Runner-up: United Kingdom 1961

The times they are a'changing and this song could possibly rank as the first proper pop song to take part in the Eurovision Song Contest. There had already been at least one attempt at rock'n'roll - Germany 1956 - but this is perhaps the first real trace of youth culture taking part.

Compared to what British pop and rock would be famous for in the years to come, these boys (marketed as brothers but in real life not related at all) come across as very tame. Obviously they have not been hanging with the Beatles down Reeperbahn much.

But at the same time it is a commercial hit song, clearly aimed at a much younger audience than previous UK entries, and the old-fashioned orchestra has obvious problems making it sound right.

The Allisons went on the sell a huge amount of copies after the contest but never managed to cut another big hit and split soon after. Which is also a very pop culture thing to do.

A deserved 2nd place?
Of course. Had the BBC stayed on this path and dared to be contemporary and youthful, the ESC could soon have sounded very different. For better or worse.



The Allisons - Are You Sure? (United Kingdom 1961)