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Songs that Tell a Story

They used to be called "ballads," but now any old name will do. These are songs that use music as a narrative device. This practice actually has a long history, going back through operas, epics, poetry, and even to ancient Greece.

The stories these songs tell might be happy or sad, truth or fiction, frivolous or serious. But they'll all have one thing in common: Having a little more depth to them and a lot more thought put into them than your average teenage love ditty. Follow the story and identify with the characters; the journey you find mat parallel your own life, for good or bad.

• 
  (Old Dogs, Children And) Watermelon Wine
  Tom T. Hall
• 
  (The Man Who Shot) Liberty Valance
  Gene Pitney
• 
  18 and Life
  Skid Row
• 
  4th of July, Asbury Park (Sandy)
  Bruce Springsteen
• 
  7 Years
  Lukas Graham
• 
  9th & Hennepin
  Tom Waits
• 
  A Boy Named Sue
  Johnny Cash
• 
  A Horse With No Name
  America
• 
  A Little Piece of Heaven
  Avenged Sevenfold
• 
  A Nightmare to Remember
  Dream Theater
• 
  Adam's Song
  Blink 182
• 
  Afire Love
  Ed Sheeran
• 
  Ahab the Arab
  Ray Stevens
• 
  Alice's Restaurant
  Arlo Guthrie
• 
  All Along the Watchtower
  Bob Dylan
• 
  All I Wanna Do Is Make Love to You
  Heart
• 
  All Too Well
  Taylor Swift
• 
  All-American Girl
  Carrie Underwood
• 
  America
  Simon & Garfunkel
• 
  American Pie
  Don McLean
• 
  Amnesia
  5 Seconds of Summer
• 
  And So it Goes
  Billy Joel
• 
  Ariel
  Dean Friedman
• 
  At Seventeen
  Janis Ian
• 
  Baby
  Justin Bieber
• 
  Bad, Bad Leroy Brown
  Jim Croce
• 
  Ballad of Billy Joe McKay
  Shawn Mullins
• 
  Ballad of Frankie Lee and Judas Priest
  Bob Dylan
• 
  Ballad Of The Alamo
  Marty Robbins
• 
  Bat Out of Hell
  Meat Loaf
• 
  Battle Scars
  Guy Sebastian
• 
  Best Friend
  Foster the People
• 
  Big Bad John
  Jimmy Dean
• 
  Big Iron
  Marty Robbins
• 
  Billy and Bonnie
  Steve Earle
• 
  Billy Brown
  Mika
• 
  Billy Don't Be a Hero
  Bo Donaldson and The Heywoods
• 
  Bloodstream
  Ed Sheeran
• 
  Blown Away
  Carrie Underwood
• 
  Bohemian Rhapsody
  Queen
• 
  Boulevard of Broken Dreams
  Green Day
• 
  Boxing
  Ben Folds Five
• 
  Brain Stew
  Green Day
• 
  Brandy (You're a Fine Girl)
  Looking Glass
• 
  Brick
  Ben Folds Five
• 
  Brick by Boring Brick
  Paramore
• 
  Broken Home
  5 Seconds of Summer
• 
  Brooklyn Roads
  Neil Diamond
• 
  Buenas Tardes Amigo
  Ween
• 
  Build God, Then We'll Talk
  Panic! At The Disco
• 
  Bulletproof Love
  Pierce the Veil
• 
  Burma Shave
  Tom Waits
• 
  Canadian Railroad Trilogy
  Gordon Lightfoot
• 
  Car Radio
  Twenty One Pilots
• 
  Carolina Drama
  Raconteurs, The
• 
  Casimir Pulaski Day
  Sufjan Stevens
• 
  Cat's in the Cradle
  Harry Chapin
• 
  Chelsea Hotel
  Leonard Cohen
• 
  Chesterfield King
  Jawbreaker
• 
  Circle
  Flyleaf
• 
  City of New Orleans
  Steve Goodman
• 
  Cleaning this Gun (Come on in Boy)
  Rodney Atkins
• 
  Coat of Many Colors
  Dolly Parton
• 
  Come Dancing
  Kinks, The
• 
  Concrete Angel
  Martina McBride
• 
  Convoy
  Red Sovine
• 
  Copacabana (At the Copa)
  Barry Manilow
• 
  Copperhead Road
  Steve Earle
• 
  Country Death Song
  Violent Femmes
• 
  Coward of the County
  Kenny Rogers
• 
  Dance with the Devil
  Immortal Technique
• 
  Dark Paradise
  Lana Del Rey
• 
  Darling Nikki
  Prince
• 
  Daughter
  Pearl Jam
• 
  David's Last Summer
  Pulp
• 
  Deathbed
  Relient K
• 
  Della and the Dealer
  Hoyt Axton
• 
  Devil's Right Hand
  Steve Earle
• 
  Dirty Paws
  Of Monsters and Men
• 
  Distance
  Christina Perri
• 
  Do I Wanna Know?
