Top 10 classic rock ballads, ranked

Collider published a ranking of the 10 greatest classic rock ballads of all time by J.S. Gornael, published 1 hour ago.

Gornael orders ten selections from the classic-rock era, placing Black Sabbath's "Changes" at No. 10 and Led Zeppelin's "Stairway to Heaven" at No. 1. Other entries include Elton John's "Rocket Man" (No. 9), Kansas' "Dust in the Wind" (No. 8), The Beatles' "Something" (No. 7), Aerosmith's "Dream On" (No. 6), Simon and Garfunkel's "Bridge Over Troubled Water" (No. 5), The Beatles' "Hey Jude" (No. 4), Billy Joel's "New York State of Mind" (No. 3), and Pink Floyd's "Comfortably Numb" (No. 2).

The piece says the selections are ranked by unique qualities, complexity, emotional depth, and creativity, and focuses on songs from the classic-rock era rather than later power ballads; it explicitly notes that Metallica's "Nothing Else Matters" and "The Unforgiven" do not technically qualify. Gornael's write-ups discuss each song's musical choices and how some beloved ballads can feel both deeply moving and overplayed.

Key Topics

Culture, Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, Comfortably Numb, The Beatles, Black Sabbath