Tuesday, May 6, 2008

What's Your Favourite Eurovision Song?

I am a big fan of the Eurovision Song Contest and can't wait for the final next month in Belgrade (although I understand new European country Kosovo will not be taking part).

Yes, it's kitsch and a bit rubbish but isn't that one of the reasons we love it? (Well, that and Terry Wogan ripping it to shreds every year!) But I thought it might be fun to ask readers what their all time favourite Eurovision song is.

For British entries I find it hard to see beyond the brilliant dance routines and Spanish holiday entertainer costumes of Brotherhood of Man with Save Your Kisses For Me, or the sheer 80s-ness and skirt ripping of Bucks Fizz's Making Your Mind Up.

But outside of UK entries, my favourite from all my years of watching is undoubtedly Denmark's high-tempo folky foot-tapper from 2001, so I thought I'd share that with you.

Rollo & King - Never Ever Let You Go.

A Barenaked Ladies style track that somehow failed to win, despite having great harmonies, great lyrics, a harmonica interlude by a guy in a leather jacket, a beautiful woman doing a theatrical stage entrance halfway through and (most importantly) someone jauntily strumming a ukuelele!

Great atmosphere too, as the contest was in Copenhagen that year - although Estonia ended up winning with a much inferior song. Another example of rigged voting no doubt, that still pains me to this day...and they say it's all trivial? ;-)

Now, where did I put my ukuelele...
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