Michael Bolton (born Michael Bolotin on February 26, 1953), is an American … Read Full Bio ↴Michael Bolton (born Michael Bolotin on February 26, 1953), is an American singer-songwriter, best known for his soft rock ballads and powerful vocals, characterized by his wide vocal range and deep, husky vocal tone. He was born in New Haven, Connecticut.

His achievements include selling 53 million albums, eight top ten albums, two number one singles on the Billboard charts, and awards from both the American Music Awards and Grammy Awards.

Michael Bolton had an extensive, though not very successful, career under his real name, Michael Bolotin, before emerging in the mid-'80s as a major soft rock balladeer. Bolton began recording in 1975. This first album was self-titled using his original surname, Bolotin. Early in his musical career, he focused on hard rock. His band, Blackjack, once toured with heavy metal singer Ozzy Osbourne. He turned up on RCA Records in the mid-'70s singing in a gruff, Joe Cocker-like voice both his own blue-eyed soul songs and cover tunes. Neither record buyers nor critics were much interested by the result. He then became the lead singer in Blackjack, a heavy metal band that made two albums for Polydor at the end of the '70s and the start of the '80s. In 1983, he changed his name to Michael Bolton, signed to Columbia Records as a solo act, and relaunched his career.

Michael Bolton was released in April 1983, and made the Top 100 bestsellers, as did its single, "Fools Game." At the same time, "How Am I Supposed to Live Without You," which Bolton had co-written, became a Top 40 hit for Laura Branigan. Nevertheless, Bolton's second Columbia album, Everybody's Crazy (1985), was a commercial flop. His breakthrough came with his third album, The Hunger, released in September 1987. On this album, Bolton abandoned the more hard rock aspects of his style to concentrate on blue-eyed soul singing: both on his own songs, such as "That's What Love Is All About," and on covers like Otis Redding's "(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay." Those two songs became Top 40 hits.

Soul Provider, released in July 1989, turned Bolton into a superstar, reaching the Top Ten, selling four million copies, and spawning five Top 40 singles, including Bolton's number one version of "How Am I Supposed to Live Without You," and the Top Ten hits "How Can We Be Lovers" and "When I'm Back on My Feet Again." "How Am I Supposed to Live Without You" won Bolton a Grammy Award for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance. Time, Love & Tenderness, released in April 1991, was even more successful, hitting number one, selling six million copies, and featuring four Top 40 hits, including the chart-topping cover of Percy Sledge's "When a Man Loves a Woman," and the Top Ten hits "Love Is a Wonderful Thing" (later the subject of a successful plagiarism suit brought against Bolton by the Isley Brothers) and "Time, Love and Tenderness."

Bolton won another Grammy Award for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance, for "When a Man Loves a Woman," but he had to put up with abuse from two camps of detractors at the February 1992 ceremony. Just after Bolton had performed, pre-rock songwriter Irving Gordon won the Song of the Year award for "Unforgettable" and pointedly attacked songs that "scream, yell, and have a nervous breakdown" and singers who "have a hernia" when they sing. Then, backstage, Bolton faced a hostile press corps of critics unhappy with his tendency to copy great soul singers like Redding, Ray Charles, and Sledge. Bolton suggested they apply their lips to a certain part of his anatomy. He further responded with Timeless: The Classics in September 1992, an album made up entirely of cover songs. It went to number one, sold three million copies, and featured a Top 40 hit in Bolton's version of the Bee Gees' "To Love Somebody." Bolton's next album of original material, The One Thing, came in November 1993. It hit the Top Ten, sold three million copies, and featured the Top Ten hit "Said I Loved You...But I Lied." Bolton released Greatest Hits 1985-1995 in the fall of 1995, which debuted in the Top Ten. The following year, This Is the Time: Christmas Album appeared.

Bolton returned with All That Matters, his first album of new material since 1993's The One Thing, in the fall of 1997. Instead of continuing his success, it was a surprise flop. Not only did it not generate a hit single, it barely cracked the Top 40 and fell out of the charts after 15 weeks. Its lack of success didn't stop Bolton from turning his attention to My Secret Passion, a collection of opera and arias that he released in January 1998. By classical standards, the album was a hit, and the record received a great deal of press and surprisingly good reviews. He supported the two albums with a summer tour which were co-headlined with Wynonna Judd. He voluntarily stepped back for almost four years, disappearing from the public eye until the spring of 2002 when he began promoting Only a Woman Like You, his first album on Jive Records. After a brief sabbatical, he returned with Til the End of Forever, a hybrid new album of seven new recordings and a live greatest-hits concert. In 2006 he released Bolton Swings Sinatra, a 12-song tribute to Ol' Blue Eyes that included a duet with fiancée/actress Nicolette Sheridan.

It would be worth mentioning "Can I Touch You There" proved to be one of the all-time hit love songs from Micheal Bolton from the album Greatest Hits.

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I'll Be Home for Christmas
Michael Bolton Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

I'm dreamin' tonight of a place I love
Even more than I usually do
And although I know it's a long road back
I promise you

I'll be home for Christmas
You can count on me
Please, have snow and mistletoe

And presents under the tree

Christmas Eve will find me
Where the love light beams
I'll be home for Christmas
If only in my dreams

Christmas Eve will find me
Where the love light beams
I'll be home for Christmas

If only in my dreams
If only in my dreams

Overall Meaning

In Michael Bolton's song "I'll be Home for Christmas," the lyrics are a sentimental message from someone who is physically distant from his loved ones during the holiday season. He is dreaming of a place he loves even more than usual, indicating that his heart is truly aching to be reunited with the ones he cares about. Despite knowing it is a long road back, he makes the promise to be home for Christmas. This promise serves as an emotional support to those who are left behind and are missing him dearly. The singer pleads to have snow and mistletoe, and presents under the tree, as these are the staples of a typical Christmas celebration that he is missing out on. However, he assures his loved ones that although he is not with them physically, Christmas Eve will find him where the love light beams, and he will be home for Christmas, if only in his dreams.

The song is an emotional tribute to the sacrifices made by soldiers, travelers, and anyone who has to spend the holidays far away from their families. It is a message of hope and love that resonates with many people, creating a nostalgic feeling of home and family during the holiday season. Bolton's powerful voice, accompanied by the melody of the song, evokes a sense of longing and anticipation for the joyous and comforting atmosphere of Christmas that we all look forward to.

Line by Line Meaning

I'm dreamin' tonight of a place I love
I am lost in thoughts of a place dear to me.

Even more than I usually do
My love for that place is intensified.

And although I know it's a long road back
I am aware that returning there is no easy feat.

I promise you
Despite the challenges, I assure you that I will be there.

I'll be home for Christmas
I will be present with you to celebrate Christmas.

You can count on me
You can depend on my word that I will be there.

Please, have snow and mistletoe
I am hoping you will have classic Christmas elements to set the mood.

And presents under the tree
I hope the tree is adorned with wrapped gifts to bring about joy.

Christmas Eve will find me
On the night of Christmas Eve, I will be located.

Where the love light beams
At the place where the love and warmth of Christmas can be felt.

If only in my dreams
Even if reality does not allow me to be there physically, I will be there in thought.

If only in my dreams
This sentiment is emphasized as I repeat it once more.

Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Royalty Network, GANNON & KENT MUSIC CO, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Buck Ram, Walter Kent, Kim Gannon

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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