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{{Short description|
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A '''sentimental ballad''' is an [[emotional]] style of music that often deals with [[romance (love)|romantic]] and [[intimate relationships]], and to a lesser extent, [[loneliness]], [[death]], [[war]], [[drug abuse]], [[politics]] and [[religion]], usually in a poignant but solemn manner.<ref name="M. Curtis, 1987 p. 236">J. M. Curtis, ''Rock Eras: Interpretations of Music and Society, 1954-1984'' (Popular Press, 1987), p. 236.</ref> Ballads are generally melodic enough to get the listener's attention.<ref>Bronson, B., H. (1969). ''The Ballad as Song.'' Los Angeles: University of California Press</ref>▼
▲A '''sentimental ballad''' is an [[emotional]] style of music that often deals with [[romance (love)|romantic]] and [[intimate relationships]], and to a lesser extent, [[loneliness]], [[death]], [[war]], [[drug abuse]], [[politics]] and [[religion]], usually in a poignant but solemn manner.<ref name="M. Curtis, 1987 p. 236">
Sentimental ballads are found in most [[music genre]]s, such as [[pop music|pop]], [[contemporary R&B|R&B]], [[soul music|soul]], [[country music|country]], [[folk music|folk]], [[rock music|rock]] and [[electronic music]].<ref>Ord, J. (1990). ''Bothy Songs and Ballads.'' Edinburgh: John Donald.</ref> Usually slow in [[tempo]], ballads tend to have a lush musical [[arrangement]] which emphasizes the song's [[melody]] and [[harmony|harmonies]]. Characteristically, ballads use [[Musical acoustics|acoustic]] instruments such as [[guitar]]s, [[piano]]s, [[saxophone]]s, and sometimes an [[orchestra]]l set. Many modern mainstream ballads tend to feature [[synthesizer]]s, [[drum machine]]s and even, to some extent, a [[Four on the floor (music)|dance rhythm]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://top40.about.com/od/popmusic101/a/popmusic.htm|title=Pop Music - What Is Pop Music - A Definition and Brief History|publisher=Top40.about.com|date=September 7, 2012|access-date=October 3, 2012}}</ref>▼
▲Sentimental ballads are found in most [[music genre]]s, such as [[pop music|pop]], [[contemporary R&B|R&B]], [[soul music|soul]], [[country music|country]], [[folk music|folk]], [[rock music|rock]] and [[electronic music]].<ref>Ord, J. (1990). ''Bothy Songs and Ballads
Sentimental ballads had their origins in the early [[Tin Pan Alley]] music industry of the later 19th century.<ref>P. Buckley, ''The Rough Guide to Rock'' (Rough Guides, 3rd edn., 2003), p. 378.</ref> Initially known as "tear-jerkers" or "drawing-room [[ballad]]s", they were generally sentimental, narrative, [[Strophic form|strophic]] songs published separately or as part of an [[opera]], descendants perhaps of [[broadside (music)|broadside ballads]]. As new genres of music began to emerge in the early 20th century, their popularity faded, but the association with sentimentality led to the term ''ballad'' being used for a slow [[love song]] from the 1950s onwards.<ref>Witmer. See also Middleton (I,4,i).</ref>
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===Early history===
{{Main|Ballad}}
Sentimental ballads have their roots from medieval [[Music of France|French]] ''chanson balladée'' or ''[[Ballade (forme fixe)|ballade]]'', which were originally "danced songs". Ballads were particularly characteristic of the popular [[poetry]] and song of the [[British Isles]] from the later [[medieval]] period until the 19th century. They were widely used across [[Europe]], and later in the [[Americas]], [[Australia]] and [[North Africa]].<ref>W. Apel, ''Harvard Dictionary of Music'' (Harvard, 1944; 2nd edn., 1972), p. 70.</ref><ref>A. Jacobs, ''A Short History of Western Music'' (1972, Penguin, 1976), p. 21.</ref><ref>W. Apel, ''Harvard Dictionary of Music'' (1944, Harvard, 1972), pp.
