A classic rock power ballad can be different things to different people. How I am defining it here is a potent, memorable, emotional song that can be symbolic of an era. That's a lot of baggage for a song to carry, but these four tunes have the musical muscle to bear the weight. Their performers - Foreigner, Chicago, Journey, and Toto - all hit big many times with song after song. The work of these groups has stood the test of time despite sharp fluctuations in mass cultural taste. Nothing will ever diminish the value and merit of their output. The 1980s were graced by the presence of these bands. The 2020s are similarly privileged to remember and enjoy them.
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'Open Arms' by Journey (1981)
Journey members Steve Perry and Jonathan Cain put their heads together and came up with this eternal blockbuster of a song. Per Songfacts, "The third single from Escape not only went on to become the band's highest charting single and sent album sales into orbit, but pioneered the entire concept of the power ballad. 'Now everybody's got to have one,' said Perry." Is "Open Arms" a little sappy? Yes. Does that matter? Not really. Many other artists have covered it, such as Dolly Parton, Barry Manilow, Celine Dion, and Mariah Carey. I'll take Journey's version any day.
'Waiting for a Girl Like You' by Foreigner (1981)
Foreigner sidestepped trying to be a conduit for heavy messages. There is no social or political drama from them. What you will find plenty of, however, is sincere, timeless emotion. "Waiting for a Girl Like You" is an ideal example of that. Written by two members of the band, Lou Gramm and Mick Jones, it's open, honest, and real. That is why we still love it so much.
Co-writer Jones explained to Songfacts, ""There's a song called 'Waiting For A Girl Like You,' which I literally had no control over, it just came out. I had no idea what it meant, but it got to the point where I couldn't even be in the studio when we were recording it sometimes, it left such a deep impression on me. But it ended up being a song that brought a lot of people together. I hear these days that it's a song that a lot of people play at their weddings."
'Rosanna' by Toto (1982)
The song took its name from actress Rosanna Arquette, who was dating band member Steve Porcaro back in the day. The actual meaning of it is somewhat different, as songwriter David Paich of Toto said to Songfacts.
"'Rosanna' was about a high school love, one of my first loves, but I just tagged another Rosanna's name on there because she was going at the time with Steve Porcaro, my best friend. He had just met her and was looking to title a song with her name, and it just fit perfectly for that song right there. So it's got her name on it, but it's really about another high school sweetheart, which is how songs happen sometimes."
'You're The Inspiration' by Chicago (1984)
I was not surprised when I saw that Peter Cetera and David Foster collaborated on this song. Cetera, longtime frontman for the legendary band, and the seasoned Foster, a 16-time Grammy winner who also earned three Academy Award nominations, a Golden Globe, and an Emmy, could not miss when they pooled their colossal talents.
Per somethingelsereviews.com, "In interviews, [Cetera]says the song was inspired by a trip he took in Italy looking at a painting of Michelangelo." Well, okay. Whatever the motivation behind the creation of the song was, it succeeded. "You're The Inspiration" is loving and tender, exactly what you might play for that special person in your life to let them know what they mean to you - and always will.
