December 13: Tajana

There is this nightmare I have had a couple of times that goes along the lines of someone falling ill at the last moment and I have to step in to sing in their place at Eurovision.

It's terrifying since it should be a dream come true but as I enter the stage I realise I don't really know the song. Neither do I know if I can sing or not. No idea what kind of sound will eventually come out of my mouth.

I can imagine that nightmare scenario is pretty much what poor Tajana experienced when opening the 1997 Croatian final, only it was no dream but live television.

The Dora was already in its heyday a few numbers too large for a country like Croatia and there were more entries than there were local quality talent willing to take part. But how this poor girl ended up on stage as badly prepared as this remains a mystery for me. Couldn't someone have stopped her?

The song really isn't bad and a solid performance could have made it a contender. Tajana's performance isn't really solid. It starts shakily, shapes up a bit only to result in one of the most painful key changes I ever heard.

But life isn't just about things that worked out they way they should. Let's take a moment to celebrate what this little song could have been. Brace yourselves and press play.



Tajana / Povedi me (Croatia NF 1997)

Runner-up: Ireland 1997

As already stated when reviewing Ireland 1967, there has been an abundance of soft and inoffensive male ballads representing the emerald isle through the years.

How inoffensive can you be before that in itself turns offensive? How much pleasant can you take before it feels unpleasant? This very song has at least for me crossed some kind of line.

It's a song about a man who sees a beautiful woman at an airport. He wonders where she could be from. He knows he will never forget her. Now his entire life will have a sombre undercurrent and a bitter after taste since he knows this woman was the only one in the world that could have made him happy.

I'll repeat that: he sees her for a matter of seconds and knows nobody else can ever make him happy again. Not that he talked to her or anything but perhaps personality is overrated.

Just how trivial can any story get? Seriously? If it hadn't been for the dimwitted lyrics, it would only have been a seriously average ballad with some lovely strings. Now instead it is a fantastically annoying piece of drivel. With some lovely strings.

A deserved 2nd place?
No no no. One of the most pointless entries ever. Should have been in the bottom five and nowhere else.



Marc Roberts - Mysterious Woman (Ireland 1997)

Nobody's favourite but mine, part 5

While making this series it seems one country pops up more often than most and that is Austria. I would perhaps not go as far as naming them my favourite country in Eurovision but few others have done so much for the diversity of the contest and few others have been so constantly ignored or misunderstood as the Austrians.

I often find myself liking Austrian entries more than most people do - at least judging from the not always too impressive scores they gather during the voting sequences - so because of that and in honour of their magnificent Conchita Wurst, who takes to the stage tonight, this is a special edition focusing fully on Austrian entries. And I had to make them ten instead of five…



The Milestones - Falter im Wind (Austria 1972)

So let's start from the top with my all time favourite Austrian entry. The Milestones were the second pop group ever to enter the eurovision stage and added an interesting touch to a contest formerly reserved for solo singers or love duets. The song is also highly personable with a long melodic build-up - and a hook that is played on a flute rather than sung - and when the chorus finally kicks in it is short and snappy and a surprisingly fulfilling climax. Douze points at any given time.



Karel Gott - Tausend Fenster (Austria 1968)

Austria was never afraid to speak their minds or make statements in this apolitical song contest and already in early 1968 they decided to lend their spotlight to neighbour country Czechoslovakia and the slowly nascent Prague spring. Winner Udo Jürgens composed an urban lament, about the loneliness of modern man, for Czechoslovakia's own Sinatra Karel Gott. For some reason, he only scored two points and Udo Jürgens famously stormed out of the green room mid-voting.



The Rounder Girls - All For You (Austria 2000)

ORF in Vienna were never afraid to make statements about Austrian matters either. At least that must have been one of the contributing factors that they chose - at the height of the controversies surrounding Jörg Haider, giving Austria a bad name around Europe - these soul babes to represent them in Stockholm. Unfortunately they didn't quite nail the live performance in the end but this is such a lively, happy and bouncy number all the same.



Westend - Hurricane (Austria 1983)

Austrians can't just yodel, they can also dress in red and yellow and dance in a group. Most of the Westend members - with the notable exception of Gary Lux - aren't really all that impressive singers but do parts nicely and with the aid of that dancing girl they manage to work up quite a storm before the song is over. This one was always one of my big favourites from 1983. Catchy and fun.



