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/
Stand Up for Love
Michael Bolton Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
We keep reaching the end of the line and giving up on each other
And, darling, I don't think we can survive one more goodbye
Can't cry one more tear or lie one more lie
We got one last chance to make it
But that's all we need if we just take it
[Chorus]
'Cause I know what we got is worth fighting for
And I know for sure, right or wrong, this is where we belong
Baby, this time we gotta stand up for love, stand together
Can't settle for less than forever
I know there's nothing we can't rise above
If we just stand up for love
Baby, after everything we put each other through
And no matter what damage we do, we still need one another
And sometimes when I hold you in my arms, somehow I see
As bad as we've been that's how good we can be
But we can't just say we want it
Gotta lay all our tomorrows on it
[Chorus]
For all the dues we've paid
The magic we two have made
For all we've meant to one another
Once and for all we've gotta stand up for each other
Baby, we gotta stand up for love, gotta hold on
'Cause we know what we got is worth fighting for
And we know for sure, right or wrong
Baby, this time we gotta stand up for love, now or never
Can't settle for less than forever
I know there's nothing we can't rise above
If we just stand up for love
The song "Stand Up for Love" by Michael Bolton is a powerful ballad about the struggles of a relationship that has gone through many ups and downs. The lyrics describe a couple who have been in and out of love multiple times, but are facing their final chance to make things work. The singer acknowledges the pain they have caused each other, but also recognizes the deep connection and love they share. The chorus urges the couple to stand up for their love, to hold on and fight for what they have. The song is a call to action for the couple to commit to each other fully and not settle for less than forever.
The lyrics of this song are emotional and relatable to anyone who has been in a rocky relationship. The message is clear: love is worth fighting for, and sometimes it takes a lot of effort to make things work. The use of imagery, such as laying all our tomorrows on it, adds depth and poignancy to the song. The repetition of the chorus emphasizes the importance of standing up for love and not giving up.
Line by Line Meaning
Baby, we've been in and out of love so many times
We have a history of starting and ending our relationship multiple times.
We keep reaching the end of the line and giving up on each other
Our relationship keeps getting to a breaking point and we end up giving up on each other.
And, darling, I don't think we can survive one more goodbye
I don't think our relationship can handle another breakup.
Can't cry one more tear or lie one more lie
I can't handle any more emotional pain or dishonesty in our relationship.
We got one last chance to make it
We have one final opportunity to make our relationship work.
But that's all we need if we just take it
We don't need anything else but this chance, if we just take advantage of it.
Baby, we gotta stand up for love, gotta hold on
We need to fight for our love and not let go of each other.
'Cause I know what we got is worth fighting for
I believe that our love is worth fighting for, no matter the obstacles or challenges.
And I know for sure, right or wrong, this is where we belong
I am certain that we belong together, even if we have made mistakes or done wrong in the past.
Baby, this time we gotta stand up for love, stand together
This time, we need to stand up for our love and face any challenges together.
Can't settle for less than forever
We can't accept anything less than a lifelong commitment to each other.
I know there's nothing we can't rise above
I am confident that we can overcome any obstacles or difficulties in our way.
If we just stand up for love
If we are willing to fight for our love and make it work, we can overcome anything.
For all the dues we've paid
We have been through a lot together.
The magic we two have made
Our love has a special quality and connection.
For all we've meant to one another
We have a significant and meaningful relationship.
Once and for all we've gotta stand up for each other
We need to make a final and lasting commitment to each other and our love.
Baby, this time we gotta stand up for love, now or never
It's time to stand up for our love, or else we might never have another chance.
I know there's nothing we can't rise above
I am confident that we can overcome any obstacles or difficulties in our way.
If we just stand up for love
If we are willing to fight for our love and make it work, we can overcome anything.
Lyrics © Wixen Music Publishing, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: MICHAEL BOLTON, BARRY MANN, CYNTHIA WEIL
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind