Michael Bolton - Everybody's Crazy

What this video is

Released in March 1985, 'Everybody's Crazy' emerged during the golden age of MTV's influence over rock music promotion. The video represents a transitional moment in Michael Bolton's career — his hard rock and AOR identity before his later pivot to adult contemporary stardom. The album drew comparisons to the sounds of arena acts like Bryan Adams and Billy Squier, and fits squarely within the mid-1980s melodic hard…

Why it matters

A rare documented artifact of Michael Bolton's pre-adult-contemporary hard rock phase, this video illustrates the stylistic breadth of mid-1980s AOR and the role of CBS/Columbia's MTV promotional pipeline in pushing melodic hard rock to mainstream audiences. It also marks an early career entry in…

The director

Wayne Isham (born December 2, 1958, Vinita, Oklahoma) is an American film and music video director. A UC Santa Barbara alumnus, he was inspired by David Bowie's 'Ashes to Ashes' to enter the medium. Over a 40+ year career he directed landmark clips for…