Much maligned and rightly so, there must be exceptions to the Michael Bolton mid-tempo sappy heart-on-the-sleeve sentiment found on soft rock radios stations everywhere.

This is your chance to balance the ballad's books as it were. If you need to stretch the definition of "ballad" to include songs like 'Charlotte Sometimes' then, of course, you have my permission. (But let's not push our luck, eh. E.g. Icarus Line's Up Against the Wall Motherfucker is not a ballad despite the direct reference, okay? Okay.)

Best Ballads!