Michael Bolton quotes:

You're presuming too much by using the word legacy - presuming that someone is going to care.

Considering the amount of information we're bombarded by, it's amazing if a song can transcend time.

There are certain people who have become better artists, but they're brilliant at marketing. I think someone who's been phenomenal like that is Madonna.

I have friends who've tried to break into the UK, who went back with their tails between their legs. Fortunately I've had the opposite experience.

It's not quite the Tom Jones show, but yes, I've had undergarments. If I get a bra chucked on stage I'll hold it up so the audience can decide what to think. And I'll usually blame a guy for doing it.

No matter how great we get with digital formats of instrumentation, nothing really quite duplicates the real thing.

I have to be happy in the here and now because every time you start focusing on your legacy you're really setting yourself up for disappointment.

I love songwriting. It's second to my love for singing in how I express myself.

I'm proud of my mentors. Ray Charles is the strongest influence on me as a singer.

Its a combination of melody and lyrics, not one without the other. Its a confluence of these different elements that makes something powerful.

I kept looking to do songs that were written years ago and would live or outlive all of us, and the one thing they had in common was Sinatra.

Dr. King is so inspiring, so impressive, so moving as a human being.

I was blown away by the control and the range that I was hearing. I'm listening to Pavarotti and thinking, What the hell have I been doing with my voice all these years?

No matter how great we get with digital formats of instrumentation, nothing really quite duplicates the real thing

Sinatra, here's a guy who plays a tough guy in all his movies, but was allowed to be vulnerable when he stepped up to the microphone.

A lot of my success comes from black music. It's something I'm very proud of.

When I started studying for the arias it was like going into training for a heavyweight title fight.

I like the simple 'I love your work' letters. You never get sick of people's appreciation. They think they're troubling you, but it's lovely people associate my songs with certain moments in their lives.

It's a combination of melody and lyrics, not one without the other. It's a confluence of these different elements that makes something powerful.

The Top 40 is geared toward 20 and under, not 20 and up. That's the audience I'm geared to.

We used to call it recurrent airplay when someone had a hit.

When I started studying for the arias it was like going into training for a heavyweight title fight

Black music has increased my enjoyment of what I do. It has increased my range, my ability to reach into myself and accept myself.

Someone told me there was a publisher that could find a good home for my songs, but I didn't want to give up my pursuit of a career in the business as an artist.

You know, fans who think we were made for each other and describe it in excruciating detail. You get peculiar things and beautiful things. But either way they're clearly thinking about you, which is nice.

When you have great songs that are going to live longer than the composers, everything you can do to bring those different elements and nuances out, serve the song

When you have great songs that are going to live longer than the composers, everything you can do to bring those different elements and nuances out, serve the song.

It's understanding the intention of a composer that allows a producer and an arranger to make those moments speak.

For years I've kept a list of dream projects.

A 'passing' test doesn't mean 'no problem.' It means no problem *observed*. This time. With these inputs. So far. On my machine.

As you get older, your experiences become more precious. Nothing material is important to me. It's people who are precious.

But I'm not superstitious. I don't really eat dinner before I go on stage, because digesting a lot of food kind of shuts you down. And I try not to get involved in emotional conversations with anyone beforehand either, so I've got a clear head.

I accept that appearance is a big thing in this business. But being around Hollywood and having actor friends and doing music videos, it does make you more aware of how you look. With music videos they send you rough cuts, and in certain frames of me, I just see a nose advert.

I still get butterflies. It's because there's a certain level of responsibility you carry when doing a concert. You've got to sound at least as good as the record.

I'm pretty irreverent. There is a lot of need to find humour in life. Although I'd never be as disrespectful to laugh at someone's expense.

I'm proud of my mentors. Ray Charles is the strongest influence on me as a singer

It's an important thing to remember where you came from.

It's understanding the intention of a composer that allows a producer and an arranger to make those moments speak

On singing in the swimming pool: "If I can move the water, I can move the people.

One song will launch you, but you don't want to be a one-song artist

Said I loved you but I lied, cause this is more than love I feel inside.

Someone told me there was a publisher that could find a good home for my songs, but I didn't want to give up my pursuit of a career in the business as an artist

The bigger you are, the harder they come down on you

The more complicated the movie, the more complex the budget, the more lonely it gets. There's a point where ... who do you go to, other than prayer and friends?

The Top 40 is geared toward 20 and under, not 20 and up. That's the audience I'm geared to

The whole industry evolves around a great song

To be honest I listen to the female opinion on my photos. If all the girls in the office choose a certain shot, even if I don't like it, it becomes a front runner because, really, what do I know about how others perceive me?

To sing along with Stevie Wonder, you had to make your voice do things it was not accustomed to doing

Tonight I feel like a prisoner on fire, waiting desperately... denied, sentenced forever more. Only your love can set me free.

We used to call it recurrent airplay when someone had a hit

Whoever best serves the song is going to be served by the song

With the internet, things are so much more immediate. People taste-test things to see if they want to buy the CD

You can't make everybody love what you do, but you can know how great you feel doing it.

Yes!!! I booked a commercial!!!