David Foster’s live shows always feature big name guests, and his performance at the Mandalay Bay hotel in Las Vegas was no exception. Michael Bolton and Seal were on the mic at the show, and the two stars sang a memorable mashup of “When A Man Loves A Woman” and “It’s A Man’s Man’s Man’s World”. Foster, meanwhile, provided piano and led the crack band through the tight arrangement.

Bolton opened the performance with “When A Man Loves A Woman,” and he really put his heart on his sleeve, singing it with a whole lot of passion. Shortly after the two-minute mark, Seal made a surprise appearance and said, “Well Michael, you know that was pretty sensational, but I have a slightly different take on things.” Seal then led the band into “It’s A Man’s World,” and it’s no easy thing to upstage Bolton, but I’d say Seal managed it handily with his soulful performance.

The transition between the two different songs was silky smooth, and Foster and the band really brought their A-game to the show that night. Seal and Bolton then jammed together on “When A Man Loves A Woman”, but this time they sang over the R&B groove established during “It’s A Man’s World”. To see two such powerhouse vocalists play off each other onstage was a really great moment.

It seems like Seal’s performance brought out Bolton’s competitive side and he stepped up his vocals to the next level, making for a cracking show. The video was by far the biggest hit on David Foster’s YouTube channel, attracting 101 million views. There was really something in the air that night as Foster’s high-energy jam with Earth, Wind, & Fire on “September” and “After The Love Has Gone” was also quite popular online, attracting 5.5 million views.

Fans at home were really impressed with the Bolton and Seal mashup, adding comments such as “Impossible to not feel the soul pouring from these two. An instant classic of a performance” and “World class. Truly amazing singing, but let’s not forget the perfect arrangement – those musicians are on another level, too.”
“When a Man Loves a Woman” was penned by Calvin Lewis and Andrew Wright, and was originally recorded all the way back in 1966 by Percy Sledge. The song was a US number one hit for Sledge at the time, and when Bolton released his version in 1991, he took it straight back to the number one spot on the Billboard Hot 100.