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."
Can't Get Used To Losing You
Paul Anka Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Guess I'll get dressed and do the town
I'll find a crowded avenue
Though it will be empty without you
[Chorus]
I can't get used to losing you
No matter what I try to do
Loving you
Called up some girl I used to know
After I heard her say, "Hello"
Couldn't think of anything to say
Since you're gone it happens every day
[Chorus: x2]
I'll find somebody, wait and see
Who am I kidding, only me
Cause no one else could take your place
Guess that I am just a hopeless case
[Chorus: x2]
The lyrics of Can't Get Used To Losing You by Paul Anka reveal the story of a man who has lost the love of his life and is trying to cope with the pain of separation. The first verse begins with him accepting the harsh truth that he can't cling onto the past anymore, and decides to hit the town to distract himself. However, he acknowledges that even though he is surrounded by people, the emptiness of not having his love by his side weighs down on him.
The chorus of the song emphasizes how the man can't come to terms with losing his love regardless of the numerous ways he tries to, he knows that he will always love her even though they are apart. In the second verse, we see him reaching out to an old flame, but he is left feeling disheartened and lost for words because nothing seems to fill the void that his true love left behind.
The last verse conveys a mixture of hopeless optimism and acceptance that he can never move on until he finds someone who can replace his first love. He realizes that no one can take her place, and he is left to admit to himself that he is a hopeless case — meaning that without his love, he is lost.
Line by Line Meaning
Guess there's no use in hangin' 'round
I realize that staying here won't change anything.
Guess I'll get dressed and do the town
I'll dress up and go out to try and forget about you.
I'll find a crowded avenue
I'll go somewhere busy to distract myself.
Though it will be empty without you
Despite being around other people, it won't feel the same without you.
I can't get used to losing you
I can't accept that you're no longer with me.
No matter what I try to do
No matter what I do, it won't change how I feel.
Gonna spend my whole life through
I'll never stop loving you.
Loving you
My love for you will never disappear.
Called up some girl I used to know
I tried to call someone else to talk to.
After I heard her say, "Hello"
Once she answered, I didn't know what to say.
Couldn't think of anything to say
I couldn't form any words because you weren't there.
Since you're gone it happens every day
Lately, I find it difficult to hold a conversation since you left.
I'll find somebody, wait and see
I'll try to move on and find someone new.
Who am I kidding, only me
I'm lying to myself because no one can replace you.
Cause no one else could take your place
No one else could ever replace you or fill the void you left behind.
Guess that I am just a hopeless case
I accept that I'm hopeless and lost without you.
Lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: DOC POMUS, MORT SHUMAN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Vintageart1994
Wonderful song..never heard it before but still very nice. Thanks for posting again, anna. ^-^ 2 thumbs up!
Zev Feldman
beautiful cover from andy williams
John Benn
WOW WOW WOW !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
From a mad keen 74yo Aussie fan.
Nancy
Never heard it before until Sons of Anarchy
Marty
Italy 2021😍🇮🇹