4 Rock Ballads From 1977 That Had Us All Swaying to the Music

We tend to think of the power ballad as a distinctly 80s phenomenon. In fact, rock acts were already well aware of the potential of slow songs to break through to portions of the listening audience preferring softer material.

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In 1977, several rock-based artists found a groove with slower material. Check out this quartet of big hits as evidence of our theory.

“Tonight’s The Night (Gonna Be Alright)” by Rod Stewart

Leave it to Rod Stewart to deliver the biggest hit single of the entire year while also courting some controversy along the way. Rock artists didn’t usually stray into boudoir ballad territory, but Stewart proved with “Tonight’s The Night (Gonna Be Alright)” that it could be a lucrative mini-genre. Rod rarely gets enough credit for his songwriting skills. While this song only cuts skin-deep from a lyrical sense, Stewart crafted a melody that takes full advantage of the higher register of his vocals. The cooing female voice you hear at certain parts of the song is Britt Ekland, the model/actress whom Stewart was dating at the time. The coda was a bit risque, but it certainly didn’t scare audiences away from this massive hit.

“Telephone Line” by ELO

It’s a blast to look back at the 70s and see how many songs relied on landline telephones. Modern audiences might not appreciate how agonizing it could be to wait for a call, especially when you couldn’t do any mindless scrolling to pass the time. Jeff Lynne of ELO certainly understood the phenomenon, and he built a miniature melodrama out of it on “Telephone Line”. The song proved the perfect vehicle for Lynne’s implementation of strings. There are countermelodies strolling off in all directions, but they don’t stifle any of the momentum of the story. Lynne gives an impassioned performance on lead vocals for this No. 7 US hit.

“New Kid In Town” by Eagles

The Eagles released Hotel California in December 1976. That meant that the huge singles off the record did most of their damage on the charts in ’77. It probably says something about where the band thought their fans were that they chose “New Kid In Town”, which was most like their early, countryish work, as the first single. “Hotel California” and “Life In The Fast Lane” followed in its wake to massive success. But the ballad did pretty well also, going all the way to the top of the pop charts. The Eagles always understood the potency of putting those soothing harmonies to work on somewhat sour lyrics. “New Kid In Town” follows that formula to the letter.

“Dreams” by Fleetwood Mac

Even as disco made a huge mark on the pop music scene in 1977, traditional rock more than held its own. You can mostly thank The Eagles’ Hotel California and Fleetwood Mac’s Rumours for that. Both were highly regarded records that just kept churning out hit singles. Since the Eagles’ LP is already represented here, it’s time to look to the Mac. “Dreams” is quite simple on a musical level when you strip it down to its basics. But that simplicity allows Stevie Nicks’ subtly piercing lyrics to cut to the bone. The band also finds ways to provide instrumental variety to keep things from getting into a rut. “Dreams” added a No. 1 to the band’s ledger upon its release in 1977.

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