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."
Come Rain or Come Shine
Paul Anka Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Someone I've needed so long
For once unafraid I can go where life leads me and somehow I know I'll be strong
For once I can touch what my heart used to dream of
Long before I knew
Someone warm like you
Who have my dreams come true
For once in my life I won't let sorrow hurt me
Not like it's hurt me before
For once I have someone I know won't desert me
I'm not alone anymore
For once I can say
This is mine you can't take it
As long as I know I have love I can make it
For once in my life I have someone who needs me
For once I can say
This is mine you can't take it
As long as I know I have love we can make it
For once in my life I have someone who needs me
The lyrics to Paul Anka's song "Come Rain or Come Shine" express a sense of newfound security and contentment in a romantic relationship. The singer, who has always longed for someone to love and be loved by, finally finds that person and feels unafraid to let life take them where it will. Despite having experienced past heartbreak, the singer is confident that their newfound love won't let them down.
The lyrics also emphasize a sense of ownership and protection over the new relationship. The singer declares "this is mine you can't take it," indicating a sense of possessiveness and the desire to keep their newfound love safe. The presence of this person in their life gives the singer the strength to face whatever may come their way.
Overall, the lyrics are optimistic and hopeful, expressing a sense of joy in finally finding someone who needs and loves them. The theme of love and finding security in a relationship is a common one in popular music, but Anka's lyrics offer a particularly heartfelt and genuine expression of these emotions.
Interesting facts about the song:
Line by Line Meaning
For once in my life I have someone who needs me
I finally have a person in my life who requires my presence and attention, someone who I have yearned for, for a long time
Someone I've needed so long
This person is someone I have been needing for quite some time, fulfilling an important void in my life
For once unafraid I can go where life leads me and somehow I know I'll be strong
With this person in my life, I am unafraid of what the future holds and have a newfound strength to face any challenge or path that comes my way
For once I can touch what my heart used to dream of
Finally, I can experience what my heart has always longed for, something that was only a distant dream for me before
Long before I knew someone warm like you who have my dreams come true
This person, who is warm and loving, has made my long-held dreams a reality, unlike any other person I have ever known.
For once in my life I won't let sorrow hurt me
With this newfound sense of love and support, my past sorrows no longer have the power to hurt me anymore
Not like it's hurt me before
This time around, I won't let my past pains impact me negatively as they have done in the past
For once I have someone I know won't desert me
This person is someone I can count on, and trust because I know they will not abandon me in my time of need.
I'm not alone anymore
With this person in my life, I no longer feel any sense of loneliness or isolation
For once I can say this is mine you can't take it
This person and the love they have provided to me belongs to me, and no one can take that away from me
As long as I know I have love I can make it
With the assurance and consistency of this love, I know I can face whatever comes my way and come out stronger
For once in my life I have someone who needs me
This newfound relationship has grounded and fulfilled me in a way I never thought was possible, allowing me to become a source of strength and support
For once I can say this is mine you can't take it
This relationship has become a steadfast aspect of my life and I know its presence and impact cannot be taken away from me
As long as I know I have love we can make it
With the mutual love we share, we can overcome any obstacle and come out even stronger together
For once in my life I have someone who needs me
This relationship has brought an invaluable sense of purpose and meaning to my life, and I am truly grateful for this person who needs me
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Ronald N. Miller, Orlando Murden
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@mcartolano1
A truly classy guy! Wonderful singer and showman. True to his values, principles and faith! A proud Italian American! God bless!
@gemininorthnode8374
BEAUTIFUL!!!!!!! A TRUE Gentleman with tons of CLASS!❤
@TomElvisSmith
From the same episode on which Frankie sang "The Girl Back Home". This is from the time in which Frankie's hit-making career as a teen idol was over, and he was about to become known as half of the AIP beach party movie team with Annette Funicello. What I wrote on that performance applies to this one as well, so I will copy and paste my comment from the other video:
Three days before this appearance, Frankie began a stint at Jules Podell's Copacabana. The headliner of the act was comedian Myron Cohen. As with other teen idol singers of the time, and following the great success of Bobby Darin, he was attempting to move into the adult singing style of someone like Frank Sinatra, and his act consisted of standards and older songs sung in a way to please an older audience. He did not perform any of his prior record hits. The day before this Sullivan appearance, his act was given a positive review in Billboard with the critic noting that he has "ease, polish and an ingratiating floor style", further writing, that Avalon "doesn't have the power delivery of an Anka or even a Rydell, but what he lacks in decibels he makes up in humility."
@moemcgovern7345
And looks....
@mrg7407
Frankie is an ALL Around Good Guy. Love and respected by all his peers
@ronrice1931
I had no idea he was that good. Great rhythm, great intonation, and can really get bluesy. And how about that orchestra! Who is that piano player, that's as good as it gets.
@cristinamendes9239
Gostava de ver na sessão da tarde ,os filmes da praia.Coisa boa.
@gimmeagorilla
Beautiful voice - ah, the good old days 💞🎵
@ronaldnock9666
Love this!
@nanettenn9734
Wonderful Singer and Actor !!!! Loved him in the Movie " Beach Blanket Bingo " and the Movie " Greece " !!!! One of My Favorite Singer's from the GOOD OLD 60's !!!!!!