Evidently you don't know the difference between a "ballard" and a power ballad by rock/pop bands. Without Googling, I know exactly what a ballad is. It has a slow tempo with often poetic or romantic lyrics. Sinatra, Martin, Como, Bennett, and even rocker Elvis made their careers on ballads.
I'm a drummer. I know what tempos are included in what types of music from blues to raggae to thrash metal to a Strauss waltz. This thread is about "power ballads". Maybe I should explain tempo?
As a one time poet (wasn't doing it as a profession, but I have had a few things published and one long piece used in a fund raising campaign) I should point out that “ballad” simply refers to a poem that tells a story - with or without music.
Combining “ballad with “rock” into a compound term can be more problematic, and it becomes likely that perceived meanings of the resultant term are regional.
That said, Marty Robins and Johnny Cash and Red Sovine may have been masters of ballads, but I can't see any way to think of them as rock. And even though Gordon Lightfoot gets a lot of play on rock stations, I wouldn't call his music rock either, its more pop.
Terry Jack's self recorded ballad “Seasons In The Sun” is both a ballad and rock though, and most of the songs from Jethro Tull are in fact ballads if you examine the lyrics.
The Moody Blues had some good ballads as well.
Some of the best rock ballads tell simple stories, such as Creedence’s Sweet Hitchhiker.”
At any rate, what I actually meant to do before going down the rabbit hole was to suggest seeing if you might get together with Kathy In Alaska and the folks who run the Freeper Canteen and revisit these last few music threads over where more music fans will jump in.
“a simple narrative poem of folk origin, composed in short stanzas and adapted for singing”
Marty Robbins, Gordon Light foot, Jim
Croche, were great Ballard singers.
I guess my emphasis was on style, more
than substance. My statement was not meant
to offend, or question your taste and
expertise.