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."
Verboten
Paul Anka Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And we are forbidden to care.
Verboten
Verboten the dream I treasure in my heart
A dream we're forbidden to share.
It's just like forbidding the morning sun to rise at dawn
Forbidding the stars to shine above.
For we know
And no matter what they say
I'll give you my love.
The song Verboten by Paul Anka is about a love that is considered taboo by the society. The word "verboten" is a German word that means forbidden, which describes the nature of the love that the singer feels for his partner. Despite being told that they are worlds apart and forbidden to care for each other, the singer holds on to the dream he has in his heart and is determined to share it with his partner. He compares the idea of their love being forbidden to something as impossible as forbidding the morning sun to rise at dawn or the stars to shine above.
The singer believes that true love cannot be forbidden, and no matter what the society says, he is going to give his love to the person he cares for. This song demonstrates the power of love and how it can withstand any societal norms and restrictions. It is a plea for acceptance and understanding between people who are in love, regardless of their differences.
Line by Line Meaning
Our love is verboten they tell us we are worlds apart
They are telling us that our love is forbidden because we come from different worlds.
And we are forbidden to care.
They are not allowing us to care for each other.
Verboten
Forbidden.
Verboten the dream I treasure in my heart
The dream that I hold dear in my heart is forbidden.
A dream we're forbidden to share.
We are not permitted to share the dream we both have.
It's just like forbidding the morning sun to rise at dawn
Forbidding our love is like trying to stop the natural occurrence of the morning sun rising at dawn.
Forbidding the stars to shine above.
It is like preventing the stars from shining in the sky.
For we know
Because we know.
True love cannot be verboten
Love that is genuine cannot be forbidden.
And no matter what they say
Regardless of what others may say.
I'll give you my love.
I will continue to love you despite the prohibition.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA/AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@jesimarie7970
Soulfully created song this is one of my papa's favorite song
@andresanario6663
first i heared this song somewhere in talavera n. ecija ph,, it was very long time ago, im just a little kid of 5 yr old,, now im 66 y.o.,, still recall this song and the time of the past🎶⌚
@Benjamin-fp5er
Oh Paul vc está tão lindo como smp Esta canção é mto linda , suave e bem agradável de se ouvir ,vc tem uma voz mto linda.
Paul vc é tdo perfeitinho ,no passado e hj no presente ,vc tem um boquinha mto linda .
Paul vc é tdo de melhor.
❤❤❤❤❤💟💟💟💟💟💟💟💟
Ivani Brasil / 08 / 11 / 23 / 16 :08 .
@tesssilverio2953
One of my favorites
@johnadrianleonor5320
Thanks sa cp face book i heard this song remu inds me when i was young
@johnadrianleonor5320
This word verboten is what they call to me when i was young
@ziblot1235
Anka sure had a nice voice.
@jessecoffey4737
That "coming flick" turned out to be the very last film RKO Radio Pictures would ever make.
@johnadrianleonor5320
When i was young grade 4 they callme verboten and pretty nice cute lovely teens
@yongjuhn6070
Beautiful