===18th century – early 20th century===
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===1950s–1960s===
{{See also|Traditional pop}}
[[File:Frank Sinatra in 1957.jpg|thumb|left|upright|In 1962, [[Frank Sinatra]] released ''[[Sinatra and Strings]]'', a set of standard ballads, which became one of the most critically acclaimed works of Sinatra's entire Reprise period.<ref name=sinatraasidol>{{cite news|title=Sinatra as Idol – Not Artist|url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB121063311685686579|date=
Popular sentimental ballad vocalists in this era include [[Frank Sinatra]], [[Ella Fitzgerald]], [[Andy Williams]], [[Johnny Mathis]], [[Connie Francis]] and [[Perry Como]]. Their recordings were usually lush orchestral arrangements of current or recent [[rock and roll]] or [[pop music|pop]] hit songs. The most popular and enduring songs from this style of music are known as "pop standards" or (where relevant) "American standards". Many vocalists became involved in 1960s' [[vocal jazz]] and the rebirth of [[swing music]], which was sometimes referred to as "[[easy listening]]" and was, in essence, a revival of popularity of the "sweet bands" that had been popular during the [[swing era]], but with more emphasis on the vocalist and the sentimentality.<ref>{{cite
===1970s===
{{See also|Soft rock|Easy listening}}
[[Soft rock]], a subgenre that mainly consists of ballads, was derived from [[folk rock]] in the late 1960s, using acoustic instruments and putting more emphasis on melody and harmonies. Major sentimental ballad artists of this decade included [[Barbra Streisand]], [[Nana Mouskouri]], [[Elton John]], [[Engelbert Humperdinck (singer)|Engelbert Humperdinck]], [[Carole King]], [[Cat Stevens]] and [[James Taylor]]. By the early 1970s, softer ballad songs by [[the Carpenters]], [[Anne Murray]], [[John Denver
Some rock-oriented acts such as [[Queen (band)|Queen]] and the [[Eagles (band)|Eagles]] also produced ballads.<ref name="M. Curtis, 1987 p. 236"/><ref>{{cite web|author=Soft Rock |url=http://www.allmusic.com/subgenre/soft-rock-ma0000011841 |title=Soft Rock : Significant Albums, Artists and Songs, Most Viewed |publisher=AllMusic |access-date=9 January 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://80music.about.com/od/genresmovements/p/softrockprofile.htm |title=Soft Rock - Profile of the Mellow, Romantic Soft Rock of the '70s and Early '80s |publisher=80music.about.com |date=12 April 2012 |access-date=9 January 2013}}</ref>
When the word ''ballad'' appears in the title of a song, as for example in [[the Beatles]]' "[[The Ballad of John and Yoko]]" (1969) or [[Billy Joel]]'s "[[The Ballad of Billy the Kid]]" (1974), the [[folk music]] sense is generally emphasized. The term ''ballad'' is often applied to [[strophic]] story-songs, such as [[Don McLean]]'s "[[American Pie (song)|American Pie]]" (1971), [[Gordon Lightfoot]]'s [[Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald]] (1976) or Jim Croce's [[Bad, Bad Leroy Brown]].<ref>D. R. Adams, ''Rock 'n' roll and the Cleveland Connection Music of the Great Lakes'' (Kent State University Press, 2002), {{ISBN|0-87338-691-4}}, p. 70.</ref><ref>C. H. Sterling, M. C. Keith, ''Sounds of Change: a History of FM broadcasting in America'' (UNC Press, 2008), pp. 136-7.</ref><ref name=SoftRockClassificationBBC>{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-11733277|title=Journey: The band who did not stop believing|publisher=BBC News|access-date=December 6, 2010|date=November 12, 2010}}</ref>▼
▲When the word ''ballad'' appears in the title of a song, as for example in [[the Beatles]]' "[[The Ballad of John and Yoko]]" (1969) or [[Billy Joel]]'s "[[The Ballad of Billy the Kid]]" (1974), the [[folk music]] sense is generally
===1980s–1990s===
{{See also|Adult contemporary music}}
[[Image:Celine Dion Concert Singing 'Taking Chances' 2008.jpg|thumb|[[Celine Dion]]'s albums were generally constructed on the basis of melodramatic [[soft rock]] ballads, with sprinklings of [[uptempo]] pop and rare forays into other genres.<ref>Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. [{{
Prominent artists who made sentimental ballads in the 1980s include [[Stevie Wonder]], [[Lionel Richie]], [[Peabo Bryson]], [[Barry White]], [[Luther Vandross
The 1990s mainstream pop/R&B
