Maps of Music

Rock Swings (2005)

Where the lyrics of Rock Swings take you, and where it was really made.

Anka reportedly tried to record Michael Jackson's Billie Jean for this album, but he could not finish a vocal take without laughing.

Key places

Recorded at Capitol Studios (2004)

Recording site Capitol Studios — The album was recorded in November 2004. Discogs lists Capitol Studios as the recording location. The point marks the studio's location in Los Angeles. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Album story

Overview

• Rock Swings: album by Paul Anka
• Contains swing jazz covers of popular rock and pop songs from the 1980s and 1990s
• Recorded in November 2004
• Released 31 May 2005 in Canada and 7 June 2005 in the United States
• Executive producer: Paul Anka; producer: Alex Christensen
• Engineer and mixing: Al Schmitt; Pro Tools engineer: Steve Genewick
• Vocal editing: Steffen Häfelinger; mastering: Ralph Kessler
• Concertmaster: Bruce Dukov
• Track list of 14 covers, including It's My Life, Eye of the Tiger, Everybody Hurts, Wonderwall, Smells Like Teen Spirit and Tears in Heaven

Background

• Rock hits given a standards treatment had an earlier precedent in Pat Boone's 1997 album In a Metal Mood: No More Mr. Nice Guy
• Boone's album covered songs by Alice Cooper, Van Halen and Judas Priest
• In 1997, Steve Lawrence and Eydie Gormé covered Soundgarden's Black Hole Sun in lounge-jazz style on the compilation Lounge-A-Palooza
• Anka also covers Black Hole Sun on Rock Swings
• Michael Jackson's Billie Jean was reportedly slated for the album during the recording stages
• Anka could not get through a vocal take of it without bursting into laughter
• Bon Jovi's It's My Life contains a tongue-in-cheek reference to the Sinatra classic My Way, whose lyrics were written by Anka

Recording

• Recorded at Capitol Studios, Los Angeles, according to the Discogs credit
• Acoustic piano: Randy Kerber and Mike Lang
• Guitars: Larry Koonse and Dean Parks
• Rhythm section: Mike Valerio on bass, Vinnie Colaiuta on drums, Luis Conte on percussion
• Emil Richards plays vibraphone
• Dan Higgins plays the alto sax and flute solos on tracks 3, 5 and 6
• Arrangements by Patrick Williams, Randy Kerber and John Clayton
• Vocals: Paul Anka

Cover

• Photography by Sascha Kramer
• Artwork credited to www.schilko.com

Sources: en.wikipedia.org · www.discogs.com · fr.wikipedia.org

Tracklist

Sources: musicbrainz.org

Artist

Early life

• Born July 30, 1941 in Ottawa, Ontario, to parents of Lebanese Christian descent.
• Briefly studied piano and sang in the St. Elias Antiochian Orthodox Cathedral choir.
• Formed a vocal trio called the Bobby Soxers at Fisher Park High School.

Career

• Recorded his first single "I Confess" at age 14.
• "Diana" (1957) reached No. 1 in Canada and the US and is among the best-selling singles by a Canadian artist.
• Wrote the theme for The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson and the English lyrics to "My Way", Frank Sinatra's signature song.
• Wrote "It Doesn't Matter Anymore" for Buddy Holly and gave his composer's royalty to Holly's widow.
• Scored a comeback with "(You're) Having My Baby" (1974), a No. 1 hit with Odia Coates.
• Co-wrote three songs with Michael Jackson, which became posthumous hits in 2009, 2014, and 2018.
• Had a significant career in Italy, with "Ogni volta" selling over one million copies there.

Acting

• Acted in films and television, including a cameo in The Longest Day (1962) and appearances on Gilmore Girls and The Simpsons.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Reception

At release

• Released 31 May 2005 in Canada and 7 June 2005 in the United States
• Recorded in November 2004 before release
• The album contains swing jazz covers of rock and pop songs from the 1980s and 1990s
• Debuted at number 120 on the Billboard 200
• Debuted at number 9 on the Official UK Album Chart
• Debuted at number 2 on Billboard's Top Jazz Albums chart
• Debuted at number 1 on Amazon.de
• Covers are sung by Paul Anka alone, with orchestral arrangements

Records

• Billboard 200 debut position: 120
• Official UK Album Chart debut position: 9
• Billboard Top Jazz Albums debut position: 2
• Amazon.de debut position: 1
• After the album's release, Anka was awarded a star on Canada's Walk of Fame in Toronto
• A DVD release of the same name, including live performances of these songs by Anka, came out on 6 December 2005
• The DVD shows the album's songs performed live by Anka

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Trivia

• Billie Jean was reportedly slated for the album during recording, but Anka could not get through a vocal take without laughing.
• Bon Jovi's It's My Life includes a tongue-in-cheek nod to Sinatra's My Way, a song whose lyrics Anka wrote.
• After the album's release, Anka received a star on Canada's Walk of Fame in Toronto.
• A DVD with the same name, showing Anka performing these songs live, was released on 6 December 2005.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

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