The music of the 90's brought out the best of so many great singers. From classic standards from Whitney Houston and Mariah Carey, to trends of the moment from Spice Girls and the macarena. There were those who've just also came from the heart, and with good standards. For Michael Bolton, he was just one of those great perfomers. Although his post Sony era hasn't really shelled out any definitive records, his classic gems still remain definitive. He also has had numerous hits collections from the classic definitive Greatest Hits 1985-1995, to smaller budget records like 2002's That's What Love Is All About. Now, another one has hit the shelves, with a bit of familiarity under die hard Bolton fans.

The 2006 Essential Michael Bolton, feels like it is something released previously, and it actually is. The collection is a duplicate of Michael Bolton's 2002 import hits package, The Ultimate Collection. The exact same number of tracks are shown here, in the same order as before. The collection includes a lot of great tracks like Time, Love & Tenderness, Said I Love You... But I Lied, the Oscar-nominated Go The Distance from Hercules, Soul Provider, and Once In A Lifetime from the Robert Downey Jr. film Only You. Although the album includes a lot of lesser-known tracks that also are highlighted here from his rendition of Marvin Gaye's Sexual Healing, and Whiter Shade Of Pale, the album still overlooks a few great Michael Bolton tracks. The album like the previous hits packages, the collection definitely overlooks Love Is A Wonderful Thing, and some other good ones like From Now On.