Gerard Joling

New album from Gerard Joling out next month

Posted 25 March, 2013 - 20:44 by Kristján Sveinsson

Gerard Joling Ik Ook Van Jou © gerardjoling.nl

As reported on EuroVisionary a few months ago, Gerard Joling was celebrating a less than amicable split with his former record label NRGY Music and his brand new recording contract with label Vosound records. He is busy putting the finishing touches to his latest album, due in the shops by the 26th of April.

Gerard Joling celebrates new record label with new single

Posted 18 January, 2013 - 17:49 by Kristján Sveinsson

Gerard Joling De Nacht Voorbij © gerardjoling.nl

Former Dutch entrant Gerard Joling is one of the biggest names in the Dutch music industry. With an impressive nine number one singles notched up, Joling has signed up to a new record label much to the chagrin of his former label, NRGY Music.

Toppers plan to shine on the silver screen

Posted 6 December, 2012 - 09:45 by Kristján Sveinsson

Dutch trio De Toppers announced to Dutch media today of their plans to make a film together. Not content with concquering the Dutch music market, the multi talented trio also want to make their mark on the silver screen.

Gerard Joling to host new diving programme - Justine Pelmelay to participate

Posted 22 August, 2012 - 20:46 by Charlotte Jensen

When the Netherlands on Saturday kicks off for their new entertainment programme where well known names will be competing on diving skills a former Eurovision Song Contest participant will be hosting it, yet another one will be taking part - and joined by a Junior Eurovision Song Contest winner.

TROS spoilt for choice next year

Posted 7 June, 2011 - 10:05 by Kristján Sveinsson

Despite the extremely poor placings that the Netherlands has achieved over the past years, artists are practically falling over themselves in their wishes to represent and defend the honour of their country.

Review: Gerard Joling - Gewoon Gerard

Posted 23 May, 2011 - 15:42 by Charlotte Jensen

Gerard Joling - Gewoon Gerard album cover

Rating: 3.5

Gerard Joling, who represented the Netherlands at the 1988 Eurovision Song Contest and since has been one of the best selling names in Dutch pop music, has released a new album, which for Eurovision fans includes a cover version of Carola's 1983 Swedish entry.

Gordon leaves Toppers

Posted 18 May, 2011 - 13:17 by Charlotte Jensen

Toppers in Concert 2011 © Toppersinconcert.nl

The Dutch soap opera about Toppers, that represented the Netherlands at the 2009 Eurovision Song Contest, can now add a new chapter to its story as Gordon announced today that he will leave the band. It is far from the first time the band changes constellation, and it probably won't be the last either.

Toppers searching for a fifth temporary member with online audition

Posted 30 March, 2011 - 18:29 by Charlotte Jensen

First they were three, then two, then three again in another line-up, and then four and now they will be five – for at least three concerts. Yes, it is the Dutch drama queen band De Toppers we are talking about and an online audition for the fifth person starts tonight.

“On again, off again... like the rhythm of rain....

Posted 4 December, 2009 - 19:56 by Charlotte Jensen

...We need to decide, find an end to this game.” First they were three, then they were still three, although with a change in line-up, then they were two, then three again and now they are four! The Dutch soap opera called The Toppers have had yet another chapter written to it.

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1988

Basic information

Date:

30 April 1988

Venue:

Royal Dublin Society Simmonscourt Pavillon, Dublin, Ireland

Broadcaster:

RTE

Presenter(s):

Pat Kenny and Michelle Rocca

About the contest:

The 1988 contest provided the closest and most exciting finish ever. Scott Fitzgerald was ahead as Yugoslavia, the final jury, started announcing its scores. At that point, the United Kingdom was five points ahead of Switzerland. The Yugoslavs gave the Swiss six points, putting them one point ahead with four sets of points yet to be awarded. Seven, eight and ten points were given and still nothing for Go. Clearly aware of the situation, the Yugoslav spokesman milked the drama before finally saying “and finally France”. Mayhem ensued in the Green Room as photographers and cameramen swiftly deserted Scott to dash across the room to Celine, leaving Scott alone to come to terms with the moment.

Twenty-two countries registered for the contest, but only twenty-one travelled to Dublin. Cyprus was forced to withdraw after it was discovered the chosen song had been published previously, thereby breaking the rules of the contest. It was withdrawn so late in the day that the song made it on to the compilation album.

