10 Best Hard Rock Ballads
1. Nothing Else Matters - Metallica
If you were into any kind of heavy music in the 80's, Metallica would most likely be one of your go-to bands. From the band's punk leaning beginnings to their foundational thrash metal epics, the band took no prisoners in their prime, demolishing the competition with every release. Once the band took their sound into the next decade, their songs went from big to monumental.
As songwriter James Hetfield was messing around on guitar one day, he started to write a song detailing his struggle while missing his girlfriend on the road. Though never intending it as a Metallica track, the rest of the band loved the song and insisted on making something out of it. Instead of keeping it as a subdued ballad, Metallica brought everything to the table as "Nothing Else Matters" blossomed into an musical extravaganza, incorporating harmonied guitars, a blazing guitar solo, and even an orchestral arrangement by composer Michael Kamen. This helped sow the seed for the band's eventual performance with an orchestra on the live release S&M.
Many of the band's hardcore fans felt especially slighted when "Nothing Else Matters" arrived with no familiar metal edge. However, Metallica's pedigree as hard rock titans was all but cemented when they released this hard rock masterpiece.