  Arctic Monkeys
• 
  Don't
  Ed Sheeran
• 
  Don't Ask Me
  Seasick Steve
• 
  Down In The Tube Station At Midnight
  Jam, The
• 
  Drink A Beer
  Luke Bryan
• 
  El Paso
  Marty Robbins
• 
  Eleanor Rigby
  Beatles
• 
  End Up Here
  5 Seconds of Summer
• 
  Escape (The Pina Colada Song)
  Rupert Holmes
• 
  Every Rose Has Its Thorn
  Poison
• 
  Faceless Man
  Creed
• 
  Fancy
  Reba McEntire
• 
  Fast Car
  Tracy Chapman
• 
  Field Of Innocence
  Evanescence
• 
  Fireball
  Pitbull
• 
  Flawless
  Neighbourhood, The
• 
  Forever
  Papa Roach
• 
  Forever and Always
  Parachute
• 
  FourFiveSeconds
  Rihanna
• 
  Frankie and Johnny
  Lead Belly
• 
  Funhouse
  Pink
• 
  Glory Days
  Bruce Springsteen
• 
  Goodbye Again
  John Denver
• 
  Goodbye Earl
  Dixie Chicks
• 
  Goodnight Saigon
  Billy Joel
• 
  Grace Kelly
  Mika
• 
  Green, Green Grass of Home
  Tom Jones
• 
  Hand of Sorrow
  Within Temptation
• 
  Happily
  One Direction
• 
  Harper Valley PTA
  Jeannie C. Riley
• 
  Headlights
  Eminem
• 
  Heart Made Up on You
  R5
• 
  Hello
  Evanescence
• 
  Hero Of War
  Rise Against
• 
  Hey Man, Nice Shot
  Filter
• 
  Hey There Delilah
  Plain White T's
• 
  Highway Don't Care
  Tim McGraw & Taylor Swift
• 
  Hold On Till May
  Pierce the Veil
• 
  Honey
  Bobby Goldsboro
• 
  Honeymoon Suite
  Suzanne Vega
• 
  Hot Rod Lincoln
  Commander Cody and His Lost Planet Airmen
• 
  Hotel California
  Eagles
• 
  How to Save a Life
  Fray, The
• 
  Hurricane
  Bob Dylan
• 
  Hurricane
  Bridgit Mendler
• 
  I Don't Love You
  My Chemical Romance
• 
  I Feel Lucky
  Mary Chapin Carpenter
• 
  I Hate Everything About You
  Three Days Grace
• 
  I Love Rock 'n' Roll
  Joan Jett
• 
  I See Fire
  Ed Sheeran
• 
  I'll Show You
  Justin Bieber
• 
  I'll Walk
  Bucky Covington
• 
  If I Die Young
  Band Perry, The
• 
  If It Means a Lot to You
  A Day to Remember
• 
  In the Ghetto
  Elvis Presley
• 
  Into the Great Wide Open
  Tom Petty
• 
  Jack and Diane
  John Mellencamp
• 
  Jamie All Over
  Mayday Parade
• 
  Jamie's Cryin'
  Van Halen
• 
  Jeremy
  Pearl Jam
• 
  Jesus Of Suburbia
  Green Day
• 
  Jesus Take the Wheel
  Carrie Underwood
• 
  Jukebox Hero
  Foreigner
• 
  Just a Dream
  Carrie Underwood
• 
  Kenji
  Fort Minor
• 
  Knife
  Rockwell
• 
  La Freeway
  Guy Clark
• 
  Last Kiss
  Pearl Jam
• 
  Lead Me Out Of The Dark
  Crown the Empire
• 
  Let The Record Show
  Emilie Autumn
• 
  Light Pollution
  Bright Eyes
• 
  Lily, Rosemary, and the Jack of Hearts
  Bob Dylan
• 
  Little Lady
  Ed Sheeran
• 
  Living on a Prayer
  Bon Jovi
• 
  Lola
  Kinks, The
• 
  Love is Thicker Than Water
  Andy Gibb
• 
  Love Story
  Taylor Swift
• 
  Love Vigilantes
  New Order
• 
  Lullaby
  Nickelback
• 
  Lullaby
  Shawn Mullins
• 
  Lyin' Eyes
  Eagles
• 
  Mack the Knife
  Bobby Darin
• 
  Mama's Broken Heart
  Miranda Lambert
• 
  Man in the Mirror
  Michael Jackson
