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.
www.michaelbolton.com/
Let There Be Love
Michael Bolton Lyrics
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As we race across the heavens to embrace the universe
In this hour and in truth what is it worth
When we can't escape the madness
We've created on this earth
They say that money talks but you and I
Know places money just don't say enough
Let there be love where there is emptiness
Let there be faith where hope is gone
Let there be strength where there is helplessness
And open eyes to see right from wrong
We've gotta find a way to trust
The very best in all of us
Let there be love, let there be love
We live divided behind imaginary walls
Brother against brother, we just watch each other fall
With hearts united we will never stand so tall
Reachin' out to one another
We'll find the meaning of it all
Ain't one power we will ever know
Could ever heal the poverty of the soul
Let there be love where there is emptiness
Let there be faith where hope is gone
Let there be strength where there is helplessness
And open eyes to see right from wrong
We've gotta find a way to trust
To forgive and rise above
Let there be love, let there be love
(When will we learn, tell me when will we see)
How many more promises spoken
While the dreams of the innocent die
Every day another heart gets broken
While the flame of hate survives
When will the healing begin in our lives
Let there be love where there is emptiness
Let there be faith where hope is gone
Let there be strength where there is helplessness
And open eyes to see right from wrong
We've gotta find a way to trust
The very best in all of us
Gotta be more than wise enough
To forgive and rise above
Let there be love, let there be love
The lyrics of Michael Bolton's Let There Be Love call for unity, love, and trust in order to overcome the world's problems. In the beginning, he acknowledges the power that humans possess, as well as the hunger for knowledge and exploration. However, he questions the worth of all this if humans cannot break free from the destruction they have brought upon themselves. Despite the power that money holds in society, Bolton insists that it is not enough to bring the healing that people need.
Bolton contends that the world is divided, with imaginary walls separating individuals and causing them to watch as they fall, one after the other. It is only through unity, with hearts united, can people find meaning and purpose. The power of love is a necessary antidote to the emptiness, hopelessness, and helplessness that people feel. Additionally, people must find a way to forgive, to trust, and to be above their misguided ways for there to be love. Without such virtues, the healing that the world needs will not come to pass.
The message in Michael Bolton's Let There Be Love is a call for people to stop fighting amongst themselves and embrace each other. Creating division does not solve anything. To achieve love, trust, and unity, people must forgive one another and rise above their actions. The lyrics speak to the healing power of love, faith, and strength, which can help fill emptiness, overcome hopelessness, and offer healing where there is helplessness. The message hopes to inspire listeners to look past their differences and come together in a peaceful and harmonious world.
Line by Line Meaning
We've got the power, we've got the hunger for the search
We possess the strength and drive to explore beyond our present reality
As we race across the heavens to embrace the universe
We journey through outer space in search of knowledge and adventure
In this hour and in truth what is it worth
At this moment, in reality, what value does our pursuit hold?
When we can't escape the madness, we've created on this earth
We find ourselves unable to avoid the chaos we have brought into existence
They say that money talks, but you and I, know places money just don't say enough
We recognize the limitations of wealth and realize its ineffectiveness in certain situations
Let there be love where there is emptiness
May the absence of feeling and connection be replaced with love
Let there be faith where hope is gone
May faith spring forth in the absence of hope
Let there be strength where there is helplessness
Let strength be found in moments of powerlessness
And open eyes to see right from wrong
May clarity give us the ability to differentiate between good and evil
We've gotta find a way to trust
We must learn to believe in one another
The very best in all of us
The purest, most noble aspects of humanity
We live divided behind imaginary walls
We exist separated by arbitrary boundaries
Brother against brother, we just watch each other fall
Instead of helping, we witness each other's defeat in conflict
With hearts united we will never stand so tall
We rise higher when we're united in purpose and spirit
Reachin' out to one another, we'll find the meaning of it all
By extending a helping hand, we'll discover the true essence of existence
Ain't one power we will ever know, could ever heal the poverty of the soul
No external force can mend the destitution of the human soul
(When will we learn, tell me when will we see)
(When will we gain knowledge and insight, tell me when will we realize)
How many more promises spoken
How many more assurances must we hear
While the dreams of the innocent die
While the aspirations of the pure of heart perish
Every day another heart gets broken
Each day brings additional emotional turmoil
While the flame of hate survives
While anger and malice persist
When will the healing begin in our lives
When will we experience the process of recovery
Gotta be more than wise enough
Must possess more than just knowledge and prudence
To forgive and rise above
To let go of resentment and transcend above it
Let there be love, let there be love
May love permeate and thrive in all aspects of life
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner/Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: MICHAEL BOLTON, JAMIE HOUSTON
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind