“There’ll Be Sad Songs (To Make You Cry)” is a beautifully melancholic R&B ballad that topped the charts for Billy Ocean in 1986. The track utilizes a smooth, mid-tempo groove layered with soft synthesizer pads, a gentle bassline, and a weeping saxophone solo that perfectly complements the song’s sorrowful mood. The arrangement strikes a delicate balance, providing a comforting, easy-listening rhythm while maintaining a deeply emotional core.

The song’s lyrics brilliantly explore the powerful relationship between music, memory, and heartbreak. Ocean sings about how a simple, sad song on the radio can instantly trigger buried memories of a lost love, bringing all the old pain and tears rushing back to the surface. His smooth, soulful, and empathetic vocal delivery speaks directly to anyone who has ever used music to grieve a broken heart, making the track a definitive anthem about the bittersweet nature of lost romance.