It's going to get grungy soon
I'll be the first to admit that the idea for this post just kind of fell into my lap the other day. I've actually got a few posts coming up that are kind of like that. I was sitting in my office the other day listening to some music on Spotify as I was working and a song came on. I didn't recognize the voice, but they lyrics were familiar and it there was something about the pacing that just had me spinning in a loop.
As disconcerting as it sounds, I actually love that when it happens. It's kind of a foreshadow that something awesome is about to come my way. It might be a one off song, or it might lead to a whole album full of awesome nuggets. Even better, it might lead to an entirely new artist that I have never heard of before.
That isn't the case in this instance, but for many of you, that may not be the case.
If you haven't guessed yet, this is going to be a #threetunetuesday post sponsored by @ablaze and believe it or not, I'm going to cover an artist who has been on the scene for close to 70 years.
Are you ready?
Shout out to wikipedia for a lot of the facts I am going to be throwing at you here. Paul Albert Anka was born July 30th 1941 in Ottawa Ontario. His parents were Lebanese and Syrian nationals and they owned a restaurant in Canada.
Believe it or not, Anka recorded his first single when he was only 14, but it was his first big hit "Diana" that rocketed him to stardom. Although it isn't the song that grabbed my attention, I felt the need to include it here. Like many good things, it is important to start at the beginning and ignoring all of Anka's early work would be a shame.
These songs from the 50's and 60's are what I grew up listening to as a kid at home and in the car with my parents. It's music that feeds my soul and no matter what mood I am in, I know I can always turn songs like Anka's early hits on and I am going to start feeling better.
But the title of this post indicates a different kind of music doesn't it? 50's and 60's pop isn't very grungy is it? Well, here you go:
Paul Anka is still alive and touring. Back in 2007 he released an album called "Rock Swings". In that album he covers a wide variety of songs. Most specifically he has this cover of "Black Hole Sun" by Soundgarden that absolutely knocked my socks off.
Of course, you probably have to appreciate this style of music to really get it. I've been a huge fan of swing music since I was in high school, so this is perfect for me. While my friends were listening to the latest country or rock music, I was spinning Glenn Miller CD's and dancing around my bedroom to Sing Sing Sing!
Yeah, I'm weird like that.
Even if you don't like the style of the music, you have to admit that he certainly has a velvety smooth voice. It's quite impressive and I can see why he was and continues to be so successful. In fact, to this day, "Diana" continues to be one of the best selling singles ever by a Canadian artist.
At least according to Wiki!
I don't know about you, but there is just something I love about a cover of song that totally flips it on end and brings it to you in a different way. How about this cover of "Smells Like Teen Spirit" from the same Rock Swings album. It was a hard choice between this one and the cover of "Wonderwall" that is also on that same album.
I highly recommend you check it out yourself if you like what you are hearing here.
https://open.spotify.com/album/68hTTrAwPFA0dWrxkAUMVl?si=M39NyQdNQOOo3Q4qeKo6zw
That's the album link for you right there. With other covers like "Eye of the Tiger", "It's My Life", and "Jump", rock definitely does swing! I also noticed that Anka has some more recent duets albums that I think I am going to have to check out before the end of the day.
Apparently, Anka is very popular in Finland, so I am sure that the folks over there are quite familiar with his body of work. Paul Anka also had some turns at acting, but I think his greatest contribution to us remains his music.
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funky tunes?
That is a very cool rendition of Black Hole Sun!
I thought so too! I was going to tag you in this post since Paul is pretty popular in Finland, but I am tagging you tomorrow so I didn't want to blow up your notifications!
I had never heard his covers of Black Hole Sun or Smells Like Teen Spirit before. That was really cool! I like swing music as well, you're not along there! He certainly put a whole new spin on Smells Like Teen Spirit for sure, a much less grungy and happier version! Very cool TTT!
Yeah, I am going to have to dig into the rest of that album at some point. It looks like he covered a lot of really great songs on it.
Oh I like this and something different!
Thanks! I'm glad you enjoyed it!
I lived on Paul Anka street in Ottawa for a for years … just down the street from where he grew up.
No kidding! That's really awesome. Was it a nice house?
Average .
Good to know he came from some humble beginnings then!
Haha this dude sounds like a real badass. Doing his own music but then doing super quirky covers of iconic songs. What a legend!
It's a great album. I just listened to the whole thing in my office.
Thank you, @bozz! I listen to the video, and it occurred to me that my Dad used to listen to his music! I forgot all about this singer!!!
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He's pretty great, and still putting out some goods stuff!
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I quite like it when people play around with covers rather than just doing them like the original. It shows up how good the song is. I've been working on some swing tunes with some friends, so I need to get into that groove.
Anka's had quite a career, but then he has a good voice.
I agree with that. I think one of my favorite parts of the singing competitions on TV is to see how they are going to switch up a song.
Oh this is a treasure! Grunge is my youth music and this is really interesting to see and hear, thanks you for such a great finding :)
No problem. I am glad I could share some new/old stuff with you.