Best Heavy Metal Ballad

[ponie]

Simple question for you all, what do you think is the best heavy metal ballad of all time?

Feel free to use whatever criteria you wish to define "best", "heavy metal", and "ballad"

 

[{-sapob-}]

this is a toughy.

Maybe Nothing else Matters.

 

[i aint play this]

Won’t tell you the best one, but these ones are excellent:

Nevermore – Tomorrow Turned into Yesterday
Judas Priest – Beyond the Realms of Death
Judas Priest – Touch of Evil
Megadeth – A Tout Le Monde
Opeth – Face of Melinda
Rapture – Two Dead Names

 

[{-sapob-}]

Won’t tell you the best one, but these ones are excellent:

Nevermore – Tomorrow Turned into Yesterday
Judas Priest – Beyond the Realms of Death
Judas Priest – Touch of Evil
Megadeth – A Tout Le Monde
Opeth – Face of Melinda
Rapture – Two Dead Names

 

[Don Corleone]

nice idea for a thread.
opeth has many, but i guess face of melinda takes the cake. or maybe credence, anyone?

metallica - unforgiven

 

[opeth8]

Ozzy - You're no different
It's been a favorite of mine for many years

Opeth - Burden
Will be a timeless classic

Motley Crue - Home Sweet Home
80's Cheese...sure...One of my favorite ballads...most def

Riverside - Loose Heart or Conceiving You
Maybe not quite metal ballads in the traditional sense, but great slower songs

Queensryche - Silent Lucidity
Just a great song

Metallica - Fade to Black
First song I learned to play on the guitar.
Tried to play it again a few months ago & failed miserably
One of the best songs by Metallica

 

[ponie]

this is a toughy.

Maybe Nothing else Matters.

This was the song that gave me the idea for the thread. I couldn't think of a better heavy metal ballad and I was sure everyone else would have tons of good ideas.

There are ballads I probably like more, but I think the level of popularity that Nothing Else Matters achieved is unrivaled. I'm sure there are some 80s hair metal bands with popular ballads that I'm not thinking of (Simple Man?).

 

[Kamel]

Queensryche - Silent Lucidity
Just a great song

you just stole from my keyboard...

Iron Maiden - No prayer for the dying

 

[soundave]

Scorpions - Still Loving You

 

[{-sapob-}]

This was the song that gave me the idea for the thread. I couldn't think of a better heavy metal ballad and I was sure everyone else would have tons of good ideas.

There are ballads I probably like more, but I think the level of popularity that Nothing Else Matters achieved is unrivaled. I'm sure there are some 80s hair metal bands with popular ballads that I'm not thinking of (Simple Man?).

Heres a list I think would be close rivals.
November Rain - GnR
Every rose has its thorn - Poison
More than words - Extreme
Here i go again on my own - Whitesnake

 

[Jackehh]

will have to second November rain by GnR, its simply great.

Nothing else matters is also awesome obviously.

I would mention burden because I think its better than all those mentioned so far but heh, I am biased.

 

[Bollehamster]

Always Will Be - Hammerfall is a great one.
And of course, Opeth - Burden

 

[Swansong]

Two more nice ones are Iron Maiden "Strange World" and Rainbow "The Temple of the King".

 

[Risquit]

Rainbow "Catch a Rainbow" (Dio on vocals, natch)
Scorpions "Holiday" (one of recorded music's best songs ever)
Opeth "Burden"

 

[Walls1441]

you burden lovers make me sick

 

[BloodSword]

Although, I think Axl Rose is a complete idiot. The song "Patience" that GnR did back in 91 or so? Really, a little acoustic diddy, with a "metal" attitude. The song says so much about how this guy feels about his girl, and what he wants for them. Is a "ballad" just another name for a "love" song?

 

[angelofdeath9308]

Fade to Black
To Bid You Farewell

 

[angelofdeath9308]

Is a "ballad" just another name for a "love" song?

No, there's ballads about many things, but most of the time they end badly, the stories they tell I mean. And they're not just songs, they're poetry also. One of my favorites is The Ballad of Ira Hayes by Johnny Cash, poor drunken Ira Hayes. Heavy metal ballads, hmm... no, not all of those are about love either.

 

[BloodSword]

No, there's ballads about many things, but most of the time they end badly, the stories they tell I mean. And they're not just songs, they're poetry also. One of my favorites is The Ballad of Ira Hayes by Johnny Cash, poor drunken Ira Hayes. Heavy metal ballads, hmm... no, not all of those are about love either.

Thanx, for clearing that up.

 

[Lateralus14]

Although, I think Axl Rose is a complete idiot. The song "Patience" that GnR did back in 91 or so? Really, a little acoustic diddy, with a "metal" attitude. The song says so much about how this guy feels about his girl, and what he wants for them. Is a "ballad" just another name for a "love" song?

Ballad has a more detailed definition actually but I would say a heavy metal ballad is defined by those songs by metal bands that are unusually mellow and lyrically pretentious but still keep some metal elements. I don't think Burden qualifies as a heavy metal ballad at all because it really doesn't have any metal influence except for the little distorted parts right at the end of each verse.

Gonna have to say my favorites are:

Fade to Black - Metallica
Remember Tomorrow - Iron Maiden
Return to Serenity - Testament
Face of Melinda - Opeth