The set is still considered to be one of the best and was very high-tech for the time. The interval act was Irish band Hothouse Flowers, who enjoyed a brief spell in the charts afterwards.

Many familiar faces returned to the contest for another go. Hot Eyes, Yardena Arazi, Dora, Tommy Körberg, and MFÖ had all been seen on the Eurovision stage before, Yardena as a singer in 1976 and host in 1979. Making his first appearance was Stefán from Iceland, who was part of Beatoven. He would return for the Rome contest three years later.

The voting system remained unchanged with each jury awarding points from 1-8, then 10 and 12 to their ten favourite songs.

Trivia:

Public televoting appeared for the first time. The BBC used this system for the ‘A Song For Europe’ contest. While a euro trash song came second, the British public overwhelmingly chose Scott Fitzgerald.

About the songs:

Beathoven	Iceland - Beathoven - Sókrates (Icelandic) Music/Lyrics: Sverrir Stormsker/Sverrir Stormsker Conductor: n/a Despite the title, there is nothing philosophical about Iceland’s third entry. The verses consist almost entirely of the names of famous people such as John Waine and Michael Caine.
Tommy Körberg	Sweden - Tommy Körberg - Stad I Ljus (Swedish) Music/Lyrics: Py Bäckman/Py Bäckman Conductor: Anders Berglund Better known for its up-tempo, bouncy songs, Sweden sent a fine ballad and Tommy, appearing in the Eurovision for the second time, had one of the best voices of the 1988 contest.
Boulevard	Finland - Boulevard - Nauravat Silmät Muistetaan (Finnish) Music/Lyrics: Pepe Willberg/Kirsti Willberg Conductor: Ossi Runne The smiling Finnish band lifted the mood of the audience with their upbeat pop song. They ran on to the stage with arms in the air encouraging the audience to clap along from the start, and the scene was set for the next three minutes.
Scott Fitzgerald	United Kingdom - Scott Fitzgerald - Go (English) Music/Lyrics: Julie Forsyth/Julie Forsyth Conductor: Ronnie Hazlehurst Written by Julie, the daughter of Sir (well, he should be) Bruce Forsyth, Go is a beautiful ballad which was complimented well by Scott’s suitably melancholy voice. The string arrangement adds to the atmosphere of the song. Runner up was the least it deserved.
MFÖ	Turkey - MFÖ - Sufi (hey Ya Hey) (Turkish) Music/Lyrics: Mazhar, Fauat, Özkan/ Mazhar Alanson Conductor: Turan Yukseler There is an infectious rhythm driving through the second of MFÖ’s eurosongs. It’s very catchy and even the ‘hey-ya’s’ don’t distract from one of the best of Turkey’s offerings.
La Década	Spain - La Década - La Chica Que Yo Quiero (Made In Spain) (Spanish) Music/Lyrics: Enrique Piero/Francisco Dondiego Conductor: Javier de Juan The chirpy Spanish group gave a chirpy rendition of this up-tempo tune. The performance lifted the appeal of a song which would otherwise have blended unnoticed into the pack.
Gerard Joling	The Netherlands - Gerard Joling - Shangri-la (Dutch) Music/Lyrics: Peter de Wijn/Peter de Wijn Conductor: Harry van Hoof Gerard gave his all as he belted out his infectious foot tapper of a song. It even edges towards the anthemic later on.
Yardena Arazi	Israel - Yardena Arazi - Ben Adam (Hebrew) Music/Lyrics: Boris Dimitshtein/Ehud Manor Conductor: Eldad Shrem The host of the 1979 contest picked up the microphone to sing a song whose pace is slow at first, but increases bit by bit so that at the end, it’s difficult to keep up with if you’re singing along.
Céline Dion	Switzerland - Céline Dion - Ne Partez Pas Sans Moi (French) Music/Lyrics: Atilla Sereftug/Nella Martinetti Conductor: Atilla Sereftug This is where one of the most successful careers of the last 30 years was born. Nella and Atilla had given her the type of ballad which would become her trademark. What a difference one point makes!
