Paul Albert Anka 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" "Love Never Felt So Good", and "Don't Matter to Me", which became posthumous hits for Jackson in 2009, 2014, and 2018, respectively.
The Lettermen are an American male pop vocal trio whose trademark is close-harmony pop songs with light arrangements. The group started in 1959. They have had two Top 10 singles, 16 Top 10 singles on the Adult Contemporary chart, 32 consecutive Billboard chart albums, 11 gold records, and five Grammy nominations.
"Theme from A Summer Place" is a song with lyrics by Mack Discant and music by Max Steiner, written for the 1959 film A Summer Place, which starred Sandra Dee and Troy Donahue. It was recorded for the film as an instrumental by Hugo Winterhalter. Originally known as the "Molly and Johnny Theme", this lush extended cue, as orchestrated by Murray Cutter, is not the main title theme of the film, but an oft-heard secondary love theme for the characters played by Dee and Donahue. The theme has become a canonical representation of the easy listening genre, and is considered by some to be the definitive easy listening track of all time.
"Diana" is a song written and first performed by Paul Anka, who recorded it in May 1957 at Don Costa’s studio in New York City. Anka stated in his autobiography that the song was inspired by a girl named Diana Ayoub, whom he had met at his church and community events, and had developed a crush on. Session musicians on the record included George Barnes playing lead guitar, Bucky Pizzarelli playing the "Calypso" riff on guitar, Irving Wexler on piano, Jerry Bruno on bass, and Panama Francis on drums. The song was recorded in May 1957 at RCA Victor Studios in New York. Backup singers included Artie Ripp.
"Lonely Boy" is a song written and recorded by Paul Anka. Recorded in August 1958 with Don Costa's orchestra in New York, "Lonely Boy" was not released until May 11, 1959. Anka sang this song in the film Girls Town. When released as a single, it topped the Billboard Hot 100 for four weeks, becoming Anka's first song to do so, although he had earlier topped Billboard's Best Sellers in Stores chart with "Diana". Billboard ranked it as No. 5 for 1959. The song reached No. 2 in the Canadian CHUM Charts.
"Puppy Love" is a popular song written by Paul Anka in 1960 for Annette Funicello, a Mouseketeer, whom he had a crush on. Anka's version reached No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 behind Percy Faith's "Theme from A Summer Place", No. 4 on the Canadian CHUM Charts, and No. 33 on the UK Singles Chart.
"You Are My Destiny" is a song written and performed by Paul Anka. It was recorded in September 1957 and released in late fall 1957, reaching number seven on the US Billboard 100 early in 1958, number fourteen on the R&B chart, and number two in Canada. The song was also released in the UK, where it reached number six.
"(You're) Having My Baby" is a song written and recorded in 1974 by Canadian singer Paul Anka. Recorded as a duet with female vocalist Odia Coates, the song became Anka's first No. 1 hit on the Billboard Hot 100 in 15 years, since 1959's "Lonely Boy". The song was certified Gold by the RIAA.
"Hurt So Bad" is a song written by Teddy Randazzo, Bobby Weinstein, and Bobby Hart. It is a 1965 Top 10 hit ballad originally recorded by Little Anthony & The Imperials. Linda Ronstadt also had a Top 10 hit with her cover version in 1980. The song has been re-recorded by numerous artists including The Lettermen, who took the song to number twelve in September 1969.
"It Doesn't Matter Anymore" is a pop ballad written by Paul Anka and recorded by Buddy Holly in 1958. The song was issued in January 1959, less than a month before Holly's death. "It Doesn't Matter Anymore" reached number 13 as a posthumous hit on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in early 1959, shortly after Holly was killed in a plane crash on February 3, 1959. The single was a two-sided hit, backed with "Raining in My Heart". "It Doesn't Matter Anymore" was Holly's last US Top 20 hit and featured the orchestral backing of Dick Jacobs. It was also successful in the United Kingdom, where it became the country's first posthumous number 1 hit.
