MICHAEL BOLTON

Born: Michael Bolotin; New Haven, Connecticut, 26 February 1953

Genre: Rock, Pop

Best-selling album since 1990: Time, Love, and Tenderness (1991)

Hit songs since 1990: "How Am I Supposed to Live without You," "Love Is a Wonderful Thing," "When a Man Loves a Woman"

Michael Bolton gained fame in the 1980s and 1990s by applying his powerful, weighty vocal pipes to big-sounding pop ballads. Although Bolton had performed extensively in a hard-edged rock style during the 1970s under his real name, Michael Bolotin, he did not break through commercially until he simplified his surname and began singing romantic-themed songs in the mid-1980s. Never a critical favorite, Bolton nonetheless proved himself a skilled songwriter and performer with a sharp eye for gauging the taste of the record-buying public. His dramatic vocal style, leonine mane of hair, and sturdy, handsome image won him legions of female fans, while his far-ranging musical interests spurred a commercially successful foray into opera. Although Bolton stepped away from the spotlight during the late 1990s and early 2000s, he returned in 2002 with an album that brought his sound up to date with the latest trends in pop and rock.

Raised in Connecticut, Bolton began performing at the age of thirteen, singing blues songs in local nightclubs. By the mid 1970s, he had embarked upon a career as a singer and songwriter, signing to RCA Records and releasing his debut album, Michael Bolotin (1975), on which he sings in a tough style heavily influenced by rock singer Joe Cocker. While critics dismissed his singing as overblown, they applauded the intelligence of his songwriting; soon he had written an engaging song, "How Am I Supposed to Live without You," which became a 1983 hit for the pop singer Laura Branigan. After a stint fronting a heavy metal band, Blackjack, Bolton reemerged as a solo artist and released the hard-rock-oriented Michael Bolton (1983). His commercial breakthrough did not come until 1987, however, when he revamped his style and released The Hunger, a set of blustery pop ballads including the self-penned hit, "That's What Love Is All About." The album initiated what became a career trademark for Bolton: covers of R&B classics that bore distinct resemblances, in terms of arrangements and vocal phrasing, to the original versions. On The Hunger, Bolton scored a number-eleven pop hit with "(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay," a 1967 signature song for the late R&B legend Otis Redding.

Soul Provider (1989), an album recorded in a similar style to its predecessor, made Bolton a star. This time, the R&B cover was a version of "Georgia on My Mind," a song associated with music pioneer Ray Charles. By the end of 1990, five of the album's singles had hit the Top 40, among them a strong version of "That's What Love Is All About." Although Bolton was often criticized for pilfering the rugged, soulful sound of great but neglected R&B singers, R&B pioneer Irma Thomas recorded a moving rendition of "That's What Love Is All About" in 1991, an indication that artistic influence often works both ways.

In 1991 Bolton returned with Time, Love, and Tenderness, another multi-million-selling album that featured his hit rendition of "When a Man Loves a Woman," a cover of the 1965 hit recording by Percy Sledge. By this time, Bolton had begun to receive substantial flak from the critical community. After performing the song at the 1992 Grammy Award ceremony, he was cornered by an angry group of journalists who faulted him for not giving artists such as Charles and Sledge proper credit. A nettled Bolton responded to the group with a suggestion that would be unprintable in most publications.

After his 1997 album All That Matters performed disappointingly on the charts, Bolton switched gears by recording My Secret Passion (1998), a collection of opera arias that reached the top position on the classical charts, causing many of Bolton's detractors to admit that he performed this material with more finesse than had been expected. Taking a self-imposed sabbatical from the music industry for the next several years, Bolton continued his deep involvement with charity work, lending his support to the fight against child abuse. In 2002 he released a comeback album, Only a Woman Like You, in which he updated his sound with slick, Latin-style rhythms and a new sense of vocal restraint.

After an unsuccessful career as a hard-rock artist, Bolton reinvented himself in the 1980s as a torchy balladeer of classic R&B songs and glitzy pop. Although his derivative style brought critical disdain, it pushed sales of his albums over the 40 million mark. Proving himself adaptable to new ideas, Bolton made a successful venture into opera before returning to streamlined pop music in the early 2000s.

SELECTIVE DISCOGRAPHY:

Michael Bolotin (RCA, 1975); Michael Bolton (Columbia, 1983); The Hunger (Columbia, 1987); Soul Provider (Columbia, 1989); Time, Love and Tenderness (Columbia, 1991); All That Matters (Columbia, 1997); My Secret Passion (Columbia, 1998); Only a Woman Like You (Jive, 2002).

david freeland