• 
  Margaritaville
  Jimmy Buffett
• 
  Mary's Song (Oh My My My)
  Taylor Swift
• 
  Matty Groves
  Joan Baez
• 
  Maxwell's Silver Hammer
  Beatles
• 
  Me and Bobby McGee
  Janis Joplin
• 
  Me and My Uncle
  Grateful Dead, The
• 
  Memories
  Panic! At The Disco
• 
  Miles
  Christina Perri
• 
  Misery Business
  Paramore
• 
  Mockingbird
  Eminem
• 
  Moments
  One Direction
• 
  Monster
  Meg & Dia
• 
  Monster
  Skillet
• 
  More than This
  One Direction
• 
  Mr Bojangles
  Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, The
• 
  Mrs Potato Head
  Melanie Martinez
• 
  Norwegian Wood
  Beatles
• 
  Nothing
  Script, The
• 
  Number 29
  Steve Earle
• 
  Ob-la-di, Ob-la-da
  Beatles
• 
  Ode to Billie Joe
  Bobbie Gentry
• 
  Old City Bar
  Trans-Siberian Orchestra
• 
  Old Rivers
  Walter Brennan
• 
  On the Bus Mall
  Decemberists, The
• 
  One
  Metallica
• 
  One Thing
  Finger Eleven
• 
  Papa Was A Rollin' Stone
  Temptations, The
• 
  Paradise by the Dashboard Light
  Meat Loaf
• 
  Phantom 309
  Red Sovine
• 
  Photograph
  Nickelback
• 
  Piano Man
  Billy Joel
• 
  Polk Salad Annie
  Elvis Presley
• 
  Problem
  Ariana Grande
• 
  Ragged Old Flag
  Johnny Cash
• 
  Red Ragtop
  Tim McGraw
• 
  Reminder
  Mumford & Sons
• 
  Replay
  Zendaya
• 
  Ride
  Twenty One Pilots
• 
  Ride the Lightning
  Metallica
• 
  Rime of the Ancient Mariner
  Iron Maiden
• 
  Ring of Fire
  Johnny Cash
• 
  Rocky Raccoon
  Beatles
• 
  Roland the Headless Thompson Gunner
  Warren Zevon
• 
  Roller Coaster
  Luke Bryan
• 
  Run Joey Run
  David Guetta
• 
  Saginaw, Michigan
  Lefty Frizzell
• 
  Same Old Lang Syne
  Dan Fogelberg
• 
  Save the Life Of My Child
  Simon & Garfunkel
• 
  Scarlet Ribbons (For Her Hair)
  Browns, The
• 
  Seventeen
  Marina and the Diamonds
• 
  Shalott
  Emilie Autumn
• 
  Shape Of You
  Ed Sheeran
• 
  Shiloh
  Neil Diamond
• 
  Shooting Star
  Bad Company
• 
  Sk8er Boi
  Avril Lavigne
• 
  Skin (Sarabeth)
  Rascal Flatts
• 
  Small Town Southern Man
  Alan Jackson
• 
  Smile
  Avril Lavigne
• 
  Sometime Around Midnight
  Airborne Toxic Event
• 
  Space Oddity
  David Bowie
• 
  Speak Now
  Taylor Swift
• 
  Stan
  Eminem
• 
  Stitches
  Shawn Mendes
• 
  Story of My Life
  One Direction
• 
  Strawberry Swing
  Coldplay
• 
  Sunday Mornin' Comin' Down
  Kris Kristofferson
• 
  Supper's Ready
  Genesis
• 
  Sylvia's Mother
  Dr Hook
• 
  Take Me To Church
  Hozier
• 
  Take the Money and Run
  Steve Miller Band
• 
  Taken
  One Direction
• 
  Tam Lin
  Fairport Convention
• 
  Tangled Up In Blue
  Bob Dylan
• 
  Taxi
  Harry Chapin
• 
  Teddy Bear
  Red Sovine
• 
  Teenagers
  My Chemical Romance
• 
  Tell Laura I Love Her
  Ray Peterson
• 
  Terrible Things
  Mayday Parade
• 
  That's My Kind Of Night
  Luke Bryan
• 
  The A Team
  Ed Sheeran
• 
  The Ballad of Billy the Kid
  Billy Joel
• 
  The Ballad of Ira Hayes