Marianne Mendt - Musik (Austria 1971)

If the host broadcaster went through all that trouble to assemble an orchestra for the occasion you could just as well use it to the fullest. I doubt there is a single instrument that isn't put to use in this massive arrangement and Marianne can't be accused of holding back her vocal abilities either. Extra plus for singing in dialect, that always goes down well at Eurovision. Well, it doesn't but it should.



Schmetterlinge - Boom Boom Boomerang (Austria 1977)

There just is no way around this one. Deeply political and deeply engaged and still devilishly entertaining. I doubt no protest song was ever as fun as this one, virtually mocking the record industry in general and the Eurovision Song Contest in particular. The group also scared the living daylights out of the BBC producers as they had interrupted a live show on Austrian television the week before the London final and made a political statement instead of singing. Being part of both this as well as The Milestones also qualifies Beatrix Neundlinger as a Eurovision Goddess in my book.



Wilfried - Lisa Mona Lisa (Austria 1988)

People I know, good friends of mine, would argue this is the archetype of a nul-pointer, that it has every ingredient of a perfect recipe for disaster. I see what they mean but I must disagree. Perhaps this one would have been better off performed by someone else, but I find a depth and an emotion here. Something the juries apparently didn't. Blaming the defeat on politics was not a brilliant move either, but Wilfried is hardly the only zero-scorer to mess up like that.



Bettina Soriat - One Step (Austria 1997)

At first I must admit to finding this pretty hopeless and doomed but at some point I took a long hard look at the live performance and realised what a professional that Soriat woman is. The amount of punch and energy she manages to squeeze into these three minutes is truly impressive.



Blue Danube - Du bist Musik (Austria 1980)

Austrian television was never afraid to be deadly serious and send in poignant entries that actually mean something. But then they could get really tired of that and go for something like this instead: a big fluffy piece of nonsense with five people randomly namedropping famous composers and musical terminology all over the place just to make sure that somebody somewhere understands something. It is perfectly ridiculous but also really rather catchy. Group member Marty Brem would be back again already the next year with the sweet but confusingly staged Wenn Du da bist, featured already in Part 3 of this series.



Anita - Einfach weg (Austria 1984)

This could be a crash course in how to take a perfectly good song, rip it to shreds and crush every single chance it might have had of impressing anyone. If you just listen to it with your eyes closed you'll hear what a good song it is. Then you open your eyes to find that the woman who sings about being strong and independent and gone before you know it is a polite little flower in a pink dress, a sweet hairdo and not a drop of attitude anywhere. Add the dance orchestra background musicians and the stiff backing vocalists - again Gary Lux, not at his finest hour - and your song is doomed. Despite a very clear last place - 21 points behind Yugoslavia placed second last - it was a big hit on home ground and is still seen as a bit of a classic. Made for radio, so to speak.

Nobody's favourite but mine, part 4

Are you ready, folks? Here comes a fourth selection of songs I really liked through the years even though I have a nagging feeling I could be the only one. The former three episodes suggest that I am not alone at all, which leads me nicely onto the first song of the bunch.



Patricia Kraus - No estás solo (Spain 1987)

I never understood why anyone wouldn't like this one. It's original, energetic and pretty modern for it's time, and Patricia could be one of the coolest females ever. She is wearing a leather corset and enough rouge to suggest that she fell headlong onto the makeup-table only seconds before she had to enter the stage, still manage to look like that is the most natural thing ever.

It does take forever until she gets to a chorus but that's not the end of the world, is it? Clearly worth more than the ten points it had to content itself with.



Helen & Joseph - L-Imhabba (Malta 1972)

Malta had a tough start in Eurovision - for their first two entries they sang in their native tongue and ended in last place on both occasions. I can sort of see what the juries meant in 1971 but this adorable little gem would have deserved to be showered in points. The line where they sing about freaks, Hell's Angels and hippies is worth a top ten placing alone. Not to mention the more than impressive body language of the conductor during the instrumental break. And extra points for fashion, of course.



Park Café - Monsieur (Luxembourg 1989)

For the last few years that Luxembourg were in the contest they more seldom commissioned potential hit songs from French record labels - or did nobody want to provide them anymore? - and turned to local talent instead, mostly with pretty moderate success. Park Café entered something as unusual as a song inspired by a recent hit movie - "Who Framed Roger Rabbit?" - and provided a far more jazz inspired sound than the audience was used to and the juries remained largely unimpressed.



