#1 for weeks of July 13, 20, 27, and August 3rd, 1959.
As the summer of '59 reaches its midway point, we have another hit by a teen idol. Paul Anka is best known for his song he recorded at 15 years old, "Diana", which, though it now sounds dated, still was a deserved hit, due to its very catchy chorus and melody. Now nearly at age 18, he had his first #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 with, "Lonely Boy", which both succeeds, and fails at following, "Diana".
Where the song succeeds is its more stripped down and personal sound. A twangy guitar is most prominent in the verses, and the choruses have a small string section as the most prominent instrument. Also, one important thing to remember is Paul Anka himself actually wrote the song, not an outside composer. With that in mind, any emotional response Paul sings is actually genuine and he does sound very heartfelt in his vocal performance.
However, the lyrics are often rather simplistic, and sometimes a bit sugary. Also, the backing vocals during the chorus and the overall simple chord progression add to this sugar-factor. This is understandable though as this was recorded by a then-seventeen year old. You couldn't expect someone so young to write a song as emotionally resonant as, "Layla", during this time period.
In the end though, I still consider, "Diana", to be the superior song of Paul's. The fact that this song was new to me shows how it has slipped through the cracks of music over the years.
Final Verdict - Despite this song bordering on saccharine at times, it is nonetheless impressive that a 17 year old could produce such a surprisingly personal song. It is because of the latter factor that, "Lonely Boy", is worth a listen.
Coming Up Next - "A Big Hunk o' Love" by Elvis.
Until Next Time - Dr. Rock -
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