Newer female singer-songwriters such as [[Sarah McLachlan]], [[Natalie Merchant]], [[Jewel (singer)|Jewel]], [[Melissa Etheridge]] and [[Sheryl Crow]] also broke through on the AC chart during this time owing to their ballad-sound.<ref name="Hyatt">Hyatt, Wesley (1999). ''The Billboard Book of Number One Adult Contemporary Hits''. New York City: [[Billboard Books]]. {{ISBN|978-0-823-07693-2}}.{{pn|date=October 2023}}</ref>
===2000s===
A popular trend in the early 2000s was remixing or re-recording [[dance music]] hits into [[acoustic pop|acoustic]] ballads (for example, the "Candlelight Mix" versions of "[[Heaven (Bryan Adams song)#DJ Sammy and Yanou version|Heaven]]" by [[DJ Sammy]], "[[Listen
===2010s===
In the 2010s, indie musicians like [[Imagine Dragons]], [[Mumford & Sons]], [[Of Monsters and Men]], [[the Lumineers]] and [[Ed Sheeran]] had indie songs that crossed over to the adult contemporary charts, due to their ballad-heavy sound.<ref>{{cite
==Genres==
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===Jazz and traditional pop===
Most [[traditional pop
===Pop and R&B ballads===
The most common use of the term "ballad" in modern [[pop music|pop]] and [[contemporary R&B|R&B music]] is for an emotional song about romance, breakup and/or [[Desire|longing]].<ref name="Cohen2005p297"/> The singer would usually [[lament]] an [[unrequited love|unrequited]] or lost love, either where one party is oblivious to the existence of the other, where one party has moved on, or where a [[romance (love)|romantic]] [[affair]] has affected the relationship.<ref>Smith, L.: ''Elvis Costello, Joni Mitchell, and the Torch Song Tradition'', p. 9. Praeger Publishers, 2004.</ref><ref name=forte>Allan Forte, M. R.: ''Listening to Classic American Popular Songs'', p. 203. Yale University Press, 2001.</ref>
===
{{redirect|Power ballads|other uses|Power Ballads (disambiguation)}}
{{Infobox music genre
| name = Power ballad
| stylistic_origins = * [[Arena rock]]
* [[pop rock]]
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| cultural_origins = Early 1970s
| image = Ec-hasslau.de 010.jpg
| caption = To emphasize the emotional aspect of a power ballad, crowds customarily hold up [[lighter]]s adjusted to produce a large flame (
| derivatives =
| subgenres =
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* [[power pop]]
* [[post-grunge]]
* [[adult contemporary music|adult contemporary]]
}}
[[Simon Frith]], the British sociomusicologist and former rock critic, identifies the origins of the power ballad in the emotional singing of [[Soul music|soul]] artists, particularly [[Ray Charles]], and the adaptation of this style by performers such as [[Eric Burdon]], [[Tom Jones (singer)|Tom Jones]], and [[Joe Cocker]] to produce slow-tempo songs often building to a loud and emotive chorus backed by drums, electric guitars, and sometimes choirs.<ref name=Frithpop>S. Frith, "Pop Music" in S. Frith, W. Straw and J. Street, ''[[Cambridge Companions to Music|The Cambridge Companion to Pop and Rock]]'' (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press), pp. 100-1.</ref> According to [[Charles Aaron]], power ballads came into existence in the early 1970s, when rock stars attempted to convey profound messages to audiences while retaining their "macho rocker" mystique.<ref name=aaron>{{cite book|last=Aaron|first=Charles|editor1=Jonathan Lethem |editor2=Paul Bresnick|title=Da Capo Best Music Writing 2002: The Year's Finest Writing on Rock, Pop, Jazz, Country, and More|
Aaron argues that the hard rock power ballad broke into the mainstream of American consciousness in 1976 as FM radio gave a new lease of life to earlier
When [[grunge]] appeared as a counterpoint to the
===Latin ballad===
{{Main|Latin ballad}}
[[File:Luismiguelcomplices2.jpg|thumb|left|200px|[[Luis Miguel]] in
[[Latin ballad]] refers to the ballad derived from [[bolero]] that originated in the early-1960s in Latin America and Spain.
One of the most well-known Latin ballad singers of the 1970s and 1980s was [[José José]]. Known as "El Principe de La Cancion" (The Prince of the Song), he sold over 40 million albums in his career and became a huge influence to later ballad singers such as [[Cristian Castro]], [[Alejandro Fernández]], [[Nelson Ned]], [[Manuel Mijares]] and [[Lupita D'Alessio]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.famaweb.com/jose_jose_quotesta_es_mi_vidaquot_lanzamiento-6005.html |title=José José "Esta es mi Vida" LANZAMIENTO |publisher=Famaweb.com |access-date=5 June 2014
{{clear}}
==See also==
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* [[Slow dance]]
==
{{Reflist
==External links==
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