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."
Remember Diana
Paul Anka Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And just how much I loved her
I wrote a song about her
How wrong could I be
Oh, well, she went
And found another
(Found another love)
(Found another love)
She didn't even bother
(Found another love)
To say goodbye to me
Things have changed
She's found another
Yes, things have changed
She's found another lover
Things have changed
She didn't say goodbye
Instead, she made me cry
Diana, I'll learn
To live without her
Yes, I'll forget about her
Just wait and see
Things will change
I'll find another lover
Things will change
I'll learn to live without her
Things will change
I'm gonna make her cry
I'm gonna say goodbye to
Diana, I'll say goodbye forever
And that I never, ever
Remember Diana
Everybody remembers Diana
And just how much I loved her
I wrote a song about her
How wrong could I be
Oh, well, she went
And found another
(Found another love)
She found another lover
(Found another love)
She didn't even bother
(Found another love)
To say goodbye to me
The lyrics of Paul Anka's "Remember Diana" tell the story of a man who was deeply in love with a woman named Diana, but who found out that she had found another love and left him. The singer expresses his grief and disappointment in the woman he loved through a song but ultimately decides he will forget about her and find a new love. The lyrics are filled with sadness, regret, and anger towards Diana, and demonstrate the heartbreaking experience of finding out that someone you love has moved on without you.
Through the repetition of the line "found another lover" and the use of the word "bother" to describe Diana's lack of goodbye, the singer emphasizes his feeling of betrayal and abandonment. The song ends with the singer's resolution to say goodbye to Diana forever, promising that he will never remember her again. Overall, the lyrics of "Remember Diana" portray a love lost and the heartache that follows, while also expressing the hope of moving forward and finding a new love.
Line by Line Meaning
Everybody remembers Diana
Everyone still has memories of Diana
And just how much I loved her
I loved her with all my heart
I wrote a song about her
I poured my heart and soul into a song dedicated to her
How wrong could I be
But I was mistaken
Oh, well, she went
Unfortunately, she left me behind
And found another
She found someone new
(Found another love)
She found another lover
She found someone to replace me
(Found another love)
She didn't even bother
She didn't care enough
(Found another love)
To say goodbye to me
To give me closure
Things have changed
The situation is different now
She's found another
She's moved on
Yes, things have changed
It's not the same as before
She's found another lover
And she's now with someone else
Things have changed
My life is different now
She didn't say goodbye
She left without a word
Instead, she made me cry
And hurt me deeply
Diana, I'll learn
I will move on
To live without her
And try to forget her
Yes, I'll forget about her
I will try my best to erase my feelings for her
Just wait and see
Only time will tell
Things will change
My life will take a new direction
I'll find another lover
I will find someone new as well
Things will change
My life will not be the same as before
I'll learn to live without her
And cope with the pain of losing her
Things will change
My priorities will change too
I'm gonna make her cry
She will feel the pain I felt
I'm gonna say goodbye to
I will let her go
Diana, I'll say goodbye forever
I will bid her farewell forever
And that I never, ever
And I'll make sure that I never think about her again
Remember Diana
I will forget about my love for Diana
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: PAUL ANKA
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
VILJL
Paul Anka was born on July 30, 1941, therefore he celebrated his 79th birthday on July 30, 2020. He is a Canadian singer (Ottawa, Ontario) songwriter and actor. Anka became famous with hit songs like "Diana", "Lonely Boy", "Put Your Head on My Shoulder", and "(You're) Having My Baby". He wrote such well-known music as the theme for and one of Tom Jones's biggest hits, "She's a Lady". He also wrote the English lyrics to Claude François and Jacques Revaux's music for Frank Sinatra's signature song, "My Way", which has been recorded by many, including Elvis Presley.
Julie Zimmi
What is wrong with today's people this deserves endless views🥰
Emma Pandorf
Paul Anka was making diss tracks before it was cool😫
Vinyl Comeback
Yes, that's what I'm saying! This has to be one of the predecessors of diss tracks.
Diana Nazarian
I love this song ♥️
Sherrilee Bryan
Omg I never even knew this existed...love it 😁
Marjieee Music
😍😍😍
Polarized
Thats one slow runner