Paul Anka
Paul Anka
Paul Albert Anka, OCis a Canadian American singer, songwriter, and actor. Anka became famous during the late 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s with hit songs like "Diana", "Lonely Boy", "Put Your Head on My Shoulder", and "Having My Baby". He wrote such well-known music as the theme for The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson and one of Tom Jones's biggest hits, "She's a Lady", as well as the English lyrics for Frank Sinatra's signature song, "My Way", which has been covered...
NationalityCanadian
ProfessionPop Singer
Date of Birth30 July 1941
CityOttawa, Canada
CountryCanada
When I'm writing, I generally toy with an idea until it manifests itself - meaning a phrase or a tune comes into my head and eventually begins to jell. When something hits me, I write it down immediately. I don't wait, or it's gone.
They are actually manufactured entertainment groups. They are a product of technology. What you are listening to is technology.
Those guys, I won't mention names, they needed Vegas because they didn't have a career on the outside. Michael is doing well everywhere, and the longer you hold off coming into Vegas with success on the exterior, the better off it is. He will stick, without question.
I don't know that there's a lot of longevity with a lot of attractions. Maybe a little more time should be put into it to allow that to grow.
I had a sense I had to do something different.
My father, my mother, and then my father was always on top of me - 'Keep your nose clean. Do you love what you're doing?' 'Yes.' 'Then be aware, or you're going to lose it.'
Things began to pick up for me record-wise when in 1971 I wrote 'She's a Lady' for Tom Jones.
My demographic of people have been very supportive.
I just couldn't get anyone to sing my songs, so I had to sing my own tunes.
I wrote 'She's a Lady' on the back of a TWA menu, flying back from London after doing Tom Jones's TV show. Jones's manager wanted me to write him a song. If I have an idea and I don't have a pad of paper, I'll write on whatever is available. What's the difference? Paper is paper.
If you're in pop music, you've got to deal with the changing of the guard every few years. By the time the '70s arrived, I was well aware of the cyclical nature of the game. Pop music is a creature of the moment; it thrives on the mood of its time. Either you hook into that or you're not going to be part of it.
I never thought Howard Stern would say 'Paul Anka is cool.' But he did,
You know, my grandmother used to say, 'While I'm down here planning, God's up there laughing.' I guess the thing with most things that are worthwhile is that you can't give up easily. You've got to hang in.
I don't think you can get an idea of what Israel is like until you get here. People don't realize what a great place it is.