Telex - Eurovision (Belgium 1980)

Belgium is clearly one of those nutty countries that you just don't know what to expect from. When you least expect it they will do something really crazy and unexpected and most of Europe will sit there with their jaws hanging between their legs, not knowing what hit them.

For some reason, synthesiser pioneers Telex - Belgium's own Kraftwerk but with a sense of humour - decide to throw themselves into competition with a song about the contest in question and a pronounced desire not to be understood and go through the voting without a single point. The stunt failed, the Belgians managed to collect a minor number of points and even avoided the last place, and the trio managed to thoroughly confuse their own fans in the process. What remains is a cute little masterpiece that is sure to make you smile. And when you're done smiling, check out their cover versions of Ça plane pour moi, Twist à Saint-Tropez or Rock Around The Clock. Genius!



Mrs Einstein - Niemand heeft nog tijd (Netherlands 1997)

When Dutch tv selected these feisty females internally they were presented like a group that were sure to rock the boat in a big way in Dublin. They sort of did. Not only were they nicknamed "Old Spice" - which I think was pretty witty - but most people wouldn't believe their ears. A full-tempo rip-off of Paul McCartney's Bond theme Live And Let Die that would leave people out of breath as well as in serious doubt of what the Dutch were thinking.

Only I really, really like it. I think it is fun and energetic and far superior to most entries the Dutch sent in during those eight long years they constantly failed to qualify. Old Spice for the win!

Absent friend: Turkey

When I was child and fell in love with this weird, wild and wonderful contest I quickly realised it was truly those weird and wild things that made the whole thing wonderful.

So how could I not love the Turkish entries? They didn't sound like anyone else, they didn't look like anyone else. Not even their flag looked like the others - so colourful, so stylish. They hardly ever scored any substantial amount of points, but that was less important.

Their whole joie de vivre attacked me and walked hand in hand with me through Euroland. How I loved the Turkish entries.



Seyyal Taner & Grup Lokomotif - Sarkim sevgi üstüne (Turkey 1987)

Ten years ago, Turkey took a radical turn and re-invented themselves in the ESC. Superstar Sertab Erener seduced the entire continent and the eternal loser blossomed into a success story. Cinderella got her prince and would never turn back again.



Sertab Erener - Everyway That I Can (Turkey 2003)

Since then most Turkish entries ended in the top ten, four of which even made the top four. Most impressive. Then suddenly - without a word of warning - Turkish tv decided to pull out of the competition, giving some really dodgy and sketchy excuses about the rules being unfair and them not wanting to be a part of this.

At first, I thought there was a hurt ego somewhere in the middle of this story. Turkey is a fast-growing economy that seeks financial and political influence in its region, and I thought maybe they would want to be treated like royalty also at the ESC. Why would they want to find themselves below the likes of France, Germany or Spain in this contest?

But then I spoke to some Turkish friends - good, intelligent and perceptive people - who suggested more sinister reasons for their country's absence.

Despite being a secular country, the current Turkish government has a mildly Islamist agenda. Knowing this, you can note that the country has not sent any female representative since 2009 despite that particular female gaining a good result.

My friends suspect that phasing out women was the first step, phasing out western cultural from the state television would be the next. I'm not saying this is the one and only truth, but this what my friends suggested and it got me thinking. If this is the case, we would probably have to wait quite a long time until we see another Turkish entry in this competition.

So in order to how my say in this matter, I decided to phase in a number of feisty and fabulous females made in Turkey. They rock. May they be back soon.



Ajda Pekkan - Petr'oil (Turkey 1980)



Klips ve Onlar - Halley (Turkey 1986)



Pan - Bana Bana (Turkey 1989)



Şebnem Paker - Dinle (Turkey 1997)



Pinar Ayhan & S.O.S - Yorgunum anla (Turkey 2000)



Sibel Tüzün - Süperstar (Turkey 2006)

PS! Just to be crystal clear - if anyone is in doubt - this is not a text against neither Turkey nor TRT. I hope for them to be back. And if anyone can add anything to this discussion - please leave a comment. DS.

