Anka (studio album) by Paul Anka

Paul Anka was one of several pre-British Invasion pop stars who made big comebacks in the mid-70's. And this was his comeback album. Anka hadn't had a Top 10 single since 1961. This album produced two: "You're Having My Baby" (US #1) and "One Man Woman/One Woman Man" (US #7).

If you're familiar with either of those hits, then you know I wasn't expecting high quality from this album. "You're Having My Baby" is so laughably bad that it's become synonymous with 70's schlock. And "One Man Woman/One Woman Man" isn't much better. So I was shocked at just how decent the rest of this set is.

Opening track, "Bring the Wine" is fantastic. Why wasn't this a single? Nothing else reaches that height, but it's safe to say that the two hits are the worst songs here. On "Love Is a Lonely Song", our former teen idol tries to go all Barry White on that ass. And the result would be better described as... Very White. (Thank you, I'm here all week. Make sure to tip your waitress.) The rest of the tracks are surprisingly listenable. The album ends with Anka's own version of "It Doesn't Matter Anymore", a song he originally penned for Buddy Holly, which is probably the best song Anka ever wrote (admittedly not a high bar to reach).