Michael Bolton – Everybody’s Crazy (1985)
NM/VG+
Everybody’s Crazy captures Michael Bolton at a fascinating turning point in his career—years before he became internationally known for polished soul-pop and romantic ballads. Released by Columbia/CBS in 1985, this was his fourth solo studio album overall and his second under the shortened Michael Bolton name.
Bolton had previously released two albums as Michael Bolotin before fronting the hard-rock band Blackjack. After signing with Columbia and relaunching his solo career, he developed a forceful melodic-rock sound influenced by the arena rock and AOR of the early 1980s. Everybody’s Crazy represents the fullest expression of that period.
Musically, the album is much heavier than Bolton’s later commercial work. Powerful vocals, prominent keyboards, melodic guitar solos and large, polished choruses place it firmly within melodic hard rock, AOR and pop-metal. Songs such as “Save Our Love,” “Everybody’s Crazy” and “You Don’t Want Me Bad Enough” deliver energetic arena rock, while “Call My Name” and “Desperate Heart” reveal the emotional ballad style that would later become central to Bolton’s success.
The album was primarily produced and engineered by Neil Kernon, with Bolton serving as co-producer. “Desperate Heart” was produced by Randy Goodrum. The sessions featured an accomplished group of musicians, including guitarist Bruce Kulick—who subsequently became a long-serving member of Kiss—along with saxophonist Mark Rivera, bassist Dennis Feldman and keyboardists Jan Mullaney, Mark Radice and Allan St. John.
Although the record achieved only limited commercial success at the time, the title track received hard-rock radio and MTV exposure and was later featured in the 1986 comedy Back to School. Several compositions also found new audiences through other artists: Starship recorded “Desperate Heart,” while Jennifer Rush later recorded a version of “Call My Name.”
Everybody’s Crazy was followed by The Hunger in 1987, when Bolton began moving away from hard rock towards blue-eyed soul and adult contemporary music. That transition eventually led to the enormous success of Soul Provider in 1989. As a result, Everybody’s Crazy now stands as an intriguing document of the ambitious rock singer and songwriter Bolton was immediately before his international breakthrough.
Edition details:
Artist: Michael Bolton
Title: Everybody’s Crazy
Released: 1985
Label: CBS
Updated catalogue number: 466662 1
Original catalogue reference: 01-026144-20
Country of manufacture: Holland
Format: Vinyl LP, album
Genre: Melodic Hard Rock / AOR / Pop Metal
Includes the printed lyric and portrait inner sleeve
Nine-track album featuring “Save Our Love,” “Everybody’s Crazy,” “Call My Name” and “Desperate Heart”
A particularly interesting release for collectors of 1980s melodic rock, AOR and Michael Bolton’s harder, pre-fame recordings.