Westhampton Beach - The long golden locks may be gone, but the charm, creativity and musicality remain. Singer/songwriter/producer Michael Bolton launches an international tour on March 7 in support of his new album "One World One Love" with a stop at the Westhampton Beach Performing Arts Center (WHBPAC) on March 28.

Michael Bolton's latest studio album "One World One Love," which includes "Murder My Heart" written with Lady Gaga. (Courtesy of www.michaelbolton.com)

Although he started his career fronting a hard rock band, Blackjack, which opened for Ossie Osborne in the early 1970s, Bolton broke out as a performer in 1987 with a throaty tenor cover of the Otis Redding classic "Sittin' On the Dock of the Bay." Best known as a pop singer nestled in the Adult Contemporary genre, Bolton has had numerous Billboard number one hits and won his fair share of Grammys and other music industry awards.

Bolton has released 19 albums with his first live album due out in May, recorded in London at Prince Albert Hall, which will also be broadcast on the PBS television channel across the country from March 6 through March 21. His latest studio album, the aforementioned "One World One Love," is creating quite a buzz as he collaborated with none other than Lady Gaga in the writing of the cut "Murder My Heart."

Last week Hamptons.com participated in a conference call interview with Bolton who explained the entomology of the collaboration, "A friend of mine at a different [record] company told me that Gaga was a fan of mine and that she was about to become the most exiting new artist on the scene. I had never heard of her at the time, as her album hadn't yet come out, but I asked to have some MP3s of her music sent to me, which is what we do now. The first cut I listened to was "Just Dance" and I said, 'Hell, I'd sign that record today!' I listened to a few more songs and said, 'She is great, does she produce, does she write?' Before I met her I wanted to know something about her and they said, 'She does it all!' I drove up to the studio and she sang some melodies and some lyrics for me and I realized I had a real artist in front of me, the real thing."

Michael Bolton's "Live at Prince Albert Hall" performance will be broadcast on PBS this month throughout the country.

Bolton noted, "I was impressed with her work ethic," as he explained that their writing collaboration of the song included a couple of 12 hour days that ended with the dawn rising. Meeting up with her later in London where they were both performing to "tweak the lyrics," Bolton commented to Lady Gaga's mother that he thought her daughter had a better handle on her career than even Madonna did at the same stage of her career. "I consider her the epitome of an artist and consider it a fortunate collaboration. I adore her and want to see her just keep growing and growing."

Bolton is charming, down-to-earth and humble, which seems a necessary trait for any successful collaborator and collaborate he has, particularly as a songwriter. The eclectic list of musicians he has written songs for range from Conway Twitty to Patti LaBelle and Barbra Streisand to KISS, breaking out as a songwriter in 1983 with "How Am I Supposed to Live Without You" for Laura Branigan.

Among the musical legends he has co-written songs with include an artist as perhaps diametrically different from Lady Gaga as any might be, the iconic Bob Dylan. Referencing his first meeting with Dylan, Bolton said, "I was sitting there nervously looking at Bob Dylan talking about work, but too nervous to suggest anything. He was one of my great heroes."

Asked if there was a genre of music in which he does not feel comfortable, Bolton answered, "I have stayed away from jazz and jazz fusion, as I am not educated in that musically. It is just not natural for me, although I think some of the greatest musicians are jazz musicians."

Bolton has also been an executive producer of several films and considering the film industry's connection to the Hamptons, when asked if he intended to keep producing or if he had any interest in acting, he responded "I have a couple of projects, but they are not close enough to say that they are coming up. I was under the illusion that I could produce a film a year or a couple of films a year, but it quickly became obvious that my day job would not allow me to do that."

Regarding an acting career he revealed, "I am looking for some parts. I am interested in the right parts, the right moments for me. I have done enough cameos in films over the years that I would like to do something completely unexpected. We are on the search for that now. So spread the word please." When asked if his renowned nice guy reputation might preclude him from ever being cast as a villain, Bolton responded, "No, that is what I mean, bring on the villain!"

Bolton was surprised to hear about the 450 seat intimacy of WHBPAC, "Wow! That is the smallest place I can remember being booked, there must be something special about that venue." Asked if he had a preference in venue size, he answered, "It doesn't matter how many people are there, I never give less than 100 percent - ever."

So on March 28 East Enders will have the opportunity to hear Michael Bolton at 100 percent in the most intimate venue he will play on this world tour, indeed, the very special Westhampton Beach Performing Arts Center. It should prove to be an extraordinary evening with one of America's most prolific and eclectic, multi-generational singer/songwriters.