The Man, The Music MICHAEL BOLTON

With two Grammy Awards, six American Music Awards, eight Top Ten albums, two No. 1 pop singles, and more than 53 million album sales to his credit, Michael Bolton ranks as one of the most successful recording artists of his generation. He has collaborated with everyone from Luciano Pavarotti to Lady Gaga and his 2011 music video “Jack Sparrow,” recorded with the comedic trio Lonely Island, has racked up over 135 million views on YouTube. But the road to mega-stardom started with struggle.

Born Michael Bolotin in New Haven, Connecticut, the grandson of Russian Jewish immigrants had music in his blood. He spent his teenage years as a self-described “hippie kid” strumming his guitar on street corners in Greenwich Village during the 1960s. According to his autobiography, The Soul of It All: My Music, My Life, his first band toured in a rickety vehicle that “looked like a cross between the Wonder Bread truck and the Beatles’ Yellow Submarine.” The power of his voice opened doors in the music industry and he was offered a deal at such a young age that his mother had to co-sign his first recording contract.

By the late 1970s he had changed his last name to Bolton and landed a gig as lead vocalist for a hard rock band called Black Jack. Formed by Led Zeppelin’s attorney and featuring the former guitarist for Meatloaf, they seemed destined for the big time. Their self-titled debut album was a modest success, but their second album flopped, leaving Bolton—a married father of three—scrambling to keep a roof over his family’s head. (Ironically that second Blackjack album Worlds Apart has become a cult classic, sampled on hit records by both Jay-Z and Kanye West.) Bolton auditioned unsuccessfully to replace Ozzy Osbourne in Black Sabbath. He made ends meet by singing advertising jingles.

The turning point came in 1983 when a song he’d written was recorded by Laura Branigan, best known for her power-pop tune “Gloria.” That track, “How Am I Supposed to Live Without You,” went to the top of the Adult Contemporary chart. Bolton became known as a successful songwriter, but his own singing career did not take off until the late 1980s. His soulful rendition of Otis Redding’s “Sitting on the Dock of the Bay” put him on the map as a major vocal talent, but the biggest hit of his career was his own version of “How Am I Supposed to Live Without You,” which was released in 1989 and became the first No. 1 pop single of the 1990s. His flowing locks and remarkably powerful vocal range made him a heart-throb. Urban legend has it that his vocal performance of “When A Man Loves a Woman” has been known to drive female fans to the point of physical ecstasy.

Though best known for soul music and soft rock ballads he has dabbled in classical music and even recorded a few reggae cuts on his 2008 album One World, One Love including “Can You Feel Me,” a duet with Jamaican star Tami Chynn. Now in his early 60s, Bolton’s hair may be a bit shorter but his vocal powers remain undiminished. And while he has devoted himself to philanthropic work through the Michael Bolton Foundation—which focuses on helping women and children at risk from the ravages of poverty as well as emotional, physical, and sexual abuse—music is still what makes his heart beat. For him it’s all about “The passion, the hard work, striving, sacrifices, joy, and faith it takes to keep the dream alive.”