Michael Ball (born Michael Ashley Ball, on 27 June 1962 in Bromsgrove, England) is a British actor and singer, best known for musical theatre roles such as Marius in Les Misérables, Alex in Aspects of Love, and Caractacus Potts in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.
Although born in England, Michael Ball is half Welsh, and says jokingly that he considers himself "Wenglish" and proud to be British [1]. He studied Drama at the Guildford School of Acting and graduated in 1984. His first major break was a star part in the production of The Pirates of Penzance at the Opera House, Manchester. Next came a brief stint in Rep. Cameron Mackintosh saw him and cast him as Marius in Les Misérables. Next came Raoul in the second casting of Phantom of the Opera, and Alex in Aspects of Love, both in London and on Broadway, and Giorgio in Stephen Sondheim's London production of Passion. Alone Together was Michael's one man show first performed at The Donmar Warehouse (which was reprised in 2004 for the Singular Sensations season at the Haymarket). In 2002 Michael took on the role of Caractacus Potts in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang which was largely considered his comeback role. In 2005, at 10 days' notice, he replaced Michael Crawford, who had to leave the show due to ill health, as Count Fosco in The Woman in White, and gave a popular and critically-acclaimed performance.
Other performances include singing at the BBC's St David's Day concert, at the Les Misérables Tenth Anniversary Concert in 1995, and the fiftieth birthday party of Andrew Lloyd Webber in 1998. He is a dramatic baritone known for his range, expression and power.
Michael is an accomplished concert artist and tours frequently around the UK. He has also performed concerts in Australia and America. Since reaching the top of the British charts with "Love Changes Everything" (from Aspects of Love) Michael had small successes with follow up singles but in the main he has concentrated on releasing albums, all of which achieved Gold status within weeks, and in the case of The Movies album in 1998, Platinium in 7 weeks{was released Oct 26th confirmed Platinium status in interview on 12 Dec}. Michael represented the UK in the Eurovision Song Contest 1992, singing the song "One Step Out of Time", which finished second.
Michael has also turned his hand to presenting both on TV and radio and has presented The National lottery, Children in Need and This Morning, and had his own series on TV and radio (Ball over Broadway on BBC Radio 2) (which is in its fourth season), The Greenroom, and several specials for BBC Radio 2 on subjects such as Nat King Cole, Cameron Mackintosh, and Cy Coleman.
In September 2005, Michael made his NYC Opera debut as Reginald Bunthorne in Gilbert and Sullivan's Patience with the New York City Opera.
In October 2005 Michael released his latest album "Music". The album went into the UK charts at number 11, and spent 10 weeks in the top 75. The album finished the year the 99th best selling album of 2005.
In November, 2005, Michael returned to Broadway as Count Fosco in The Woman in White, which transferred from London's West End. However, he was forced to leave the show due to a reported viral infection caused by the fat suit required for the role, which reportedly raised Ball's body temperature by several degrees during the show. The suit is also thought to have been the cause of Michael Crawford's premature departure from the show in London. The show closed early, in part due to the health problems of Ball and leading lady Maria Friedman.
Michael spent the first quarter of 2006 on complete vocal rest, following the illness that caused him the leave Woman In White on Broadway. By the middle of July, Michael had taken part in the Royals Court's celebratory performance of The Rocky Horror Show, recorded a new album (called "One Voice", due for release on 30 October 2006) and made a guest appearance on Julian Lloyd Webber's album "Unexpected song". Then came the summer concerts at Aberdeen, Bath, Southport, Oakley Hall and Cardiff. In August, Michael sat in for Michael Parkinson on his Radio 2 show. He was interviewed for Radio 3's "Stage and Screen" programme, and recorded a tribute to Anthony Newley at Hackney Empire, also for Radio 2. Michael then took part in 'Proms in the Park' in Singleton Park, Swansea. He sang two tracks from his forthcoming album, 'One Voice'; the title song and 'Hero'. Michael also sung show stoppers, 'This is the Moment', 'Anthem' and 'Love Changes Everything'. In November, Michael will be releasing a new DVD containing all the best songs from his 'Live in Concert' DVDs. They will be split into five sections: Musicals, Love Songs, Personal Favourites, Party Time and Unplugged. The DVD will also include a brand new "Unplugged" session which Michael has recorded with just 4 other musicians in the studio especially for this DVD. It will be released on November 20 2006. Six days later he will join Petula Clark in concert at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane in London. (In 2004, he co-starred with her in a production of Lloyd Webber's Sunset Boulevard at the Cork Opera House in the Republic of Ireland, which was later broadcast by the BBC. Michael has lots of promotional activities coming up at the end of the year with the release of his new album 'One Voice'.
It has been announced that Ball will be taking the lead role in Kismet in June/July 2007 for the ENOdetails can be found on the English National Opera website.There will also be a tour but exact dates are not known yet{Michael confirmed this during his Stage and screen interview}.
He is currently sitting in for Johnnie Walker on his Sunday afternoon BBC Radio 2 show.
The Rose
Michael Ball Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
It is a river that drowns the tender reed.
Some say love,
It is a razor that leaves your soul to bleed.
Some say love,
It is a hunger, an endless aching need.
I say love, it is a flower,
And you it's only seed.
That never learns to dance.
It's the dream, afraid of waking,
That never takes a chance.
It's the one who won't be taken,
Who cannot seem to give.
And the soul, afraid of dying,
That never learns to live.
When the night has been too lonely,
And the road has been to long,
And you think that love is only for
The lucky and the strong
Just remember
In the winter far beneath the bitter snows
Lies the seed that with the sun's love
In the spring becomes the rose.
In Michael Ball's song Rose, the lyrics speak about the paradoxical nature of love. The first three lines of the chorus present love as something potentially dangerous, an entity that can drown, cut, and create a sense of need. However, the singer then contrasts this with his own interpretation of love, calling it a flower that grows from a single seed. The metaphor of a seedling turning into a rose is used to suggest the beauty and potential that can come from what is initially small and fragile.
The lyrics continue to delve into the fears and anxieties that can hinder someone from experiencing love. The heart that is too afraid of being hurt to take risks or the soul that is too afraid of death to truly live. Yet, the last stanza positions hope as the ultimate message of the song. Just as a seed lies dormant underground in the winter, there is always the possibility for love to blossom and grow in even the darkest of times. The message seems to be that though love can be fraught with difficulties, it is ultimately worth the risk as it has the power to transform and bring immense joy.
Line by Line Meaning
Some say love,
Love, according to some people,
It is a river that drowns the tender reed.
Some people think that love is like a river that can wash away the tender part of a person.
Some say love,
Some individuals believe that love is,
It is a razor that leaves your soul to bleed.
Love can also be like a sharp razor that cuts tenderly and makes your soul bleed.
Some say love,
Some people argue that love is
It is a hunger, an endless aching need.
Love can create an endless and hurtful longing that constantly needs to be satisfied.
I say love, it is a flower,
According to Michael Ball, love is a flower,
And you it's only seed.
And whoever has been loved is just a seed,
It's the heart, afraid of breaking,
Love causes our hearts to be afraid of being broken,
That never learns to dance.
Which prevents us from fulfilling our love's potential.
It's the dream, afraid of waking,
Love could also be like a dream, that is afraid of waking up.
That never takes a chance.
Which causes us to miss out on taking chances.
It's the one who won't be taken,
Love can resolve to an individual who won't accept it,
Who cannot seem to give.
And they can't invest in another person.
And the soul, afraid of dying,
Love could also be perceived as the soul which is afraid of death,
That never learns to live.
Hence, many people never really experience true love while living.
When the night has been too lonely,
During the darkest and loneliest nights,
And the road has been too long,
When the journey seems to never end,
And you think that love is only for
It's easy to believe that love is only for those who are lucky or strong,
The lucky and the strong
But in reality, it isn't like that, love really knows no bounds.
Just remember
Therefore, we should remember
In the winter far beneath the bitter snows
That during the winter season, underneath the harsh snow,
Lies the seed that with the sun's love
The seed of love is hidden
In the spring becomes the rose.
But with the warmth of the sun, this seed can flourish and become a beautiful rose.
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Amanda Mcbroom
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@ProfessorAlessandroHirata
Some say love, it is a river
That drowns the tender reed
Some say love, it is a razor
That leaves your soul to bleed
Some say love, it is a hunger
An endless aching need
I say love, it is a flower
And you, its only seed
It's the heart, afraid of breaking
That never learns to dance
It's the dream, afraid of waking
That never takes the chance
It's the one who won't be taken
Who cannot seem to give
And the soul, afraid of dying
That never learns to live
When the night has been too lonely
And the road has been too long
And you think that love is only
For the lucky and the strong
Just remember in the winter
Far beneath the bitter snows
Lies the seed that with the sun's love
In the spring becomes the rose
@janekellie3472
I Love It When People Respect Other People..No Time Wasters, Or People User and Abusers..Thankyou Michael Ball For Your Sharing Your Music
@peggyray-be3qj
I COULD❤ write a different comment each day and never say enough about the beautiful voice of Michael Ball
@christinemorrall
Beautiful. His voice is so soothing and fantastic.
@christinemorrall
He has such a soothing voice. I love listening to him, He is fantastic ❤️
@conniepabey2368
I live in the U.S. and have just recently been introduced to Michael Ball's incredible talent and I can't seem to get enough of him. I literally listen to him throughout the day, everyday. And it doesn't hurt that he is gorgeous!
@eileenlondon91
The only
@jodysunflower
Agree!
@beckymcculloch1101
I agree. He is so talented and we’ve just learned of him. I just hope to see him in concert.
@margieford3777
I also have just recently found him. Oh my! Never heard such a beautiful voice in my life and he is so gorgeous! Listen to him everyday.
@danniema304
Love his voice