Jump the Gun	Ireland - Jump the Gun - Take Him Home (English) Music/Lyrics: Peter Eades/Peter Eades Conductor: Noel Kelehan The hosts entered a soft rock ballad whose theme is along the lines of The Righteous Brothers He Ain’t Heavy, He’s My Brother. It was a credible defence that was unlikely to win.
Maxi and Chris Garden	Germany - Maxi and Chris Garden - Lied Für Einen Freund (German) Music/Lyrics: Ralph Siegel/Bernd Meinunger Conductor: Michael Thatcher The Germans employed the slightly gimmicky services of a mother/daughter duo. They both played piano and sported insincere smiles as they sung their Song For a Friend.
Wilfried	Austria - Wilfried - Lisa Mona Lisa (German) Music/Lyrics: Wilfried Scheuz, Klaus Kofler/Wilfried Scheuz, Klaus Kofler Conductor: Harald Neuwirth A rather unkempt looking Wilfried may well have felt aggrieved at scoring no points. His heartfelt ballad to a mysterious woman is by no means the worst song of the contest.
Hot Eyes	Denmark - Hot Eyes - Ka' Du Se Hva' Jeg Sa' (Danish) Music/Lyrics: Soren Bundgard/Keld Heick Conductor: Henrik Krogsgaard There were six people on stage when the song started, but Kirsten was so heavily pregnant, there may well have been seven by the time this Danish europop song finished.
Aphroditi Fryda	Greece - Aphroditi Fryda - Kloun (Greek) Music/Lyrics: Dimitris Sakislis/Dimitris Sakislis Conductor: Haris Andreadis The rock edged intro gave way to a more broad European style when a nervous looking Aphroditi started singing. Despite that, it’s all a bit unmemorable.
Karoline Krüger	Norway - Karoline Krüger - For Vår Jord (Norwegian) Music/Lyrics: Anita Skorgan/Erik Hillestad Conductor: Arild Stav Candleabra adorned the piano at which Karoline sat, surrounded by her backing singers. The combination created the right atmosphere for Norway’s ballad.
Reynaert	Belgium - Reynaert - Laissez Briller Le Soleil (French) Music/Lyrics: Joseph Reynaerts, Dany Willem/ Joseph Reynaerts, Philippe Anciaux Conductor: Dany Willem Loaded with haunting atmosphere, Laissez Briller Le Soleil (Let the Sun Shine in Your Heart) could be dark and depressing (in a good way) if it had a different theme to the one suggested by the title. The mood remains throughout, supplemented by the backing vocals.
Lara Fabian	Luxembourg - Lara Fabian - Croire (French) Music/Lyrics: Jacques Cardona/Alain Garcia Conductor: Régis Dupré Lara brought a bit of class to the evening with a beautiful, thoughtful ballad. The presentation was effectively simple and Lara was vocally flawless.
Luca Barbarossa	Italy - Luca Barbarossa - Ti Scrivo (Italian) Music/Lyrics: Luca Barbarossa/Luca Barbarossa Conductor: n/a Luca was third in the Sanremo festival in 1988 with a very challenging song, especially lyrically. Perhaps deciding that it would have been too much for a European audience, Luca’s rote this for the Eurovision. It has a more internationally appealing theme. The style is more soft rock than Italian.
Gérard Lenorman	France - Gérard Lenorman - Chanteur De Charme (French) Music/Lyrics: Gérard Lenorman/Gérard Lenorman, Claude Lemesler Conductor: Guy Matteoni The very French Gerard certainly had ‘le charme’ but not the song to contend for victory. It could make up the numbers on an album, but no more than that.
Dora	Portugal - Dora - Voltarei (Portuguese) Music/Lyrics: José Calvário, José Niza/José Calvário, José Niza Conductor: José Calvário Voltarei is the second, and far and away the best of Dora’s entries. It’s a very dramatic and emotional ballad which demonstrates that when Portugal gets it right, it gets it very right indeed. Not for the first time, a fantastic song went above the heads of the jurors.
Srebrna Krila	Yugoslavia - Srebrna Krila - Mangup (Serbo-Croat) Music/Lyrics: Rajko Dujmic/Stevo Svikic, Rajko Dujmic Conductor: Nikica Kalogjera There are hints of desperation and anger in Srebrna Krila’s song, which is essentially a pop tune. The lead singer gives a spirited performance.