Released as a tie-in to Paul Anka's 2013 memoir My Way (really, would an Anka autobiography bear another name?), the 2013 collection Duets attempts to illustrate the depth of Anka's career through song, letting the singer/songwriter indulge himself with duet partners both expected and unfamiliar.
There is a degree of posthumous trickery here -- he sings "This Is It" with Michael Jackson and "My Way" with Frank Sinatra, two vocalists long deceased by the time Anka assembled this album -- but Anka is such a creature of show biz that this sleight of hand doesn't much matter; arguably, it even enhances the splash and glitz of this deliberately showy album.
There may be a little too much modernity on Duets -- Anka succumbs to Auto-Tune here and there, including on "Find My Way Back to your Heart," the only solo song here -- and there's the odd sense that he's trying to appeal to every possible audience that may exist in 2013, although nothing here could conceivably be played on modern radio.
Instead, Duets plays like a fantasia of pre-MTV pop, songs designed for maximum radio play even when there are no outlets for that sound.
There are some pleasant moments here, to be sure -- many of them play like throwbacks to 1990, including Tom Jones' new take on "She's a Lady" -- but it's a sound that belongs to past that's long since gone.
| Title/Composers | Performer | Listen | Time | Size | Size | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Walk a Fine LinePaul Anka, Michael McDonald | Paul Anka | Play | 05:32 | 12 MB | 34 MB |
| 2 | Find My Way Back to Your HeartPaul Anka, Michael Thompson | Paul Anka, Tita Hutchison | Play | 04:39 | 10 MB | 31 MB |
| 3 | Do I Love You (Yes, In Every Way)Paul Anka, Alain Joseph Yves Le Govic, Michel Albert Louis Pelay, Maxime Piolot | Paul Anka | Play | 04:53 | 11 MB | 30 MB |
| 4 | This Is ItPaul Anka, Michael Jackson | Paul Anka | Play | 04:07 | 9 MB | 28 MB |
| 5 | I Really Miss YouPaul Anka | Paul Anka | Play | 04:45 | 10 MB | 26 MB |
| 6 | Think I'm in Love AgainPaul Anka, Bob McDill | Paul Anka | Play | 05:05 | 11 MB | 31 MB |
| 7 | Pennies from HeavenJohnny Burke, Arthur Johnston | Paul Anka | Play | 04:12 | 9 MB | 24 MB |
| 8 | CrazyWillie Nelson | Paul Anka | Play | 04:45 | 10 MB | 24 MB |
| 9 | You Are My DestinyPaul Anka | Paul Anka | Play | 04:11 | 9 MB | 28 MB |
| 10 | Les Filles de ParisPaul Anka | Paul Anka | Play | 05:03 | 11 MB | 28 MB |
| 11 | It's Hard to Say GoodbyePaul Anka, Mark Spiro, Jack White | Paul Anka | Play | 05:11 | 11 MB | 35 MB |
| 12 | She's a LadyPaul Anka | Paul Anka | Play | 04:20 | 9 MB | 28 MB |
| 13 | Hold Me 'til the Morning ComesPaul Anka, David Foster | Paul Anka, Peter Cetera | Play | 04:52 | 11 MB | 30 MB |
| 14 | My WayPaul Anka, Claude François, Jacques Revaux, Gilles Thibaut | Paul Anka, Frank Sinatra | Play | 05:14 | 12 MB | 31 MB |
| 15 | I'm Not Anyone | Paul Anka, Sammy Davis Jr. | Play | 04:08 | 9 MB | 24 MB |
| 16 | Les Filles De Paris (French Version) | Paul Anka, Chris Botti | Play | 05:03 | 11 MB | 28 MB |
| 76 mins | 174 MB | |||||
| 76 mins | 467 MB | |||||
| Artist | Job | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Paul Anka | Composer, Executive Producer, Liner Notes, Lyricist, Photography, Primary Artist, Producer, Quotation Author, Vocal Producer |
| 2 | George Benson | Featured Artist |
| 3 | Chris Botti | Featured Artist |
| 4 | Gretchen Brennison | Project Manager |
| 5 | Michael Bublé | Featured Artist |
| 6 | Johnny Burke | Composer, Lyricist |
| 7 | Buddy Cannon | Engineer |
| 8 | Tony Castle | Engineer |
| 9 | Peter Cetera | Primary Artist |
| 10 | Josh Cheuse | Art Direction, Design |
| 11 | Jon Crosse | Production Coordination |
| 12 | Céline Dion | Featured Artist |
| 13 | Mandy Eidgah | Marketing |
| 14 | Felipe Elgueta | Engineer |
| 15 | Gloria Estefan | Featured Artist |
| 16 | Jennifer Feinberg | Marketing |
| 17 | David Foster | Arranger, Composer, Lyricist, Producer, Vocal Producer |
| 18 | Claude François | Composer |
| 19 | Humberto Gatica | Producer |
| 20 | Claude Gaudette | Arranger |
| 21 | Steve Genewick | Engineer |
| 22 | Brad Gilerman | Engineer |
| 23 | Tom Gioia | Mixing |
| 24 | David Gleeson | Engineer |
| 25 | Adam Greenholtz | Engineer |
| 26 | Mick Guzauski | Mixing |
| 27 | Chandler Harrod | Engineer |
| 28 | Tita Hutchison | Primary Artist, Vocals (Background) |
| 29 | Michael Jackson | Composer, Featured Artist, Lyricist |
| 30 | Arthur Johnston | Composer, Lyricist |
| 31 | Tom Jones | Featured Artist |
| 32 | Patti LaBelle | Featured Artist |
| 33 | Alain Joseph Yves Le Govic | Composer |
| 34 | Annie Leibovitz | Cover Photo, Photography |
| 35 | Tommy LiPuma | Vocal Producer |
| 36 | Johnny Mandell | Arranger |
| 37 | Bob McDill | Composer, Lyricist |
| 38 | Michael McDonald | Composer, Featured Artist, Lyricist |
| 39 | Lester Mendes | Arranger |
| 40 | Shinnosuke Miyazawa | Engineer |
| 41 | Patrick Murphy | Engineer |
| 42 | Willie Nelson | Composer, Featured Artist, Lyricist |
| 43 | Dolly Parton | Featured Artist |
| 44 | Michel Albert Louis Pelay | Composer |
| 45 | Maxime Piolot | Composer |
| 46 | Dave Reitzas | Engineer |
| 47 | Jacques Revaux | Composer |
| 48 | Leon Russell | Featured Artist |
| 49 | Rob Santos | A&R |
| 50 | Al Schmitt | Engineer, Mixing |
| 51 | Dan Shea | Arranger, Engineer, Producer |
| 52 | Bebu Silvetti | Arranger |
| 53 | Frank Sinatra | Featured Artist, Primary Artist |
| 54 | Mark Spiro | Composer |
| 55 | Gilles Thibaut | Composer |
| 56 | Michael Thompson | Arranger, Composer, Engineer, Lyricist, Mixing, Producer |
| 57 | Kent Wells | Producer |
| 58 | Jack White | Composer |
| 59 | Patrick Williams | Arranger |
| Quality | Format | Encoding | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | MP3 | 320kps 44.1kHz | MP3 is an audio coding format which uses a form of lossy data compression. The highest bitrate of this format is 320kbps (kbit/s). MP3 Digital audio takes less amount of space (up to 90% reduction in size) and the quality is not as good as the original one. |
| CD Quality | FLAC | 16bit 44.1kHz | FLAC is an audio coding format which uses lossless compression. Digital audio in FLAC format has a smaller size and retains the same quality of the original Compact Disc (CD). |