All Things Eurovision

It might come as a bit of a shock but the song That Sound’s Good To me selected for Eurovision by the UK last Friday is about to undergo a complete re-write.

Maybe there is nothing unuusual about this excepting this is the UK, which is not used to fighting itself out of an embarassing corner after somewhat of a backlash to the selection by UK Eurovision fans

However fair do’s to Mike Stock, who says the wooden Josh will shape up in time for Oslo in May.

Stock explains: “On balance I am happy that Josh won the public vote.  However, what I found most frustrating was having to record six different versions of ‘That Sounds Good To Me’ incomplete and unfinished.

“Obviously until you know who has won you can’t deliver the final version.  This is what has made this year slightly unusual.

“Nevertheless, I am now busy getting together the final version which will be significantly different from what has already been served up.  I accept the comments that have been posted on the forum and I expect in a short while for everyone to be pleasantly surprised at the end result.

“The thinking behind this song is that Eurovision is a theatrical event as much as a song contest.   So our song has elements of a show number alongside dance pop. The lyric has a general theme and is not gender specific or too personal.

“We need to spice up the performance generally, but in Josh we have a safe pair of lungs who can deliver in these highly charged pressurised circumstances.  This is great news for me because we can concentrate on delivering a thumping and exciting mix without worrying if the singer can cope.

“Actually the song works in all ways and styles.  I have tried it with just a piano accompaniment and it still works. The question is, what style is best?  

“In that regard I am waiting until after Josh has been to the studio and I have recorded his vocals. Then I can tailor make the track to support him.  I have not heard him sing in a studio context and this will reveal quite a lot, I think, and lead me to some answers.

“Enough for now.  Josh is working with me this week and I shall know a lot more after that.  Thanks for your messages of support.  This has been a bit of a tough call for many reasons.  I don’t ask myself the question “can we win Eurovision?”  I just want only to do a great job and, believe me, it isn’t easy because so many things are out of your control.  But anything is possible to do.”

Indeed, the UK Eurovision fans will give this song their support regardless of how poor or how much better Stock and Waterman make it, but start asking the people who know about these things.

And then maybe we can have a few key changes in there as well!

IF only the UK audience could have been faced with the most difficult of tasks – choosing a song from a select set of songs for Eurovision 2010.

The Swedish final was an incredible show of how to do things, and while the result might not have pleased all of the fans, at least, and unlike the UK, the Swedes did it properly.

The Melodifestivalen final which played to a massive audience both at home and in the stadium listened to ten songs, any one of which the UK would be happy to be taking to Oslo.

Anna Bergendahl with This is My Life, was lying in second place to Salem Al Fakir with Keep On Walking, before she clinched the winner’s spot at taking top spot among TV viewers.

It was not a universally loved song but nobody could doubt the quality of Anna’s performance – Good luck Sweden!

The 10 songs were as follows: 

Darin – You’re Out Of My Life

Pernilla Wahlgren – Jag Vill Om Du Vågar

Andreas Johnson – We Can Work It Out

 Timoteij – Kom

Peter Jöback – Hollow

Ola – Unstoppable

Jessica Andersson – I Did it For Love

Salem Al Fakir – Keep On Walking

Anna Bergendahl – This Is My Life

Eric Saade – Manboy

What in heaven’s name was the BBC thinking of in the 2010 Making Your Mind Up contest.

It has to be one of the poorest national elimination contests, bar Scooch and Gemini. 

At the very least one would demand the acts sang in tune, and I include the Sugababes in that equation, Instead, they all struggled to hit the standard musical notes.

Composer and judge Pete Waterman thought the acts were ‘great’, so  one wonders what  the superlatives would have been if the acts had been even ‘average’.

The Waterman song That Sounds Good To Me, aka Kids in America, will guarantee Pete’s career as a songwriter will go backwards, and much deserved too!

