He began singing as a child, first starting in the St Elijah Syrian Orthodox Church choir in Ottawa. As a student at Ottawa's Fisher Park High School he was part of a trio called the Bobby Soxers.
Encouraged by his parents, at age 14 he recorded his first single, I Confess. In 1957 he went to New York City where he auditioned for ABC, singing a lovestruck verse he had written to a former babysitter, Diana Ayoub. The song, Diana, brought Anka instant stardom as it rocketed to number one on the charts. Diana is one of the best selling 45s in music history. He followed up with four songs that made it into the Top 20 in 1958, making him one of the biggest teen idols of the time. He toured Britain and then, with Buddy Holly, toured Australia.
His talent went beyond singing, writing Buddy Holly's giant hit, It Doesn't Matter Anymore, the theme for Johnny Carson's Tonight Show, Tom Jones' biggest hit record, She's A Lady, and the English lyrics for My Way, Frank Sinatra's signature song and sung by many well known artists, including Greta Keller, for whom the words were very fitting.
In the 1960s, Anka would begin acting in motion pictures as well as writing songs for them, most notably the theme for the hit movie The Longest Day. From his movie work, he wrote and recorded his monster hit, Lonely Boy. He then went on to become one of the first pop singers to perform at the Las Vegas casinos.
After more than ten years without a hit record, in 1974 he teamed up with Odia Coates to record the number 1 hit, Having My Baby. They would record two more duets that both made it into the Top 10. In 1975, he wrote a jingle for Kodak called The Times of Your Life. The jingle became so popular, he recorded it as a full song, The Times of Your Life, and it became a hit a year later.
By the 1970s, Anka's career centered around adult contemporary and big-band standards, played regularly in Las Vegas. On September 6, 1990, he became a naturalized citizen of the United States. He returned to his home town to buy a part of the Ottawa Senators hockey team.
In 1999 he visited Lebanon for sell-out performances at the Forum de Beyrouth (The Beirut Forum).
Paul Anka was elected to the Canadian Music Hall of Fame in 1980. He has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6840 Hollywood Blvd. In 1991, the Government of France honored him with the title "Chevalier in the Order of Arts and Letters". He was appointed an officer of the Order of Canada in 2005.
On the WB show Gilmore Girls, Lorelai named her new dog Paul Anka. He also made a guest appearance as himself in the episode "The Real Paul Anka", which aired April 11, 2006.
Paul Anka recently did a live session on Live @ The Orange Lounge playing songs from his new cover-CD Rock Swings.
Notable rap artist Jay-Z featured his vocals on the track I Did it my Way on The Blueprint 2: The Gift & the Curse in 2002.
He became infamous amongst musicians (and more recently to internet users) for a mid-70's after-show tirade which was secretly recorded by a "snake we later fired" (Anka: Fresh Air interview). The diatribe, in which Anka berates his crew and band members, has spawned a number of in-joke references and quotations, the main ones being: "The guys get shirts", "Where's Joe?", and "Slice like a hammer."
Blackhole Sun
Paul Anka Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Indisposed
In disguise
As no one knows
Hides the face
Lies the snake
The sun
In my disgrace
Summer stench
'Neath the black
The sky looks dead
Call my name
Through the cream
And I'll hear you
Scream again
Black hole sun
Won't you come
And wash away the rain
Black hole sun
Won't you come
Won't you come
Stuttering
Cold and damp
Steal the warm wind
Tired friend
Times are gone
For honest men
And sometimes
Far too long
For snakes
In my shoes
A walking sleep
And my youth
I pray to keep
Heaven send
Hell away
No one sings
Like you
Anymore
Hang my head
Drown my fear
Till you all just
Disappear
The lyrics of Paul Anka's song "Blackhole Sun" convey a feeling of despair and hopelessness. The opening lines of the song suggest a sense of alienation and loneliness, with the singer feeling disconnected from the world around him. The line "as no one knows" suggests that the singer is hiding his true feelings, perhaps out of fear or shame. The reference to a snake may be a metaphor for deceit or treachery, and the boiling heat and summer stench may be a metaphor for the oppressive and suffocating nature of the singer's emotional state.
The chorus of the song repeats the phrase "blackhole sun," which could be interpreted as a symbol of depression or despair. The singer is asking the "blackhole sun" to "wash away the rain," suggesting that he is looking for something to relieve his pain and suffering. The repetition of the phrase "won't you come" adds to the sense of desperation and longing for relief.
The second verse of the song continues the theme of isolation and despair, with the singer feeling like a "walking sleep" and longing to hold onto his youth. The line "no one sings like you anymore" suggests that the singer has lost someone or something important to him, and is struggling to move on.
