Tuesday, September 19, 2006

Paul Anka: Rock Swings!

Paul Anka is already a celebrity in our house long before I got hold of this new album. I grew up listening to 'Diana', 'Lonely Boy' and several other songs. No, I did not grow up in the 60's. I am an 80's child but my Sunday afternoons are spent on trips to 60's music lane. My father would crank up his music collections on Sundays. Back then, my parents would picture him as this handsome singer with shrieking female fans. Fast forward to the new millennium, he has this DVD which was recorded from his concert in Las Vegas. I saw a balding old man with the classic groove. Nothing new. I need to watch the DVD several times over to appreciate the performance. I learned that this guy wrote 'My Way'. Yes! It is that Frank Sinatra song which one should not sing in karaoke bars lest be shot to death for bastardizing the song.

Recently, I got to listen to the "Paul Anka: Rock Swings" album. I did not expect too much from this album. Needless to say, I was extremely pleased. The album contains his versions of some rock hits like Oasis "Wonderwall', Bon Jovi's "It's My Life" and Soundgarden's "Blackhole Sun". It is a wonder why this man, who composed gazillion songs, would do covers for other artists. Once you listen to this album you will realize that his musicality still shines through nonetheless. The arrangers should also be commended for the way the music turned out. I love the way the brass band swinged it. It rockingly swings good. This is fun music! This is ideal for parties where there’s a mixture of age groups. The younger generation would enjoy this because they recognize the songs and the older ones will enjoy because it is Paul Anka. In my case, I can now understand the lyrics to Nivana's "Smells like Teen Spirit" and this is one of my favorites in this album.

Below is the list of tracks:
1. It`s My Life (Bon Jovi)
2. True (Spandau Ballet)
3. Eye Of The Tiger (Survivor)
4. Everybody Hurts (REM)
5. Wonderwall (Oasis)
6. Blackhole Sun (Soundgarden)
7. It`s A Sin (Pet Shop Boys)
8. Jump (Van Halen)
9. Smells Like Teen Spirit (Nirvana)
10. Hello (Lionel Richie)
11. Eyes Without A Face (Billy Idol)
12. Lovecats (The Cure)
13. Way You Make Me Feel (Michael Jackson)
14. Tears In Heaven (Eric Clapton)

GO ahead! Buy yourself a copy. I know you want to. ;-)

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