10 Best Hard Rock Power Ballads You've Probably Never Heard

Formed by former Thin Lizzy keyboardist Darren Wharton in 1985, this five-piece English rock group went on to release their debut album (Out Of The Silence) in 1988. Featuring a line-up including Wharton on vocals and Brian Cox on keyboard, the album was a collection of melodic rock tracks with a pinch of Wharton’s Celtic influence from his Thin Lizzy days.

Though a handful of songs appeared at the bottom of the UK Singles Chart, the band only ever achieved modest success and were subsequently dropped from their label after their second album – though they’d make a comeback several years later and are still going to this day with a different line-up.

One song that sadly went unnoticed from their debut album was tender ballad King Of Spades.

Featuring soft synths, heartfelt lyrics, and rich, melodic guitar harmonies, King Of Spades is exactly what you’d expect to hear in a late-1980s rock ballad. It’s a quintessential example of the genre, and that’s what makes this track so irresistible for music fans.

Moreover, the band know exactly how to layer the track. Like all great rock tracks, everything builds towards a bombastic guitar solo which does not disappoint.