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Donald's Encyclopedia of Popular MusicA B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y ZBOLTON, Michael(b Michael Bolotin, 26 Feb. '54, New Haven CT) Vocalist, lead singer of group Blackjack on Polydor (Blackjack '79 charted in USA; Worlds Apart '80 didn't). Apparently he recorded for RCA who have since issued albums The Early Years '91 and The Artistry Of Michael Bolotin '93; meanwhile he had changed his name and became a big-voiced ballad singer, his unctuous style despised by critics but pleasing large venues full of fans who ten years earlier would have been following Barry Manilow: Bolton probably had the better voice, but did he really mean it? Albums on Columbia: Michael Bolton '83 reached the top 100 USA, The Hunger '87 top 50, Soul Provider '89 no. 3, Time, Love And Tenderness '91 and Timeless: The Classics '92 both no. 1 (the latter apparently not a compilation album despite its title); The One Thing '93 (no. 3) followed by Greatest Hits '96, of which Tony Parsons wrote that while other white boys had ridden to fame crooning the songs of great black artists, nobody had ever done it with such a stupid haircut. My Secret Passion '98 had Bolton singing operatic arias (the fourth tenor?); unfortunately it wasn't bad enough to be funny. |