This is Paul Anka’s world, we’re just guests here. If Frank Sinatra was the “chairman of the board,” then Paul Anka must at least serve as its chief adviser.
The one-time teen idol is now a spry 80 and continues to perform with the energy and poise of that belies his age.
Throughout a seven-decade career, the Canadian crooner has glided from teen classics like “Diana” and “You Are My Destiny” to writing standards like Sinatra’s “My Way” and the “Theme to the Tonight Show” to adapting to 1970s pop trends with hits like “She’s a Lady” and “(You’re) Having My Baby” (more about that later). Along the way, he’s become a Las Vegas tradition, someone that used to be called “an all-round entertainer.”
Israel has become a regular stop on his international excursions, and next week Anka returns for two shows, July 18 at the Caeserea Amphitheater and July 19 at Sultan’s Pool in Jerusalem, his debut in capital.
Israelis of a certain age have a special connection with Anka, due in part to two his songs – “You Are My Destiny” and “Crazy Love” – having been featured in the iconic Lemon Popsicle film series. But it wasn’t until 2009 that he came here to perform for the first time.
“I continue to perform because of the love and the passion but also because I’m not one to sit back and do nothing,” Anka told The Jerusalem Post a decade ago when he was the tender age of 70. “I think it’s important that anyone who has passion for something to get out and do it – it keeps your mind and body active and keeps you young in spirit.”
“Dapper, slim and sprightly, exhibiting the boundless energy of a perpetual motion machine and with legendary vocal capabilities seemingly undiminished by time, he seemed but a fraction of his age, even on the large-screen extreme close-ups projected on each side of the stage.”
Yakir Feldman
When Anka performed in Tel Aviv in 2019, Yakir Feldman attended the show, and called him a “consummate performer and real crowd pleaser” in his review for the Post.
“Dapper, slim and sprightly, exhibiting the boundless energy of a perpetual motion machine and with legendary vocal capabilities seemingly undiminished by time, he seemed but a fraction of his age, even on the large-screen extreme close-ups projected on each side of the stage.
“The professionalism of every aspect of the show entirely befitted a star with numerous top-20 hits over a career spanning an incredible seven decades. There was no warm-up act or need for one, nor did the human dynamo take a break at any point during the two-hour show. The audience was electrified from the moment the 12-piece orchestra took the stage and the central screen behind them flashed to life with a powerful video recounting highlights of Anka’s career, starting with his earliest heartthrob performances and portraying him through the decades collaborating with a virtual who’s who of music giants and other celebrities.”
Slick and Las Vegas professional
Anka’s show is slick and Las Vegas professional, and the singer knows what the crowd is there for.
“The audience comes to the show for a reason, to relive those moments, whatever they are, through the music,” Anka told the Post.
Apparently, one of the few tunes he doesn’t perform anymore is “Having My Baby,” which was criticized for being chauvinistic and misogynist back in the 1970s, and has not aged well since then.
But it won’t likely be missed amid the glitz and the classics that Anka will deliver next week. After all these years, he’s still doing it his way.
For more information, visit: https://www.eventim.co.il/artist/paul-anka.
