Enjoyable look back at this prolific singer/songwriter

One of the things that distinguished Paul Anka from the vast majority of his contemporaries was the fact that he wrote most of the songs he recorded. This was true both in his heyday in the late 1950's and early 1960's as well as during his improbable comeback in the 1970's. Paul Anka's 30th Anniversary
Collection is truly a celebration of the man and his music. Anka's early recordings for ABC-Paramount truly captured the flavor of that era. Anyone who grew up during those years has a very special place in their hearts for such classics as "Put Your Head On My Shoulder", "Lonely Boy" and of course his 1957 summertime smash "Diana". His chart success continued pretty much uninterrupted until he departed ABC-Paramount late in 1961. Anka moved on to RCA records who had extremely high hopes for him. As often happens when artists switch labels, the move simply did not work out. Despite a couple of fairly big hits in 1962, Anka failed to distinguish himself for the remainder of the decade. A short stint at Buddah also proved unproductive.
Then in 1974, Anka re-emerged with a vengeance with an unlikely hit "You're Having My Baby". Much to everyones surprise, the tune became Anka's first number one song in 15 years. His new label, United Artists, promoted him heavily and Anka followed up with three more Top Ten tunes. Rhino has done a magnificent job in putting together a retrosepective of this very important artist. The disc includes 24 of his very best. Among my favorites are 1961's "Dance On Little Girl"
and his 1975 hit "Times of Your Life". You may recall that Kodak used this in it's commercials for quite some time. Also included is the extremely hard to find "The Teen Commandments",
a 1958 hit recorded with his ABC-Paramount labelmates George Hamilton IV and Johnny Nash. I was a bit disappointed that Rhino did not include Anka's final Top 40 hit from 1983 "Hold Me 'Til The Mornin' Comes". In conclusion, I was quite pleased with the remastering job and the 8 page booklet included in this package. I would be quite surprised if you can find a better collection of Anka's work anywhere else.

Paul Anka's Greatest!

This is the kind of music they just don't make anymore. I wish they did. This is one of the best voices of all time people. Get this album NOW.

Worth Buying For Sure But....

This package covers Paul's career from his days as supremely confident teenager through the hitless gap in the 60's, his welcome reemergence in the 70s and forward. I recommend it but have to deduct a star for not including "A Steel Guitar and A Glass of Wine", a 1962 song rightfully included on his "Best" compilations. One of several other songs could have been sacrificed to include that distinct one; otherwise, this is a good compilation.