime. It is an upbeat feel good rocker that is sure to get you tapping your feet. I hope this one remains part of their set list. It would also make a great single and video, but unfortunately I am guessing we may be treated to a string of ballads to hit the airwaves and video channels. I have never been a big fan of Bon Jovi’s ballads, not even back in the Slippery When Wet and New Jersey days. Lost Highway has plenty of them, and it is why the album will not rank up with Slippery or New Jersey for me.

However, this is personal taste only, and this is still most definitely a fantastic record. I am giving it a grade of B, but I am sure there are many who will score it higher. I think by giving us strong recordings and great live shows, Bon Jovi has shown no signs of slowing down and are to be commended for it. I suspect they will be around for many years to come.

Favourite Tracks: Lost Highway, Summertime, Whole Lot of Leavin’, Any Other Day.