 The final three performers hoping to win the ticket to Oslo were:-

I have just listened to a web interview with UK songwriter Pete Waterman and wonder if he really is going to provide a decent song for our representative at Eurovision.

One fears for the type  of song he will actually come up with, but I suggest listening out for lots of drums, dress and key changes, with maybe an Eastern European melody thrown in for good measure.

The UK Final of Making Your Mind Up which is hosted by Graham Norton is on BBC 1 on Friday at 8.30pm.

ONE thing is clear about this year’s Russian national selection at Oslo – the country is not willingly about to pick up another estimated 100 million Euro tab in 2011.

Why? Because it is unlikely it will ever better last year’s contest in Moscow which gave the event a world stage on which its divas and diehards could strut their stuff.

The bill was massive and it is unlikely that Norway or any other country will ever match the importance the Russian oligarchy placed on the 2009 contest in showing the rest of Europe it could still fleax its  financial superpower muscle.

However, as Ireland, and more particularly broadcaster RTE, nearly found to its cost in winning the contest in 1992/1993/1994 and 1996, one can have too much of a good thing, and in its case  was nearly left bankrupt. Russia has made its point and has moved on

This is best illustrated by its rejection of Dima Bilan in getting through into the final 25 songs at weekend.

THE announcement of basically six largely unknown acts to represent Your Country Needs You on Friday evening on the BBC seems to underline a more insurmountable problem.

At its heart is the continued perception by the British music establishment that the contest remains a fast track to oblivion.

One would have thought that given Waterman’s involvement, there might have been at least a few fading music artistes who would have been happy to represent the UK, even if it was just to help reignite their career.

That on top of the fact that last year’s successful performer Jade has now joined top group The Sugababes, suggests it’s not all downhill for those artistes prepared to put in the effort and on the night come up with the goods.

And although Jade was another relative unknown last year there is no doubt the involvement of Andrew Lloyd Webber helped enormously to give back some contest credibility to the UK as well as to the perception by foreign media that the UK was serious about the event.

However, apart from Waterman’s involvement in 2010, there is as yet nothing to suggest the UK will advance last year’s effort in Moscow when it goes to Norway in May.

One can only assume that staff employed at the BBC on Eurovision have done their level best to come up with a suitably well known act to match the Peter Waterman man inspired composition and have been turned down.

The BBC has six acts in Friday’s show, which include four solo acts and two groups, who will perform live in front of a panel of judges

The acts are: Esma Akkilic, Karen Harding, Josh Dubovie and Alexis Gerred will vie with trio Miss Fitz, and five-piece Uni5.

One suspects Waterman already knows which of the finalists he wants to perform his composition, but as ever, nobody dare place their trust in the British TV voting public, particularly,  after its equally many calamitous choices of the near past!

ONE would have thought the Irish would have moved on from the sort of balladry the likes of the Pogues railed against but there was no such luck at the country’s national final in Dublin.

Last night the Irish audience duly crowned the former 1993 Eurovision winner ‘has been’ Niamh Kavanagh, as its latest ‘lamb to the slaughter’ with It’s For Your’ in Oslo this May.

If anybody had an ounce of sense Ms Kavanagh would not have been there and given the very poor rendition, of what on the face of it, seems like a half decent song, she would have been beaten by some better songs including Eurovision River of Silence and Fashion Queen.

However, what one is dealing with is an audience who chose acts like Dustin the Turkey (2008) and Sinead and Black Daisy(2009) to bomb at previous Eurovisions. So it’s almost like a perverse death wish by TV viewers who will now only vote for a song which has no chance!

It’s not dissimilar to the way the UK behaves. but it just ensures Ireland will have yet another fallow year, and one wonders if RTE could give a toss!

This is how the MEN blog saw the final, act, song and comments:-

(1) Marko Vozelj – Moj Si Zrak – Good mid-tempo song - deserved to do better, but in the end not ethnic enough.

(2) Nuša Derenda – Sanjajva – Despite her fame, the song was sadly nothing special

(3) Langa – Roko Di Maj - Started okay and despite the additional backing singers went rapidly dowhill, although they did have a wind machine!

(4) Tangels – Kaj In Kam -  Okay, pleasant ditty but that was all. Good singers though.

(5) Brigita Šuler – Para Me – All it needed was a Mexican band – lively, good number.

(6) Anastazija Juvan – Nežna Izpod Prstov – Pleasant enough song but not suitable for Eurovision.

(7) Manca Špik – Tukaj Sem Doma – Should have been a potential winner

(8) Hamo in Gal – Črni Konji Cez Nebo – Nothing special, although well sung.

(9) Martina Šraj – Dovolj Ljubezni – Nice singalong number.

(10) Stereotipi – Daj Mi En Znak – Not a bad song and well sung

(11) Nina Pušlar – Dež -  Men in Black and lots of la la la! And Slovenia may rue not selecting this song.

(12) Vlado Pilja – Tudi Fantje Jočejo – Cracking Michael Bolton sounding number!

(13) Anzambel Roka Žlindere & Kalamari – Narodno Zabavni Rock – Accordians, national dress and rock and roll all in one song. Too local to win at Eurovision!

(14) Lea Sirk – Vampir Je Moj Poet – Never got her teeth into this one!

THERE is seemingly little happening on the island of Malta at this time of the year if one takes account of the time it took to determine who it was going to send to Oslo.

In the end it was determined, Thea Garrett,  will represent Malta with the song My Dream, in Norway in May.

However, it took more than three and a half hours of Eurovision TV, mainly at its worst, to select Thea, which was enough for even the most ardent Eurovision fans to cope with.

It was not just that the 20 entrants could have easily been whittled down to a reasonable number ahead of last night’s show but the presenters of the programme were forced to advertise the likes of the Gozo jewellery outlet and some other such corner shops with regularity! Let’s be honest, while this might be a national final, reading out vital sponsors is not something an international audience watching on the internet has any interest in. And it tends to jar if it goes on for the length of time it did.

Aside from that the acts were mixed so here are the MEN blog’s summation of the acts with act, song and comments:

1 Dorothy Bezzina – Moments – Good ballad, if a little familiar

2 Foxy Federation – Fired Up – Four out of tune females who were not together

3  Lawrence Gray – Stories – Funereal

4 Eleanor Spiteri – Velvet Ocean – a little whiney, not a bad song

5 Claudia Faniello-Samsara - Dreadful

6 Thea Garrett – My Dream – Another pair of wings similar to Azerbaijan – Could do well

7 Priscilla & Kurt – Waterfall – Failed to sing together – screechy

8 Nadine Axisa & Clifford Galea - Once in a Lifetime – Old fashioned ballad, out of time

9 Glen Vella – Just a Little More Love – Okay

10 Audrey Marie Bartolo  – Good Intentions – Good song and singer. Poor staging, bad outfit, no need for male dancer

11 Klinsmann - Her Name Was Anne – Familiar sounding, cockney voiced sounding singer, who failed to hit right notes, but could get better.

12 Claire Galea – Ole Satchmo’s Blues – Nice accompaniment – not Eurovision though!

13 Wayne Micallef – Save A Life – Average song

14 Petra Zammit – All I Need – Great song, brilliant singer. Needs to take her voice Stateside!

15 Ryan Dale & Duminka – One 4 You – Started out well before enthusiasm got better of young Ryan and he began wailing. Puppet sounded better!

16 Eleanor Cassar – Choices - Charlie’s Angel lookalike with odd island hairstyle, dated!

17  Silverclash - Broken – Cats chorus!

18 Tiziana Calleja – Words Are Not Enough -  Some ’singers’ should be discouraged from participating!

19 Ruth Portelli – Three Little Words – NOT A WINNER!

20 Pamela – Hold On – Screechy!