Paul Albert Anka OC (born July 30, 1941) is a Canadian-American singer, songwriter, and actor. He is best known for his signature hit songs including “Diana”, “Lonely Boy”, “Put Your Head on My Shoulder”, and “(You’re) Having My Baby”. Anka also wrote the theme for The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson; one of Tom Jones’ biggest hits, “She’s a Lady”; and the English lyrics to Claude François and Jacques Revaux’s music for Frank Sinatra’s signature song “My Way”, which has been recorded by many, including Elvis Presley. He co-wrote three songs with Michael Jackson: “This Is It” (originally titled “I Never Heard”) “Love Never Felt So Good”, and “Don’t Matter to Me”, which became posthumous hits for Jackson in 2009, 2014, and 2018, respectively.

Anka was born in Ottawa, Ontario to Camelia (née Tannis) and Andrew Emile “Andy” Anka Sr., who owned a restaurant called the Locanda. His parents were both of Lebanese descent. His father came to Canada from Bab Tuma, Damascus, Syria, and his mother was an immigrant from Lebanon. His mother died when he was 18.

Anka sang with the St. Elias Antiochian Orthodox Cathedral choir under the direction of Frederick Karam, with whom he studied music theory. He studied piano with Winnifred Rees. He attended Fisher Park High School, where he was part of a vocal trio called the Bobby Soxers.

Paul Anka recorded his first single, “I Confess”, when he was 14. In 1956, with $100 given to him by his uncle, he went to New York City where he auditioned for Don Costa at ABC Records, singing what was widely believed to be a lovestruck verse he had written to a former babysitter. In an interview with NPR’s Terry Gross in 2005, he stated that it was to a girl at his church whom he hardly knew. The resulting song “Diana” brought Anka stardom as it went to No. 1 on the Canadian and US music charts. “Diana” is one of the best selling singles ever by a Canadian recording artist. He followed up with four songs that made it into the Top 20 in 1958, including “It’s Time to Cry”, which hit No. 4 and “(All of a Sudden) My Heart Sings”, which reached No. 15, making him (at 17) one of the biggest teen idols of the time. He toured Britain, then Australia with Buddy Holly. Anka also wrote “It Doesn’t Matter Anymore” – a song written for Holly, which Holly recorded just before he died in 1959. Anka stated shortly afterward:

“It Doesn’t Matter Anymore” has a tragic irony about it now, but at least it will help look after Buddy Holly’s family. I’m giving my composer’s royalty to his widow – it’s the least I can do.
Paul Anka’s talent included the theme for The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson (reworked in 1962 from a song Anka wrote earlier called “Toot Sweet”; it had been rewritten with lyrics and recorded by Annette Funicello in 1959 as “It’s Really Love”). He wrote “Teddy” – a Top 20 hit for Connie Francis in 1960. Anka wrote the English lyrics to “My Way”, Frank Sinatra’s signature song (originally the French song “Comme d’habitude”). In the 1960s, Anka began acting in motion pictures as well as writing songs for them, most notably the theme for the hit film The Longest Day (which also was the official march of the Canadian Airborne Regiment), in which he made a cameo appearance as a U.S. Army Ranger. For his film work he wrote and recorded one of his greatest hits “Lonely Boy”. He also wrote and recorded “My Home Town”, which was a No. 8 pop hit for him the same year. He then went on to become one of the first pop singers to perform at the Las Vegas casinos. In 1960, he appeared twice as himself in NBC’s short-lived crime drama Dan Raven.

In 1963, Anka purchased the rights and ownership of his ABC-Paramount catalog and re-recorded his earlier hits for RCA Victor, which he had joined in 1960. Like many American recording artists of the mid 1960s, Anka’s career was derailed by the British Invasion. By the end of the decade, he focused mainly on adult contemporary and big-band standards and began appearing regularly in Las Vegas.

In the early 1970s, Anka signed with Buddah Records, releasing two albums, the self-titled Paul Anka and Jubilation. The former, first released in 1971, included the track “She’s a Lady”, a song Anka composed that would become the biggest hit for Welsh singer Tom Jones that same year. Anka’s version failed to become a chart success.