Overall, the lyrics of "Blackhole Sun" convey a sense of hopelessness and despair, with the singer feeling disconnected from the world and longing for relief from his emotional pain.
Line by Line Meaning
In my eyes
This is how I perceive things
Indisposed
I'm having a hard time expressing myself
In disguise
I'm not showing my true feelings
As no one knows
Nobody knows what I'm really feeling
Hides the face
I'm hiding my face, my true self
Lies the snake
Deception is present in my surroundings
The sun
The sun represents something negative for me right now
In my disgrace
I feel embarrassed or ashamed
Boiling heat
Intensity of the feelings I'm experiencing
Summer stench
The smell of things rotting and coming to an end
'Neath the black
Below the darkness
The sky looks dead
The world seems bleak and lifeless
Call my name
I need someone to hear me
Through the cream
Through the noise, confusion, and uncertainty
And I'll hear you
I will listen to you in return
Scream again
Express yourself again and again until someone hears you
Black hole sun
The negative feeling that has taken hold of me, like a black hole
Won't you come
I want to deal with this feeling, to confront it
And wash away the rain
Make everything better again
Stuttering
I'm having trouble expressing myself
Cold and damp
The atmosphere is uncomfortable and unpleasant
Steal the warm wind
Something precious is being taken away
Tired friend
I'm feeling lonely and I need a friend
Times are gone
Things have changed and are not the same as they used to be
For honest men
For those who are sincere and true to themselves
And sometimes
Occasionally
Far too long
It's been too long since I've felt like myself
For snakes
For those who are deceitful and untrustworthy
In my shoes
In my place, in my situation
A walking sleep
I'm moving forward but I'm not fully awake or engaged in life
And my youth
I want to hold onto my youth, my vitality and energy
I pray to keep
I hope to hold onto it, to not lose it completely
Heaven send
I need divine intervention to fix my problems
Hell away
I want to be protected from what's hurting me
No one sings
No one expresses themselves like they used to
Like you
Like the person who used to inspire me
Anymore
This is no longer the case
Hang my head
I'm feeling defeated and I give up
Drown my fear
I need to face my fear and conquer it
Till you all just
Until everyone else disappears and it's just me
Disappear
I want to be alone and deal with my issues privately
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner/Chappell Music, Inc., Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: CHRIS CORNELL
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@mir5724
In my eyes
Indisposed
In disguise
As no one knows
Hides the face
Lies the snake
The sun
In my disgrace
Boiling heat
Summer stench
'Neath the black
The sky looks dead
Call my name
Through the cream
And I'll hear you
Scream again
Black hole sun
Won't you come
And wash away the rain
Black hole sun
Won't you come
Won't you come
Stuttering
Cold and damp
Steal the warm wind
Tired friend
Times are gone
For honest men
And sometimes
Far too long
For snakes
In my shoes
A walking sleep
And my youth
I pray to keep
Heaven send
Hell away
No one sings
Like you
Anymore
Hang my head
Drown my fear
Till you all just
Disappear 2018
@RB_0.77
This great rendition epitomises how truly great a piece of songwriting Black Hole sun is. Miss you Chris.
@slaphead8835
Well said. It’s a strong and beautiful piece of music and Mr. Anka’s respectful rendition of this wonderful tune is literally wonderful.
@jmferris1138
at first I thought "I beg your pardon?" However, it's Mr. Anka's interpretation of this song. Soundgarden makes it rock, Paul Anka makes it swing. Thank God there is room in this world for both versions to exist.
@veggiet2009
and now Postmodern Jukebox's version. Honestly I don't know which version i like better, this one is more laid back, but that one has Haley's vocals and violins.
@Tmanaz480
jmferris1138 ... the fact that it works in two such diverse arrangements shows that the song has "good bones". RIP Chris C.
@joseventurausmc
I just saw that Chris had told BBC that this was one of his favorite versions of the song.
@williamknell864
Well put.
@Vajrabrother
"Thank God there is room (space) in this world for both versions "
Hmmm, it seems that room or space is always within a mind or soul allowing it !
Possibly you have this room or space(iousness) !?
Well , Paul can ("still") sing .... and I like his mellow rendition ..... or am not with the swing !! (it seems to jumpy or "uppity" in contrast to the lyrical content !)
@nthdegree1269
One thing I am impressed with Anka on. He takes these songs, and actually makes them sound like they came from that era. I don't know how he did it. If your not paying attention, you might not even know and just think it was from way back when.
@zeejustin6
it honestly had me fooled for a bit, and i was a big black hole sun soundgarden guy back in 1994, haha. Patheticness on my part, mostly.