Rock Swings http://www.fishpond.com.au/Music/Rock-Swings-Paul-Anka/0602498822234

Artist: Paul Anka

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• Personnel: Paul Anka (vocals); Dean Parks, Larry Koonse (guitar); Dan Higgins (flute, alto saxophone); Charlie Davis (trumpet); Steve Higgins (trombone); Mike Lang, Randy Kerber (piano); Emil Richards (vibraphone); Mike Valerio (bass guitar); Vinnie Colaiuta (drums); Luis Conte (percussion).
  
• Swing versions of classic rock tunes, performed by an old-school easy-listening crooner? It's not without its precedents; don't forget that Pat Boone, for one, made a surprisingly popular heavy metal album a few years earlier. And against all odds, Paul Anka's ROCK SWINGS is neither a novelty album (though the format undeniably bears novel appeal) nor an ill-starred culture clash.
  
• Spandau Ballet singer Tony Hadley always seemed closer to Sinatra-style vocalizing than rock & roll rough-housing, so his band's signature tune "True" fits right in with Anka's approach. The dreamy, melodic elegance of Billy Idol's "Eyes Without a Face" and even Soundgarden's "Black Hole Sun" allows them to be adapted to a big-band style with grace. Van Halen's "Jump" gives Anka room to display his playful side; here, as on the rest of the songs, it's his rock-solid pipes and confident phrasing that carry the day, pushing the expertly crafted arrangements into a place where they not only accomodate the unlikely source material, they redefine it.
  

Uncut (p.108) - 3 stars out of 5 - "That the album succeeds so charmingly owes everything to the integrity and flushed exuberance of Anka's approach..."

JazzTimes (p.78) - "When ROCK SWINGS is good, it's very good - most notably on introspective ballads like Spandau Ballet's 'True,' the Pet Shop Boys' 'It's a Sin' and Eric Clapton's 'Tears in Heaven'..."

Mojo (Publisher) (p.98) - 3 stars out of 5 - "Anka's vocal delivery and the big band-style arrangements are often commendable..."

Producer:	Alex Christensen
Format:	CD
Country:	USA
UPC:	0602498822234
Studio/Live:	Studio
Release Date:	7 June, 2005