I’m amazed every time I go out on stage… why should people still remember me? Paul Anka on six decades of recording and touring

CAN it really be that Paul Anka topped the British — and most other — charts 60 years ago with Diana?

That’s six decades ago and he is still recording and touring, appearing in front of capacity audiences wherever he goes.

“I am amazed every time I go out on stage and find that there is not an empty seat in the house,” said Paul, 75.

“It is very humbling because there are so many great singers around, so why should people still remember me?”

Who could forget Diana and the countless other Paul Anka hits that soared high in the charts? Come to think of it, what about Buddy Holly’s It Doesn’t Matter Any More, Frank Sinatra’s My Way, Tom Jones’ She’s A Lady or Michael Jackson’s The Way You Make Me Feel?

Yes, they were all written by Paul — and many more, too.

It was 55 years ago that The Longest Day took cinemas by storm — Paul was in it and wrote the theme song.

All that talent and success yet Paul remains one of the most down-to-earth stars you will ever meet.

“I come from ordinary beginnings and I have never forgotten that,” he said.

“Success brings its rewards, but you should never let those rewards go to your head or make you think you’re special because you have a bigger house or a bigger car. Life is not really based on what you have, it is all about what you are.”

A career in music did not seem the obvious trail for Paul when he was growing up in Ottawa. He tried his hand at journalism, but his heart was more into music.

“I had sung at our church and studied the piano, too, and then when I was at Fisher Park High School, I was part of a trio called The Bobby-Soxers,” Paul explained.

“That sounds like an awful name for a band now, but it was pretty cool at that time.

“It was all a lot of fun, but I think it planted a seed that just grew and grew and crowded out everything else.

“While I was thinking about what I was going to do, I did a recording when I was 14 of a song called I Confess.

“I had written it myself, among others. I liked writing, which was why I decided to try to be a journalist.

“Then, my uncle gave me $100 to record another of the songs I had written. That was Diana. It came to the notice of a guy called Don Costa, quite famous at the time as a recording artist and producer at ABC.

“What else can I say?”

Not a lot, actually, as Diana was a massive hit all over the world and Paul suddenly found himself to be a teen pop idol overnight.

Diana topped the charts in 1957 for weeks and it wasn’t long before Paul was touring. His first tour in Britain was with Buddy Holly.

“Buddy was just great — he had a really good attitude,” said Paul.

“He loved playing, loved the audiences and was just a nice person to be around. We became good friends and that is why I wrote It Doesn’t Matter Any More for him.

“He recorded it not long before he died in the plane crash, so you can imagine how we all felt when it was constantly played on radio.”

What Paul modestly forgets to mention was that he gave up all the writer’s royalty rights, insisting that any money should go to Buddy Holly’s widow.

Things were going well for Paul and hit followed hit, his acting career began and he was constantly in demand. Then the bubble seemed to burst.

“I blame it on the British,” he joked. “The truth is that in the early 60s, the talent coming out of Britain was just fantastic and America — and the rest of the world — just could not get enough of The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, The Hollies and all the other great groups and bands of that time.

“People like me were pushed aside.

“I don’t feel anything bad about that. Those guys deserved the spotlight. I kept going and not being in the spotlight all the time gave me more time for my writing.

“The writing part of my life has been kind of the cornerstone and I think it’s helped in terms of my longevity and given me a different credential in the business. Most of the other teen idols of my time never made that evolution into their next phase.

“I think the songwriting aspect has always been my ace-in-the-hole, my foundation, in a sense.

“The performing is there because I love it and it’s fun, but the writing helps you to express so much.”

It helps when someone like Frank Sinatra adopts one of your songs and that is exactly what happened to Paul’s anthem — My Way.

“I wrote it and Frank just loved it. It was during a time when there was a bit of a music lull in the 60s,” added Paul.

“I think people were waiting for the next big thing, but in the meantime, they turned atttention to what had been out there for some time and had withstood the invasion of new music.

“Frank Sinatra was one of those who didn’t just survive, but continued to thrive and when he took on My Way, people loved it.

“Nobody could put a song over like Frank. He didn’t just sing the words, he made you feel every part of it. It was a song everyone can equate with and probably my most-important copyright, even though there are others that earn as much.

“But I think that tells the whole story of writing, you have to feel what you write and others will, too.

“My Way became a worldwide classic hit, and it’s a statement of many people, men, women, and certainly one of mine.”

Today, Paul is still writing, but he’s in great demand for concerts and has a fulll tour in Canada and America.

“I am loving every minute of it,” he said.

“I hope it will not be long before I am back in Britain. We are talking about it.

“Britain has always been good to me right from the success of Diana through to today. Even when my career was going through a quiet time, Britain was always pleased to see me.

“Neil Sedaka had the same treatment and always says people of Britain saved his career. So I hope it will not be long before I am back to perform in Britain.

“I do love performance wherever it is, I love audience engagement and meeting people.”

With countless hits and awards, an amazing career that has given him international stardom both in music and acting, Paul could be excused for basking in his glory — but he doesn’t.

“I’ve enjoyed myself and I am still enjoying myself — and I mean to go on doing for some time to come,” he said. “I am still the same Paul that grew up in Ottawa.

“It is just that life’s been good to me.”

That sounds like a line from a song and Paul is certainly still doing it His Way.