Preview clip: Poland 1997

The preview clips of 1997 set a new standard - never before had so many countries provided professional video clips, lovingly and carefully crafted little films to accompany their songs of choice. Many of them were beautifully shot and splendidly edited and the Polish one was possibly the best of them all.



Anna Maria Jopek - Ale jestem (Poland 1997 preview)

This is such a wonderful clip! So rich, so overflowing in detail, so full of life. It is perfectly oozing of vitality and a completely unpolluted love of life.

It is also very including - everyone gets to be a part of Anna Maria's celebration, everything and everyone unites in a whirlwind of happiness. In a time when colder winds are blowing in Europe, it is almost heartbreaking to see something as warm and inviting as this.

If the times had been different - had there been iTunes and Spotify and YouTube - I think Ale jestem could have made a mark also outside of Poland. This is the kind of clip you'd happily watch over and over again.

Also the song in itself is so positive - a jubilant ode to living and being, with a brilliant set of lyrics well worth reading.

In Dublin, Anna Maria Jopek ended in 11th place, which is still Poland's third best showing at the ESC.



Anna Maria Jopek - Ale jestem (Poland 1997)

Absent friend: Poland

I really don't know how this happened. Poland was such a revelation, such a powerhouse, such a fantastic new force in Eurovision. They kept sending in good, modern, eccentric and progressive entries that were so good, so good, so good.

They were supposed to come in, crush all resistance, work their way to victory and drag this old contest kicking and screaming into the future. It all looked so promising.



Edyta Górniak - To nie ja! (Poland 1994)

Their sensational debut, when Edyta made a coup and sang her song in English during the jury final and scored a phenomenal second place in the end, really left the feeling that Poland was on to something big. And then they opted for something seriously different.



Justyna - Sama (Poland 1995)

Justyna's etno-pop-yoik did take some getting used to, admittedly, but in the endless ocean of toothless ballads that was ESC 1995 it stood out like a monument of anarchy. Violently, provocatively different and modern. And the judges just didn't get it.



Anna Maria Jopek - Ale jestem (Poland 1997)

The juries would continue not to get the Polish entry. The quirky and folksy dance that was Ale jestem also ended outside the top ten (not by much, but anyway) and maybe now Polish tv was getting a bit exhausted. They were doing their best but kept getting ignored.

In 1998, I was convinced that TVP had finally hit the bull's eye again. The group Sixteen had a very fresh sound and their song was engaging and instant, but at the same time it kept growing on you for every listen.

Sophisticated and hit-friendly. Would this be Poland's return to top five?

On the night of the final in Birmingham, Poland passed under the radar of almost everyone and ended in a shockingly low 17th place. I could not believe my eyes.

Since then, the Polish entries never regained that original sparkle that they used to have. Some of their entries have been good, but never as overflowing and captivating as their early efforts. After having missed out in one semi final too many, TVP withdrew after the 2011 contest.

If they stay away in order to evaluate the situation, re-group and try to find their own self, then this absence is well worth it. I just hope they won't stay away too long.



Sixteen - To takie proste (Poland 1998)

Superstar at work: Alla Pugacheva

When Alla Pugacheva was announced to be the 1997 Russian representative, it felt very exciting and very special in many ways. As a child growing up in Sweden during the 1980's, Alla was about the only singer we ever heard of from the Soviet Union.

The Soviet Union was a big and scary neighbour to have, but this singing sensation that was Alla made them seem more tangible, more human somehow.

For a few years, Alla was marketed quite heavily in Sweden (and elsewhere around Europe) and this chance to see her again - and in Eurovision! - was intriguing. So was the preview clip: elegant, classy, slightly theatrical and slightly cold. Artistic. And the song was very different.



Alla Pugacheva - Prima donna! (Russia 1997 preview)

In Dublin, Alla had brought along a stunning backing group and gave a most vibrant performance, filling her song with so much passion, emotion and star quality. The ending alone - where Alla drinks from her microphone - is worth the money.

This performance gives me goosebumps every time and judging from the reaction in the hall I'm not the only one loving this.

Unfortunately, with the exception of the Slovenian jury the voters remained cold and left the Russian primadonna in a pale 15th place.



