What are some of the best ballads by big grunge artists?
Although grunge is known mainly as a sullen, dark style of music with a droning atmosphere and emotionally-charged lyrics, the bands we associate with the grunge label didn’t write many ballads at all.
Before diving in, let’s define what a ballad really is.
According to MasterClass, musical ballads are a type of song that are slow in tempo and emotionally evocative. Think about all the great power ballads we know in rock and metal — most of them are love songs, but ballads don’t necessarily have to be about love.
In the case of grunge, most of the ballads weren’t about love, but focused on inner turmoil and pain instead. Sadly, many of the musicians who wrote the songs on this list died at a young age, so it makes the tracks that much more difficult to listen to.
READ MORE: 5 ’90s Grunge Lyrics That Are Just Too Painful
One of the aspects that set grunge apart from other rock subgenres was that it was basically the antithesis of what was popular in the ’80s. Songs about love, partying and other lighthearted topics were a signature of hair metal — and the grunge artists basically strived to be the opposite of that.
Thus, we were a bit limited in our options when it came to choosing the best grunge ballads, but the ones we chose are all incredibly solid and emotionally compelling tracks in their own ways.
Scroll through the songs below to see our picks for the best ballads by 13 different grunge artists.
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Mother Love Bone, “Chloe Dancer/Crown of Thorns”
This one is a love song, at least partly, and the piano melody helps keep the mood of the song light and delicate until it progresses. Mother Love Bone‘s “Chloe Dancer/Crown of Thorns” is an epic, two-part ballad about vocalist Andrew Wood‘s fiancee Xana La Fuente, and about his own personal struggles with addiction.
The Chloe character in the track was inspired Fuente, according to an interview with the singer, wo picked up a brief gig as a stripper to try and help keep them afloat financially while he was in the throes of his addiction.
“But it wasn’t her — she only last an hour. Too good for that world’s shit, too good for me probably,” he said. “Chloe the angel, the dancer, trying to save me from myself. And me, a stargazer looking up at the heavens, but always wearing that damn crown of thorns.”
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Temple of the Dog, “Say Hello 2 Heaven”
Written as a tribute to Andrew Wood, “Say Hello 2 Heaven” was really the first time people ever really heard a ballad sang by Chris Cornell. It not only showcased the raw power of his voice, but how much soul he could bring to a song with it.
In fact, the track allowed all the musicians in Temple of the Dog to dig deep and get vulnerable, expressing the grief and other complicated feelings that come with losing someone you love through their instruments. The music creates an ethereal, dreamlike atmosphere that actually makes you feel like you’re being greeted by heaven.
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“Black” is both one of the strongest ballads to have come out in the ’90s and one of the strongest songs in Pearl Jam‘s entire catalog. It’s not your typical cheesy heartbreak song about crying, getting revenge or going out and finding someone new to get over it. It’s about the grief you experience when someone who was part of all of your days isn’t there anymore and accepting that they never will be again.
Eddie Vedder‘s use of metaphors makes the track so poetic that it can resonate with anyone who’s ever experienced a lost love. The empty canvas, the broken glass, the star in someone else’s sky — it’s all so relative that you may actually relive those gut-wrenching feelings all over again just by listening to it.
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Nirvana, “Something in the Way”
One of Nirvana‘s most haunting songs, “Something in the Way” creates an incredibly dramatic atmosphere with very minimal instrumentation. Kurt Cobain practically whispers some of the lyrics, while an acoustic progression drives the track and a cello complements it.
The simplicity, the slow pacing and the dark ambience work to create a sense of despair for the listener, almost as if you’re stuck inside a bad dream and can’t find a way out of it. And that’s almost the type of feeling Cobain was trying to evoke in people.
He told Nirvana biographer Michael Azerrad that the lyrics were written “like if I was living under the bridge and I was dying of A.I.D.S., if I was sick and I couldn’t move and I was a total street person,” [via Rolling Stone].
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Stone Temple Pilots, “Creep”
Stone Temple Pilots didn’t wait until they were several albums into their career to release a ballad. “Creep” from 1992’s Core is a moody, acoustic song that deals with feelings of inadequacy and insecurity. Scott Weiland suppresses his powerful voice to convey the sense of pain that comes with these complicated feelings.
The repetition of the line “I’m half the man I used to be” is similar to the stories our minds tell us when we’re struggling with anxiety and depression — that we’re not good enough, that everything sucks and the likes. It’s the voice in our head that tries to keep us down when we’re trying to get up, the voice that we need to overcome.
This era of music was so relative for people because it really encapsulated the dark side of the human experience in a way that no artists had ever done before.
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Alice In Chains, “Nutshell”
There are few ’90s songs that are more devastating than “Nutshell,” which was featured on Alice in Chains‘ acoustic 1994 EP Jar of Flies. And yet, it’s a fan-favorite for so many because of how personal it is. The lyrics were penned by Layne Staley, and not only was he was so skilled at expressing internal anguish, but he lived the words as he sang them.
The music itself is quite simple — there’s no dramatic build-up, it loops over and over and remains the same all throughout. That minimalism allows space for all of the instrumentation to exist on its own, creating a ghostly atmosphere for Staley’s vocals to float on top of.
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Mad Season, “River of Deceit”
This one by Mad Season just proves that although Layne Staley had an incredibly strong voice, some of his best vocal performances were when he was able to simply pour his emotions and soul out over an acoustic riff. The lyrics are introspective and wise, acknowledging one’s mistakes and the consequences of them.
The relaxing rhythm that drives “River of Deceit” actually sounds like the flow of a river. It has a calming effect the way that nature does, creating a dream-like atmosphere to match the message of resignation and acceptance.
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Soundgarden, “Zero Chance”
Down on the Upside is perhaps Soundgarden‘s most experimental record, and thus it houses their first real ballad, “Zero Chance.” While it’s not an acoustic track like many of the others on this list, the slow, layered music creates a surreal aura that make you feel like you’re floating through it.
We usually like to highlight songs where Chris Cornell soars vocally, but he has a much gentler delivery in this one, and it’s still just as effective because of how much soul he sings with. There’s a sense of existential dread in the lyrics that touches on the inevitable fate we’re all going to eventually face, and how we come into this world alone and go out the same way. It’s depressing, but it’s honest.
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Screaming Trees, “Look at You”
Have you ever loved someone that was out of reach for some reason? Mark Lanegan‘s vivid storytelling in Screaming Trees‘ “Look at You” focuses on exactly that, though the reason the person is unavailable is open to interpretation. That almost makes it even more emotional to listen to.
It’s definitely the most upbeat track of the bunch here in terms of tempo once it progresses, but Lanegan’s soft and aching vocal delivery helps keep it in ballad territory.
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Chris Cornell, “Sunshower”
There’s a reason Chris Cornell appears so many times on this list — he knew how to write a damn good ballad. He penned and performed the acoustic track “Sunshower” for the 1998 film Great Expectations starring Ethan Hawke and Gwyneth Paltrow, and even though it doesn’t sound like a grunge song, it’s a hidden gem that deserves a place here.
The song came out shortly after the disbandment of Soundgarden, marking a turning point in Cornell’s career as he ventured off as a solo artist. “Sunshower” has a gentler, more ambient feel to it, allowing the vocalist’s poetic songwriting to really shine through.
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Jerry Cantrell, “Settling Down”
At last, a grunge ballad about love!
This track was released years after grunge faded into the distance, but Jerry Cantrell kept its spirit alive with his solo work. “Settling Down,” from his debut solo effort Boggy Depot (1998), is an emotionally vulnerable track about longing for a relationship while feeling unable to commit to it.
The restrained guitars and Cantrell’s delicate vocals help convey the sadness and hesitation the lyrics allude to, making it a tough listen because of how honest it is.
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Like many of the other songs here, Hole‘s “Dying” isn’t a ballad because it’s a love song, but because it’s slow and emotionally heavy. The track relies on the lyrics, which Courtney Love delivers with a nearly exhausted cadence, perfectly matching the subject matter and making listeners feel the same sense of pain.
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Eddie Vedder, “Long Nights”
The soundtrack for the 2007 film Into the Wild marked Eddie Vedder’s first venture as a solo artist — and it was quite a strong one. Writing and performing nearly all of the tracks himself, Vedder delivered what was perhaps his most introspective collections of songs, which also featured his finest ballad.
“Long Nights” is the story of someone finding solace in solitude. It’s stripped down and carries the same emotional weight that made Vedder one of the strongest and most reflective songwriters of the ’90s.
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