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."
Smells Like Teen Spirit
Paul Anka Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
It's fun to lose and to pretend
She's over-bored and self-assured
Oh no, I know a dirty word
Hello, hello, hello, how low
Hello, hello, hello, how low
Hello, hello, hello, how lowHello, hello, hello
With the lights out, it's less dangerous
Here we are now, entertain us
I feel stupid and contagious
Here we are now, entertain us
A mulatto, an albino, a mosquito, my libido
Yeah, hey
I'm worse at what I do best
And for this gift I feel blessed
Our little group has always been
And always will until the end
Hello, hello, hello, how low
Hello, hello, hello, how low
Hello, hello, hello, how low
Hello, hello, hello
With the lights out, it's less dangerous
Here we are now, entertain us
I feel stupid and contagious
Here we are now, entertain us
A mulatto, an albino, a mosquito, my libido
Yeah, hey
Oh yeah, I guess it makes me smile
I found it hard, it's hard to find
Oh well, whatever, never mind
Hello, hello, hello, how low
Hello, hello, hello, how low
Hello, hello, hello, how low
Hello, hello, hello
With the lights out, it's less dangerous
Here we are now, entertain us
I feel stupid and contagious
Here we are now, entertain us
A mulatto, an albino, a mosquito, my libido
A denial, a denial, a denial, a denial, a denial
A denial, a denial, a denial, a denial
The lyrics to Paul Anka's cover of Nirvana's "Smells Like Teen Spirit" contain a mix of nihilism, alienation, and social commentary. The chorus begins with "Hello, hello, hello, how low," a phrase that Kurt Cobain said he got from a TV commercial for Listerine mouthwash. This line is meant to represent the apathy and lack of energy that many young people felt during the early 90s. The song is critical of the entertainment industry, which is represented in the lyrics by the line "Here we are now, entertain us." Anka's version of the song emphasizes this critique by making the chorus sound like an old-fashioned lounge act.
The second verse contains darker lyrics, with the line "I feel stupid and contagious" representing the alienation and sense of disconnection that many young people felt at the time. The line "A mulatto, an albino, a mosquito, my libido" is a nonsensical phrase, but it's also been interpreted as a reference to race, with "mulatto" and "albino" representing different racial groups. The final verse begins with the line "And I forget just why I taste," which can be seen as a metaphor for the emptiness and lack of meaning that many young people felt during this time.
Overall, Anka's version of "Smells Like Teen Spirit" is a commentary on the bleak and nihilistic feeling of youth in the early 90s, when many young people felt a sense of disconnection and despair.
Line by Line Meaning
Load up on guns, bring your friends
Grab your weapons and bring your comrades for a wild ride.
It's fun to lose and to pretend
It feels surprisingly enjoyable to give up and pretend things don't matter.
She's over-bored and self-assured
She's unsatisfied and extremely confident in herself.
Oh no, I know a dirty word
Uh oh, I'm familiar with a naughty term.
With the lights out, it's less dangerous
The darkness reduces the risk involved in something.
Here we are now, entertain us
We're here, ready to be entertained.
I feel stupid and contagious
I feel unintelligent and easily caught up in things.
A mulatto, an albino, a mosquito, my libido
A mixed-race, pale-skinned, insect, my sex drive.
Yeah, hey
Affirmative, greeting.
I'm worse at what I do best
I'm most inept at the activity in which I supposedly excel.
And for this gift I feel blessed
Despite this, I feel incredibly lucky to have this talent.
Our little group has always been
Our small community has remained unchanged.
And always will until the end
And it always will until the inevitable conclusion.
And I forget just why I taste
And I can't recall the reason I experienced that flavor.
Oh yeah, I guess it makes me smile
Oh right, I assume it caused me to grin.
I found it hard, it's hard to find
I encountered difficulty in discovering something elusive.
Oh well, whatever, never mind
Oh well, doesn't matter, no need to think about it anymore.
A denial, a denial, a denial, a denial, a denial
A refusal, a negation, a rejection, a contradiction, a disbelief.
A denial, a denial, a denial, a denial
A refusal, a negation, a rejection, a contradiction.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: David Grohl, Krist Novoselic, Kurt Cobain
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@gosugosu1280
Unironically one of the best covers.
@JuanaPerez-hu7xy
Porque irónicamente?
@pacmanlp8876
@@JuanaPerez-hu7xy aprende inglés amigo. Dijo "sin ironia"
@AuDHD_Mom
@@JuanaPerez-hu7xy people over-use "ironic" and "unironically". It doesn't make sense because they don't understand what is actually ironic and what is not. It's just that generations' filler word.
@elieanglesarrue6013
@@JuanaPerez-hu7xyanaironic!!!
@alberthwastaken
This is so funny, the guy that sang in my Grandma's youth ( the 60's ) is singing something i listen to constantly lol.
@elestutmann3316
La música es trascendental, si eres músico o te gusta la música, siempre estarás escuchando lo nuevo y diferente a tu estilo, eso te hace un grande.
@djviel
Y que sería lo gracioso? 🤔
@phate466
Music is music.
@Not_am_kira
Uy que poser🗣️