Alla Pugacheva - Prima donna! (Russia 1997)

Unfair in every possible way, but it doesn't matter much when you have a career like Alla's. She was the Queen of popular music in the Soviet Union - impopular with the governing power who regarded her as vulgar and a carrier of un-Sovietic values but loved by the people.

If you are unfamiliar with her work, check her out on YouTube where many of her classic clips are to be found. How about this one, filmed in the Moscow metro?



Alla Pugacheva - Arlekino

This one is one of her most beloved hits - written by Latvian composer Raimonds Pauls - and a true evergreen also in many territories outside of the Soviet sphere. Arja Saijonmaa recorded a brilliant Swedish version and Katri Helena made a good version in Finnish, for instance.



Alla Pugacheva - Million alih roz

And this is perhaps my personal favourite - taken from the album Alla recorded in Sweden in 1985 with songs by the likes of Lasse Holm, Anders Glenmark and Torgny Söderberg. That album - known as "Watch Out" or simply "Alla Pugacheva in Stockholm" - is a must for everyone who loves Alla or the sound of Swedish pop of the 1980's.



Alla Pugacheva - Lousy Party

Preview clip: Croatia 1997

If Russia 1994 was an example of how to top everyone's expectations, then this is the close to perfect example of how to do the opposite of just that.

In the late 90's, Croatia was seen as an emerging nation in Eurovision - they sent in professional, well-produced and interesting little songs and seemed not to carry the burden of eurovision formula. Whatever they liked they sent in, regardless if it was a eurosong or not.

So the entire net-based fan community (consisting of precious few people back then) went into a buzz when HRT decided to send their local Spice Girls to Dublin in 1997.

The preview clip showed exactly what these girls were about: happy, happening, fashionable and upbeat, and as they swirled their way through life in sharp colours and a fast pace they also showed that their song was a fresh and lively pop number, more in tune with the current charts than the ballad-fest that the ESC had turned into.



E.N.I - Probudi me (Croatia 1997 preview)

Whatever happened on the way to Dublin might never be known to the rest of the world, but on the night of the final these confident girls were reduced to a bunch of shaky newcomers. Their live voices - strong and convincing in the national final - sounded weak and faint and the girl power never quite made it through the tv screens.

The Croatian entry crashed and burned in a pale 17th place and suddenly many of the online fans had a very brusque change of mind. Suddenly, nobody had ever believed in this song. Suddenly, nobody had never even really liked it. Odd, given how it resided very high in all prediction charts before the contest.

Fans can be fickle and this is the entry that made me fully realise this. But it still it is a bouncy, cheerful little piece of bubblegum pop. Very much a child of its time, but still charming.

Like a Spice Girls cover in Croatian. I could think of worse things.



E.N.I - Probudi me (Croatia 1997)

Preview clip: Slovenia 1997

At a certain time - peaking in 1997, to be honest - the music video had grown really strong as an art form in itself at the same time as Eurovision had grown important enough for certain countries to want to spend money on marketing themselves in this area.

Many countries made really lavish preview clips in 1997, not only highlighting their own songs but also giving the local tourist boards reason to rejoice, and the best one of all came from Slovenia.

Very stylish, atmospheric and beautifully filmed, but also very well acted by Tanja Ribič who is equally famous for her acting skills. The colour explosion of flowers by the end as the song has grown into completely new dimensions is also a very clever touch.



Tanja Ribič - Zbudi se (Slovenia 1997 preview)

Maybe Tanja would have needed a flowery explosion also on stage in Dublin - the song is lovely and the singing exquisite, but in a year with many heartfelt ballads it was hard to stand out.

Many people expected more than a tenth place for this song, but it still remains the third best showing of an entry from independent Slovenia.




Tanja Ribič - Zbudi se (Slovenia 1997)

Song of the Day: Netherlands 1997

I would really like to continue my review tonight, but I have had a very long day at work and will have an equally long day tomorrow, so I don't really have the time for lenghty updates.

Luckily, there is a eurovision entry that speaks about this problem, that nobody finds the time for important matters anymore.

Back in the day, I thought for a long time that this could be a contender. I thought the mix-up with the "Live And Let Die"-theme was funny and I thought Mrs Einstein to be an entertaining bunch of ladies straight out of Cougar Town.

Europe did not agree with me the slightest, and this catchy number and its jolly performers had to content themselves with five points and only the shared nul-pointer of Norway and Portugal behind them.