  Johnny Cash
• 
  The Ballad of Love and Hate
  Avett Brothers, The
• 
  The Ballad of Lucy Jordon
  Dr Hook
• 
  The Ballad of Mona Lisa
  Panic! At The Disco
• 
  The Battle Of New Orleans
  Johnny Horton
• 
  The Boxer
  Simon & Garfunkel
• 
  The Dance
  Garth Brooks
• 
  The Death of Sis Draper
  Guy Clark
• 
  The Deeper In
  Drive-By Truckers
• 
  The Devil Went Down to Georgia
  Charlie Daniels
• 
  The Dilemma
  You Me At Six
• 
  The Eighth of November
  Big & Rich
• 
  The End
  Macklemore
• 
  The Gambler
  Kenny Rogers
• 
  The Gates Of Delirium
  Yes
• 
  The Gift
  Velvet Underground, The
• 
  The Gunners Dream
  Pink Floyd
• 
  The Highwayman
  Loreena McKennitt
• 
  The Last Resort
  Eagles
• 
  The Last Time I Saw Richard
  Joni Mitchell
• 
  The Letter
  Midnight Youth
• 
  The Lighthouse's Tale
  Nickel Creek
• 
  The Man Who Can't Be Moved
  Script, The
• 
  The Mariner's Revenge Song
  Decemberists, The
• 
  The Night Chicago Died
  Paper Lace
• 
  The Night the Lights Went Out in Georgia
  Reba McEntire
• 
  The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down
  Joan Baez
• 
  The Queen and the Soldier
  Suzanne Vega
• 
  The Roadblock
  Stan Ridgeway
• 
  The Thunder Rolls
  Garth Brooks
• 
  The Way
  Fastball
• 
  The Weight
  Band, The
• 
  The Westerner
  Falling in Reverse
• 
  The Wreck of The Edmund Fitzgerald
  Gordon Lightfoot
• 
  Thinking 'Bout You
  Frank Ocean
• 
  Three Wooden Crosses
  Randy Travis
• 
  Thunder Road
  Bruce Springsteen
• 
  Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Ole Oak Tree
  Tony Orlando and Dawn
• 
  Tillamook County Jail
  Todd Snider
• 
  Tom's Diner
  Suzanne Vega
• 
  Travelin' Soldier
  Dixie Chicks
• 
  Try Hard
  5 Seconds of Summer
• 
  Turn the Page
  Bob Seger
• 
  Twin Rocks, Oregon
  Shawn Mullins
• 
  Two Black Cadillacs
  Carrie Underwood
• 
  Two Pieces
  Demi Lovato
• 
  Valentine's Day
  Linkin Park
• 
  View from Heaven
  Yellowcard
• 
  Viva La Vida
  Coldplay
• 
  Voices Carry
  Til Tuesday
• 
  Voodoo
  Godsmack
• 
  We're an American Band
  Grand Funk Railroad
• 
  West Coast
  Lana Del Rey
• 
  What It's Like
  Everlast
• 
  What Makes You Beautiful
  One Direction
• 
  What Sober Couldn't Say
  Halestorm
• 
  Where Do You Go To (My Lovely)?
  Peter Sarstedt
• 
  Where Have all the Cowboys Gone?
  Paula Cole
• 
  Where the Wild Roses Grow
  Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds
• 
  Whiskey Lullaby
  Brad Paisley
• 
  Whispering Jesse
  John Denver
• 
  Who Knew
  Pink
• 
  Wild Wild Life
  Talking Heads
• 
  Worth It
  Fifth Harmony
• 
  You are in Love
  Taylor Swift
• 
  You Belong With Me
  Taylor Swift
• 
  You Don't Mess Around with Jim
  Jim Croce
• 
  You Know What They Do to Guys Like Us in Prison
  My Chemical Romance
• 
  Young Turks
  Rod Stewart
• 
  Ziggy Stardust
  David Bowie

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