"Last Date" is a 1960 instrumental written and performed by Floyd Cramer. It exemplifies the "slip note" style of piano playing that Cramer made popular. It peaked at number 11 on the country chart and at number two on the Hot 100 behind "Are You Lonesome Tonight?" by Elvis Presley. Cramer's recording inspired a number of successful cover versions, including a vocal adaptation by Conway Twitty.
"Do I Love You" is a song co-written and recorded by Paul Anka, from his 1972 eponymous LP. Released as an advance single in late 1971, "Do I Love You" reached number 14 on the Easy Listening Singles charts of both the U.S. and Canada, number 16 on the Canadian Pop chart, and was a modest hit on the U.S. Hot 100 as well. As with the earlier "My Way", it was adapted from a French-language song popularized by Claude François, and Anka composed the English lyrics.
"Woman, Woman" is the debut single by Gary Puckett & The Union Gap, from their 1968 debut album Woman, Woman. It was written and composed by Jim Glaser and Jimmy Payne, and uses session musicians from The Wrecking Crew. Like most of the band's hits, it is a ballad centered around Gary Puckett's soulful vocals. The lyrics are from the perspective of a man who senses that his wife is dissatisfied with him sexually, and fears that she is going to start cheating on him. The song went to number 3 on Cash Box and number 4 on the Billboard Hot 100 in early 1968.
Put Your Head on My Shoulder may refer to:
"Jubilation" is a song recorded by Canadian singer-songwriter Paul Anka for his 1972 studio album of the same name. Anka wrote the song with Johnny Harris, who also produced the track. It was released in 1972 as a 7" single by Buddah Records. A gospel song, the lyrics of "Jubilation" find the protagonist preaching about religious themes. Making a moderate commercial impact, it appeared on the record charts in both Canada and the United States. It has since been included on several of Anka's greatest hits albums and covered by The Edwin Hawkins Singers in 1973.
American rapper and singer Doja Cat has released four studio albums, one extended play (EP), 44 singles, 33 music videos, and nine promotional singles. According to Recording Industry Association of America, Doja Cat has sold 34 million certified albums and singles in the United States as a lead artist.
"This Is Your Song" is a song written by Paul Anka, originally recorded as the B-side of his non-album single, "While We're Still Young", and produced by Arif Mardin in 1972, during Anka's short period on Buddah Records. That single fell just short of the top ten on the Canadian pop chart. But Anka offered the song to his protege, pop singer/songwriter Don Goodwin in 1973. Goodwin grew up in Aspen, Colorado, and was discovered by Paul Anka in Las Vegas.
"Streets" is a song by American rapper and singer Doja Cat from her second studio album, Hot Pink (2019). She wrote it with David Sprecher and Lydia Asrat, alongside its producers Dominique and Darius Logan. In "Streets", an R&B ballad with elements of trap music, Doja Cat sings and raps about her desire to return to a former romantic partner. Some critics who reviewed Hot Pink praised the song for demonstrating her versatility as a musical artist.
"Freak" is a song by American rapper and singer Doja Cat released through Kemosabe Records and RCA Records on August 7, 2020. Originally uploaded exclusively to SoundCloud in 2018, it was repackaged and released commercially due to popular demand by fans online. The single samples the 1959 song, "Put Your Head on My Shoulder" by Paul Anka. A standalone promotional single, "Freak" received a limited vinyl release via Urban Outfitters in November 2020.
Just the Two of Us: The Duets Collection is a posthumous compilation album by Australian singer Olivia Newton-John. It was released on 5 May 2023 by Primary Wave. It is a collection of duets performed by Newton-John during her career, including unreleased tracks and some of her last recordings, as well as previously released songs. Three singles were released from the album – "Window in the Wall", "Put Your Head on My Shoulder" and "Jolene" – the first two were released before Newton-John's death on 8 August 2022. "Jolene" with Parton was the final recording Newton-John made before her death.