Mrs Einstein - Niemand heeft nog tijd (Netherlands 1997)

Nul points: Portugal 1997

Dublin 1997 offered us another double nul-pointer, just like in Munich 1983. If Norway's entry really deserved its fate altogether, I can't help but feeling a bit sorry for Portugal.

The Portuguese entry is a fine and slightly experimental ballad with a big, breezy chorus and an atmospheric, tense verse with a suggestive spoken response from the backing singers. Normally the juries should have recognised the musical qualities of this composition.

But you have to deliver also. And neither Célia nor her boys delivered.

The backing group has a most unfortunate lack of timing in their delivery and according to press reports Célia was completely out of tune during many rehearsals, including the one the juries listened to. Why would a jury invest their points in somebody who sings badly?

Nul points?

No no no. Shaky delivery or not, this is still a very pleasant and slightly original ballad entry in a year that still saw too many ballads in the line-up. And if a song as dull, predictable and formulated as the Irish could end in second place, then Portugal would deserve at least a tiny complimentary point or two.



Célia Lawson - Antes do adeus (Portugal 1997)

Nul points: Norway 1997

Almost every country with a national final did this at some points: award the victory to somebody because he/she had bravely taken part so many times, regardless of the song on offer.

It is never a good idea, not for anyone involved.

Tor Endresen had been offering entries that were old-fashioned but delivered with a touch of class, still. There was always something forgiving about his entries and he came across as quite easy to like.

So why Norway decided to send him off with his weakest effort is a mystery that remains to be solved. This song is even more old-fashioned but also rather simple-minded, not to mention retro in a bad way in a year when Eurovision decided to look forward and become modern again.

1997 stands out very clearly as the year when the ESC decided to save itself and start looking and sounding relevant again. It was obvious from the word go that "San Francisco" would float like a solid piece of rock under these circumstances.

Nul points?

No doubt. Norway came last undeservedly on many occasions, this is not one of them. This song lacks severly in every department and is clearly one of the worst songs of the year. It doesn't look good, it doesn't sound good and it has nothing to say. A well deserved zero.



Tor Endresen - San Francisco (Norway 1997)

Bad Draw Day: Turkey 1997

Typical Turkish bad luck, the way it used to be at Eurovision. Turkey had been drawn early on in the running order most of the years, usually going back home with dismal placings and a few complimentary points in their suitcase.

Most people agreed that the Turkish entry was the most user-friendly one for years, but then again being drawn in the dreaded #2 slot would do it no favours.

What did we know? The biggest underdog there ever was in the contest (since Norway shaped up in the mid-80's) surprised everyone and scored their by far best placing until then. Şebnem Paker recieved three top marks and came in third.

This proves beyond the shadow of a doubt, that a bad draw can make things a bit harder for you. But a good song is still a good song, a convincing performance is still a convincing performance, and when it is time to vote nobody cares what starting position you had.

Once you break through to people, you will score. A good starting position just makes everything a little easier.




Şebnem Paker & Grup Ethnic - Dinle (Turkey 1997)

Almost identical entries!

Now that I mentioned Monia and "Nu idag" from 1997, I will have to air a little thing that has been on my mind for many years already. This is what Monia sounded and looked like:



Monia - Nu idag (Sweden 1997 national final)

Then fast forward two years until 1999, when Klenoinki "Cleo" Nilsson entered the stage with her entry "Natten är min vän", written by her boyfriend at the time, a certain Thomas G:son who would go on to becoming one of the most successful songwriters in Melodifestivalen.

Cleo, who normally sang in the band Cleo & Grabbarna, really attacks her song with more energy and zeal than most dance vocalists could procure. She impressed the juries but scored zero points in the televote.

The fact still remains - her song is incredibly similar to Monia's entry two years before. The structure, the sound, the arrangement, the choreographed backing singers... Even the melody lines are pretty similar.

One evil little suspicion might pop up in your head but then again... Why steal a song that already flopped once?



Cleo - Natten är min vän (Sweden 1999 national final)

The relative failure did little harm to Cleo's career as one of the most acclaimed dance orchestra vocalists at the time, but a dramatic road accident a few years back put an end to her career.

According to this article, Cleo still sings - for the well-being of the soul - but is in no condition to tour or give concerts. A sad development for a really talented vocalist.

Melodifestivalen gem: Monia singing her heart out

Melodifestivalen 1997 was going to be the real start of something new, according to host SVT Göteborg. After a few lean years with few hits and fewer viewers, it was time to wipe out the old and bring in the new.

Songs were especially commissioned by the likes of Jonas Berggren of Ace of Base and the still rather fresh pop discovery Robyn (who was later set for international stardom and quite a lot of it too), backing tracks were allowed and the whole production should have a scent of fresh air.

What an anticlimax then, that the first song in the running was as stereotypical for 80's and 90's Melodifestivalen entries as could be.

Dance orchestra vocalist Monia Sjöström gave it a brave effort vocally, but "Nu idag" didn't stand a chance against the supposedly more modern competition and ended second last.

In retrospect, it would be more anticlimactic that a song just as dated and with just as distinct a taste of dust went on to win the whole thing, only to bomb a few weeks later in Dublin.

Unlike blond, at least Monia had some sparkle in her eyes and a fair share of charm and her song has stood the test of time better than most of the more modern ones.



Monia - Nu idag (Sweden 1997 national final)

Song of the Day: Russia 1997

Under many years, the ESC attracted mainly young, fairly unknown performers who often got to shine for one night and then disappeared into obscurity again once the spotlight was turned off.

But then - now and again, a real superstar tread out into the light and the whole atmosphere changed.

Alla Pugacheva wasn't just any old star either - she was the biggest Diva of the Soviet Union, so loved by the audience that she could afford being more outspoken than most, who unlike many others had survived the transition into the new realities of the Russian Federation without losing her popularity.

Her good friend, the late Swedish tv presenter Jacob Dahlin, had always talked to her about Eurovision, how grand it was and how she should be there. She told the Swedish press that she finally went there as a gesture to him.

And quite possibly as a bit of an ego rub.

For a few years, during the mid 80's when perestroika was the new big thing, Alla travelled Europe and was a welcome guest on several high-profile tv shows and song festivals and had quite a nice little career going for her.

Eurovision was a new chance for her to mingle in the international limelight and show the world she could still perform. She squeezed every single drop of emotion out of her bombastic chanson-esque entry and had the audience eat from her hand.

For some reason, the juries remain unimpressed (apart from the jury in Slovenia awarding her top points) and The Queen landed on a bleak 15th place.

Not that it in any way affected her career, but that is no way to treat royalty.



Alla Pugacheva - Prima Donna (Russia 1997)

Iceland 1997: What a shocker!

This could be hard to believe these days when almost nobody goes to Eurovision without an elaborate stage show or pyros or dancers, but the 1997 entry from Iceland hit the ESC in a most dramatic way.

The audience was still used to singers coming on stage, performing their songs just like that. Paul Oscar demanded a white leather sofa and brought dancers dressed in latex.

He was also the first openly gay performer to take to the ESC stage and he made quite a big deal out of it. His song is a melodrama about the depraved diva who lived a hard life, burnt out and is now about to dance her last dance, sing her swan song and make her grand exit.

These days, this would not be shocking at all, but in many ways Paul Oscar triggered a new development. He challenged the formula - what a eurovision entry could and should look and sound like.

Also, as the juries made thumbs down but the televoters made thumbs up, it was yet another factor in favour of abandoning the jury system and have televoting instead.

I just wonder what an entry would have to do today to become as influential as this performance has turned out to be?

See Paul Oscar's performance from Dublin here .

Song Of The Day: Switzerland 1997

Isn't it funny how some songs will just pass you by at first and then, slowly but steadily, grow on you at some safe place in the back of your head?

I was largely unimpressed by this one in the previews, and during the actual voting I was hoping for it not to score more as I felt it didn't particularly deserve more than the five points it had.



Barbara Berta - Dentro di me (Switzerland 1997)

Today, my biggest objection is that you should not be allowed to wear a cap when you are a backing singer for a ballad unless you are hidden behind a sheet or similar.

The song itself has eaten its way into my conscience, and I really like it very much. I like it so much that I really wish Barbara had managed to keep her act together and sung as well as she reportedly did in rehersals.

But then you can always enjoy the studio version instead. Laid back, jazzy and very pleasing - a genre I wouldn't mind hearing more often in the ESC.



Barbara Berta - Dentro di me (Switzerland 1997 preview)

Tobson's Winners: 1996 - 2000

And then, unexpectedly, the contest started gaining in popularity again. Entries started finding their way back into the charts, more people watched, and Eurovision suddenly seemed capable of launching careers again.

Behind the scenes, this should have not been a greater surprise to anyone as some EBU members, Germany above all, decided to have a final stab at the old event before abandoning it for good.

We will never know how close it was that the ESC was discontinued in the mid 90's. 1995 would have been a logical last year - celebrate the 40th anniversary and then let the old ship sink.

But the ESC was destined to go on. And now the only way was up.

1996 - Estonia



Maarja-Liis Ilus & Ivo Linna - Kaelakee hääl (Estonia 1996)

It was very exciting times, when a small ex-Soviet republic with no reputation in the world and rather a different language suddenly found itself one of the top favourites for victory.

It didn't win, but it beat the big hot favourite, Gina G from the UK, and it was recorded in a few cover versions around the continent. All in all a very pleasant little package, most sympathetic and very easy to like.

And I'm still hoping for Maarja's grand retun to the Eurovision stage, to better her fifth place.

Real winner:
Eimear Quinn - The Voice (Ireland)


1997 - Iceland



Paul Oscar - Minn hinsti dans (Iceland 1997)

1997 is not only a very strong year. It was like waking up from a long sleep - after so many years of slowly collapsing, the ESC came on like a flash out of the dark.

Suddenly there were pop song, modern rhythms, thought-through stage acts, songs with hit potential... And the epitome of this new world was the entry of Iceland. Modern, provocative and knocked out over a white leather sofa.

Pretty tame compared to many of the acts that were to follow, but back in the day Paul Oscar walked in like a one-man-version of the French revolution. Even if I love many of the entries of 1997 with a deep passion, nothing quite sums up the esprit of the year like this number.

Also, far too much for the juries, but embraced by the televoters. The next year, the juries would be gone. Not a minute too soon.

Real winner:
Katrina & The Waves - Love Shine A Light


1998 - Croatia



Danijela - Neka mi ne svane (Croatia 1998)

1998 saw the grand exit of the juries - and the grand introduction of televoting. That, plus the relative success of some more television-friendly performances the year before, lead to a line-up including quite a few really strong songs.

Some things proved too difficult for the televoters to grasp on a first listening: the beautiful Slovakia waltz, the Polish pop and the Leonard Cohen-esque debut entry of FYR Macedonia, for instance.

The winner was the only credible choice, though. The only way to go. A colourful performer with an evident chorus, set to hit the charts. Maybe the UK could have pulled the same thing off, possibly Dutch Edsilia could have achieved something.

But the one for me is Danijela and her mega-chorus, dramatic verse and huge key change. One of the few songs that can make me see the point of having the orchestra, which was about to vanish as well.

Real winner:
Dana International - Diva (Israel)


1999 - Estonia



Evelin Samuel & Camille - Diamond Of Night

At the time, I favoured the likes of Cyprus and Croatia, with Selma from Iceland as my sky-high favourite. Unfortunately, the Cypriot chick couldn't carry her tune, and Selma's song aged badly.

Croatia is still a real party song, but it is the Estonian ballad that really does it for me. Sweet, enchanting and spellbindning.

By far, my favourite violin through eurovision history.

Real winner:
Charlotte Nilsson - Take Me To Your Heaven (Sweden)


2000 - Turkey



Pinar Ayhan & The SOS - Yorgunum anla (Turkey 2000)

I must admit that Sweden's victory in 1999 didn't enthuse me - it was something old-fashioned at a time when eurovision needed modern and forward.

But Sweden gave us forward and modern in 2000, when playing host, offering the real start of the ESC the way we see it today. Modern, fast-moving, progressive. And, as a lucky break, most countries played ball and sent in great entries.

Russia, Estonia and Latvia all fulfilled the youthful pop vibe, Denmark the more mature pop vibe and most of the others provided entertainment value aplenty.

But the quirky tune from Turkey is my song. A song to belt out in the shower or dance along to on the tram as it plays in your headphones. A song to love.

In a world that was fair, Pinar Ayhan would be a super star. But Turkey still had some way to go before they would conquer the ESC.

Real winner:
Olsen Brother - Fly On The Wings Of Love