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."
Loveland
Paul Anka Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
That nobody else has ever found
In the middle of the desert or the deep blue sea
It doesn't make any difference to me
It'll be my newfound home
A country all of its own
It'll even go down in history
[Chorus]
Oh oh oh
I'll build a Love Land for you & me
A Love Land for the world to see
No strings attached, no normalities
No cost in money, you can get it free
So pack your heart & hurry up
& see what I'm talkin' about
You'd better hurry up & get here soon
Before I'm all sold out
A true true love & honesty
That's gonna be my policy
We'll be members of the United Nations
Oh what we'll do to foreign relations
Everybody's gonna say
"Hip hip hip hooray
For Lovey-Lovey-Love, Love Land, USA!"
[Chorus]
You'd better hurry up & get here soon
Before I'm all sold out
The song "Loveland" by Paul Anka expresses the singer's desire to create his own perfect world called "Loveland". He speaks of finding a unique and unexplored location, either in the middle of the desert or the deep blue sea, where he can build his new home country. This place will be a symbol of true love and honesty, where people from all over the world can come together and leave behind the normalities and stresses of everyday life. Anka's "Loveland" will be a place where the United Nations can come together and collaborate for the betterment of the human race.
The lyrics successfully express the artist's vision of an ideal world, void of financial cost or constraints. Instead, the emphasis is on a world where love is the currency and the guiding principle. The chorus encourages listeners to join him in his mission to create this world, urging them to pack their hearts and hurry up to Loveland before he's all sold out!
Overall, "Loveland" is an expressive song about creating our ideal world, free of societal norms, financial barriers, fear and hatred, and filled with love and acceptance.
Line by Line Meaning
I'm gonna find me a plot of ground
I'm going to look for a piece of land
That nobody else has ever found
No one else has discovered it yet
In the middle of the desert or the deep blue sea
It could be in a remote location such as the desert or ocean
It doesn't make any difference to me
The location is not important
It'll be my newfound home
The place will become my new home
A country all of its own
It will be a separate place with its own identity
It'll even go down in history
It will be remembered in history books
Oh oh oh
A joyful exclamation
I'll build a Love Land for you & me
I will create a space for us to love each other
A Love Land for the world to see
It will be visible to everyone
No strings attached, no normalities
There will be no restrictions or obligations
No cost in money, you can get it free
It will not require payment, it will be free
So pack your heart & hurry up
Bring your love and come quickly
& see what I'm talkin' about
Witness what I am talking about
You'd better hurry up & get here soon
It's important to come soon
Before I'm all sold out
Before there is no space left
A true true love & honesty
We will have a genuine love and be truthful
That's gonna be my policy
This is my stance
We'll be members of the United Nations
We will be part of the international community
Oh what we'll do to foreign relations
We will have a positive impact on international relationships
Everybody's gonna say
Everyone will express
"Hip hip hip hooray
Exclamation of celebration
For Lovey-Lovey-Love, Love Land, USA!"
To celebrate Love Land, USA
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: PAUL ANKA
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Amado Bustamante
Me, my sisters & my cousins were dancing to this song when we were kids way back in the Philippines . That was a long , long time ago ; but I could still remember how care-free & happy we were .
JIM INAWAT
I still love it. Great singer ... great song. Thank you for sharing it.
Zilda aguilar
Amei!!! Assim como amo tudo o que ele faz. Ele é TDB, tudo de bom e lindo, um príncipe.
Nelson A. Vargas
Gracias por responder lclover77. Si, la vida actual es más rápida y no disminuyó el tiempo que quedaba para los aspectos dulces. Creo que ha pasado en todo el planeta. Tratemos de mantener los buenos modales y la sonrisa, elementos que aceitan las relaciones humanas. Ojalá todos aceptáramos este planteamiento....
Desde el sur del mundo y con buenas vibraciones o buena onda
Danuta Gromowska
FANTASTIC. Dziękuję.
eloim49
Thank you again Paul.
beatlettese
I really like this version but i prefer the second version! it's the best!!!
Dilema Beatríz Araya Adasme
LINDOS RECUERDOS !!!!
Pilar Rivadeneira
buenas canciones de nuestro idolo Paul Anka bellas
Ivone soares fernandes
amava e amo ouvi lo cantar .