“When a Man Loves a Woman” by Michael Bolton is a powerful cover of the classic soul ballad originally recorded by Percy Sledge in 1966. Bolton released his version in 1991 as part of his album Time, Love & Tenderness. His take on the song stays faithful to the emotional intensity of the original but adds his own signature style—soaring vocals, dramatic delivery, and a polished, early ’90s pop production.
The song is about total devotion to a loved one, even when that love leads to vulnerability or heartbreak. Bolton’s performance is filled with deep emotion, with his trademark raspy, heartfelt voice building from a tender opening to a powerful, almost pleading climax. He leans heavily into the song’s rawness, making it feel huge and overwhelming in the way that only deep love—and deep sadness—can be.
His version of “When a Man Loves a Woman” was a major success. It reached No. 1 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and No. 1 on the Adult Contemporary chart, and it won a Grammy Award for Best Pop Vocal Performance, Male in 1992. It also helped cement Bolton’s reputation as one of the biggest adult contemporary and pop ballad singers of the late ’80s and early ’90s.
While purists sometimes debate whether Bolton’s version matches the soulful rawness of Percy Sledge’s original, there’s no doubt that his cover brought the song to a new generation and became one of the defining tracks of his career—an anthem of sweeping, earnest love.