What is a character song?

Answer 1

A song that has essentially a plot and is focused on one character. Some, maybe most tend towards the heavy stuff. A sterling if obsolete example ( this song has never done well on reruns or oldies) was the Ballad called the Coward of the County by Kenny Rogers. It starts off anti-violence and then after a violent assault on the title Character's wife , things get dirty. the dove turns hawk, so the pacifist message is lost. There are many songs that are essentially about one character, from the comparatively ancient John Henry, to more modern songs. They are also called Ballads, and usually run on the heavy side, I hope this is of some help.