1966 was in many way a defining year in the history of Eurovision. The year before, a modern pop song had won for the first time and now quite a few countries decided to hop on that same train. Among them a group of countries that had previously sent in traditional, old-fashioned and clean-cut entries: Finland, Portugal, Switzerland... and Belgium.
(Amusing, then, that the great pop nation in Europe - the United Kingdom - would not join the pop squad until a year later, in 1967.)
The Belgian entry was not only more lively and youthful than their previous attempts, it was also unusual in the way that French speaking Wallonia was represented by a Flemish singer (performing in French, although she also recorded her entry in Dutch as "Een beetje suiker").
The most enchanting (pun intended) lyrics, possibly inspired by pop classic "Love Potion no 9", were also regarded by many as a breath of fresh air.
Given the usual Belgian track record in Eurovision, a fourth place is not to be sniffed at. Tonia would later almost come back to Eurovision after placing second in the 1973 German final, before her career faded in the early 80's.
Tonia - Un peu de poivre, un peu de sel (Belgium 1966)
This is a fun song and a good way to practice the different tenses of the french language. There is futur simple, passé composé, imparfait and the story uses them well.
ReplyDelete