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."
Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer
Paul Anka Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And Prancer and Vixen
Comet and Cupid
And Donner and Blitzen
But do you recall
The most famous reindeer of all
Rudolph, the red-nosed reindeer
And if you ever saw him
You would even say it glows
All of the other reindeer
Used to laugh and call him names
They never let poor Rudolph
Play in any reindeer games
Then one foggy Christmas Eve
Santa came to say
"Rudolph with your nose so bright
Won't you guide my sleigh tonight?"
Then all the reindeer loved him
As they shouted out with glee
Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer
You'll go down in history!
The lyrics to Paul Anka's "Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer," tell the story of a once-mocked reindeer who becomes the savior of Christmas. The song starts off by listing all the other reindeer, providing their names and building the image of a team of reindeer working together for a common goal. The repetition of their names also helps set up Rudolph's introduction as the most famous of them all.
Then the story takes a turn, with Rudolph being introduced as an outsider because of his red, glowing nose. The other reindeer tease and exclude him, leading to a sense of alienation and otherness. However, this changes on Christmas Eve when Rudolph's unique ability becomes valuable to Santa, and he is finally accepted by the rest of the reindeer. The last verse hails Rudolph as a hero who will be remembered throughout history.
Overall, "Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer" can be interpreted as a tale of exclusion, acceptance, and the power of our individual differences. It emphasizes that nothing should make us feel like we don't belong or have something important to bring to the table.
Line by Line Meaning
You know Dasher and Dancer
You are familiar with the names of some popular reindeer.
And Prancer and Vixen
Also, you are aware of these particular reindeer.
Comet and Cupid
There are other reindeer with these names in our group.
And Donner and Blitzen
Additionally, we have two more members in our crew called Donner and Blitzen.
But do you recall
Do you remember hearing about the tale that follows?
The most famous reindeer of all
Rudolph, a certain reindeer, is one of the most well-known among them.
Rudolph, the red-nosed reindeer
Rudolph, the reindeer who has a bright red nose
Had a very shiny nose.
His nose shone very brightly.
And if you ever saw him
If you were fortunate enough to see him
You would even say it glows
You might even comment that his nose actually glows!
All of the other reindeer
However, all the other reindeer in the group
Used to laugh and call him names
Would typically mock Rudolph and hurl insults at him.
They never let poor Rudolph
They would never allow the unfortunate Rudolph
Play in any reindeer games
To participate in any of the reindeer games they played together.
Then one foggy Christmas Eve
On a specific Christmas Eve, shrouded in a dense fog...
Santa came to say
Santa Claus approached and spoke to Rudolph
"Rudolph with your nose so bright
“Rudolph, whose nose you can surely not miss,
Won't you guide my sleigh tonight?"
“Would you do me the honour of leading my sleigh through the night?”
Then all the reindeer loved him
Following this fateful event, all of the reindeer began to adore Rudolph
As they shouted out with glee
And they joyfully shouted out
Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer
The name that would go down in history is Rudolph, the reindeer with the red nose, of course!
You'll go down in history!
These actions will solidify Rudolph's place in the annals of history.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: GEORGE KLEINSINGER, ROBERT L. MAY
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind