EuroVisionary.com - Everything you need to know about the Eurovision Song Contest - We welcome the 2009 Contest in Moscow

 Germany - Margot Eskens - Die Zeiger Der Uhr (German)

Music/Lyrics: Walter Dobschinski/Hans Bradtke

Conductor: Willy Berking

Margo and Germany came to the contest with a gentle, floating ballad, something they hadn’t really tried before.

Music/Lyrics: Erik Kåre/Erik Kåre

Conductor: Arne Lamberth

Lots of brass moves this song along quite briskly. It occasionally pauses before re-launching itself on the listener.

Belgium – Tonia - Un Peu De Poivre, Un Peu De Sel (French)

Music/Lyrics: Paul Quintens/Phil van Cauwenbergh

Conductor: Jean Roderes

This is a lively piece of 60’s French pop, which keeps Tonia very busy. She sings non stop from start to finish.

Luxembourg - Michèle Torr - Ce Soir Je T'attendais (French)  

Music/Lyrics: Bernard Kesslair/Jacques Chaumelle

Conductor: Jean Roderes

The introduction makes you think that Tom Jones is about to leap on to the stage. However, the very feminine looking (and sounding) Michèle starts singing. She sings a mid-tempo song which builds for the chorus and even more at the end.

Music/Lyrics: Mojmir Sepe/Elza Budav

Conductor: Mojmir Sepe

Yugoslavia were starting to establish themselves as a country to be relied on to provide a decent song. ‘Brez Besed’ cements that reputation. Another good song and another good ballad.

Music/Lyrics: Arne Bendiksen/Arne Bendiksen

Conductor: Øivind Bergh

The woman who would host the contest 20 years later sings a fairly quiet song. She strums a guitar and the song is given some life by some bold brass.

Finland - Ann-Christine Nyström – Play-boy (Finnish) 

Music/Lyrics: Ossi Runne/Ossi Runne

Conductor: Ossi Runne

A mid-tempo effort from Finland which, like their (almost) neighbours Denmark, makes good use of the brass section.

Music/Lyrics: Carlos Canelhas/Carlos Canelhas

Conductor: Jorge Costa Pinto

Portugal tried something more up-tempo for their third entry. It moves along nicely, occasionally drifting into calm before changing up a gear again. 

Music/Lyrics: Udo Jürgen Bockelmann/ Udo Jürgen Bockelmann & Thomas Hörbiger

Conductor: Hans Hammerschmid

It was third time lucky for Udo and if he didn’t win with ‘Mercie Cherie’, he was never going to win. It’s very much in the piano ballad mould of his two previous entries and flows along fluently.

Music/Lyrics: Bengt-Arne Wallin/Björn Lindroth

Conductor: Gert Ove Andersson

Another future presenter, Lill teamed up with Svante to give an engaging and entertaining performance of this cheerful song.

Music/Lyrics: Manuel Alejandro/Manuel Alejandro

Conductor: Rafael da Ibarbia

Raphael made his way through his dramatic song with a suitably dramatic performance.

Switzerland - Madeleine Pascal - Ne Vois-tu Pas? (French)

Music/Lyrics: Pierre Brenner/Roland Schweizer

Conductor: Jean Roderes

Switzerland entered a steady ballad which, while being nice enough, doesn’t make you want to turn up the volume.

Music/Lyrics: Gérard Bourgeois/Jean-Max Rivière

Conductor: Alan Goraguer

At just under two minutes, this is the shortest song in the contest. Like Luxembourg, it’s a mid-tempo ballad but with a little less drama.

Music/Lyrics: Domenico Modugno/Domenico Modugno

Conductor: Angelo Giacomazzi

Having achieved a worldwide hit with his Eurovision entry eight years earlier, Domenico joined the ‘nul points’ club this time. As this song won Sanremo, it is a sharp reminder of how national and international tastes can vary.

Music/Lyrics: Claude Carrère/Jacques Plante

Conductor: Franck Pourcel

The title is repeated a lot, and I mean a lot! That aside, it’s a fairly gentle, inoffensive song which neither makes you want to turn off, or be in a hurry to listen to again.

The Netherlands - Milly Scott - Fernando En Philippo (Dutch)

Music/Lyrics: Kees de Bruyn/Gerrit den Braber

Conductor: Dolf van der Linden

A chirpy little number from the Dutch with a few silly sounds for good measure. Milly sings about Fernando and Philippo alternately.

Music/Lyrics: Rowland Soper/Rowland Soper

Conductor: Noel Kelehan

Definitely not a ‘rock’ song. Dickie sung a pleasant ballad, whose title gives the theme of the song away.

United Kingdom - Kenneth McKellar – A Man Without Love (English)

Music/Lyrics: Cyril Ornadel/Peter Callander

Conductor: Hary Rabinowitz

Given the popularity of British pop music at the time, many have wondered why a more famous singer wasn’t asked to represent the United Kingdom. That said, and despite the outfit, Kenneth gave a good performance of this sincere ballad and can count himself unlucky not to have finished higher up the scoreboard.

Music/Lyrics: Johnny Holshuyzen/Karel Prior

Conductor: Dolf van der Linden

The Dutch song starts off full of energy but as it progresses, it loses a bit of the initial impact.

Music/Lyrics: Peter Lee-Sterling/Phil Peters

Conductor: Eric Robinson

After moving away slightly in the previous two years from contemporary music, the United Kingdom sent a 1960’s pop song.

Spain - Conchita Bautista - Qué Bueno, Qué Bueno (Spanish)

Music/Lyrics: Antonio Figueroa Egea/ Antonio Figueroa Egea

Conductor: Adolfo Ventas Rodriguez

A touch of the bull-fight his year for Spain. It gave a contest debut to that most Spanish of instruments, the castanets.

Music/Lyrics: Joe Harrigan and George Prendergast/Teresa Conlon

Conductor: Gianni Ferrio

Ireland’s debut was an inoffensive ballad, starting as they mean to go on perhaps.

Germany - Ulla Wiesner - Paradies, Wo Bist Du? (German)

Music/Lyrics: Barbara Kist and Hans Blüm/Barbara Kist and Hans Blüm

Conductor: Alfred Hause

The title, translated as Paradise Where Are You?, might lead you to expect something a little more solemn. The song has a 60’s movie feel to it.

Austria - Udo Jürgens - Sag Ihr, Ich Lass' Sie Grüßen (German)

Music/Lyrics: Udo Jürgens/Frank Bohlen

Conductor: Gianni Ferio

Udo returned for his second year in succession with another emotional, piano based ballad. The strings were used well in the arrangement and Udo deserved to be even higher than 4th.

Music/Lyrics: Jolly Kramer-Johansen/Jolly Kramer-Johansen

Conductor: Øivind Bergh

Kirsti sings with a smile on her face while the song has a wintery, perhaps even a Christmas feel to it.

Music/Lyrics: Jef van den Berg/Jaak Dreesen

Conductor: Gaston Nyuts

As the year ended in an odd number, it was the turn of Flemish to be the language of the Belgian song. The arrangement improves the song no end.

Music/Lyrics: Raymond Bernard/Jacques Mareuil

Conductor: Raymond Bernard

Monaco chose a soft ballad which is not a million miles away in style to Non Ho L’Eta. She even sings about being young, in the same way Gigliola had sung about being too young to fall in love.

Music/Lyrics: Dag Wiren/Alf Henriksson

Conductor: William Lind

Tenor Ingvar sings one of those songs whose title doesn’t appear in the song. It’s a pleasant ballad which Ingvar sang well sung and sensitively.

Music/Lyrics: Guy Mardel/ Françoise Dorin

Conductor: Franck Pourcel

The word jamais is sprinkled liberally throughout the song. The song moves along nicely and is not a typical French song.

Music/Lyrics: Carlos Nobrega e Sousa/ Jeronimo Bragança

Conductor: Fernando de Carvalho

Not put off after scoring zero at their first attempt, Portugal bravely returned with a dramatic ballad.

Italy – Bobby Solo – Se Piangi, Se Ridi (Italian)

Music/Lyrics: Satti Marchetti/ Giulio Rapetti

Conductor: Gianni Ferrio

The winner of the Sanremo festival again provided Italy with its Eurovision entry. Like a lot of Italian songs, it has aged well and could easily have brought Italy a second successive victory.  

Music/Lyrics: Jørgen Jersild/ Poul Henningsen

Conductor: Arne Lamberth

Quiet and understated are the words that spring to mind. It is a bit difficult to stay with the song until the end.

Music/Lyrics: Serge Gainsbourg/ Serge Gainsbourg

Conductor: Alain Goraguer

French rebel Serge Gainsbourg wrote this, Luxembourg’s second winner. In true Gainsbourg style, it was different to anything that had won the contest before and by far the most up tempo.

Music/Lyrics: Toivo Kärki/Reino Helismaa

Conductor: George de Godzinsky

The saxophone provides a bright, if slightly misleading opening. The jazz feel continues and the saxophone returns for the instrumental.

Music/Lyrics: Julijo Maric/ Zarko Roje

Conductor: Radivoj Spasic

Vice gives an emotive and sensitive performance of this strong ballad. Many would argue it deserved a lot better than twelfth.

Music/Lyrics: Bob Calfati/ Jean Charles

Conductor: Mario Robbiani

The cymbal is used quietly and constantly throughout the song, which is a lilting ballad.

Luxembourg - Hugues Aufray - Dès Que Le Printemps Revient (French)

Music/Lyrics: Hugues Aufray/Jacques Plante

Conductor:  Jacques Denjean

Although the song lasts for three minutes, by the end of the first minute, it has revealed everything it has to offer. Hugues sings a line or two, his backing singers repeat the last few words and then there is a bit of trumpet.

Music/Lyrics: Ted Powder/René de Vos

Conductor: Dolf van der Linden

The song starts off very promisingly but doesn’t quite deliver. A lively arrangement kept the orchestra fairly busy.

Music/Lyrics: Sigurd Jansen/Egil Hagen

Conductor: Karsten Andersen

Norway’s fifth entry is the first which could be described as up-tempo. It uses lots of brass which gives the song a big band atmosphere.

Music/Lyrics: Aksel van Rasmussen/Morgens Dam

Conductor: Kai Mortensen

The hosts went for two in a row with a song too dissimilar in construction to ‘Dansevise’. It moves along steadily with an arrangement mainly interspersed between the vocal lines. 

Music/Lyrics: Lasse Mårtenson/Sauvo Puhtila

Conductor: George de Godzinsky

From scoring zero the year before, Finland moved into the top half of the scoreboard with Lasse’s big band influenced song.

Music/Lyrics: Udo Jürgens/Udo Jürgens

Conductor: Johannes Fehring

It seems Austria suddenly wanted to win the contest. This beautiful piano based ballad is far superior to anything they had previously entered. Matt Monro reached number four in the UK with an English version of the song, ‘Walk Away’.

Music/Lyrics: André Popp/Pierre Cour

Conductor: Franck Pourcel

This is a simple, pleasant ballad sung with sensitivity by Rachel. The lyricist got a bit lazy, with a few da-da-da’s creeping in, but that doesn’t spoil the song too much.

Music/Lyrics: Tony Hatch/Tony Hatch

Conductor: Harry Rabinowitz

Crooner Matt had a bigger hit with an English version of Austria’s song than he did with this. ‘I Love the Little Things’ failed to chart. However, his voice is well suited to the style and the whole thing sounds quite cool.

Music/Lyrics: Rudi von der Dovenmühle/Niels Nobach

Conductor: Willy Berking

Germany had one of the most up-tempo songs in the 1964 contest. As with most German entries at that point in the history of the contest, like it or hate it, it stands out from the crowd.

Music/Lyrics: Francis Lai/Pierre Barouh

Conductor: Michel Colombier

With one exception, Monaco had so far put their faith into typical French ballads. This is possibly the best effort in their six attempts. The juries agreed.

Music/Lyrics: João Nobre/Francisco Nicholson and Rogério Braçinha

Conductor: Kai Mortensen

Portugal is one of the most unsuccessful countries in the contest, being the oldest participant never to have won. Their first entry sums up their history. It’s a beautiful song which deserved a lot better from the juries.

Music/Lyrics: Nicola Salerno/Mario Panzeri

Conductor: Gianfranco Monaldi

Sixteen year old Gigliola swept all before her, scoring more than double the points of the second place song. Some will argue her age won it; others will point to the commercial success of the song as proof that the song was stronger than its competitors.

Yugoslavia - Sabahudin Kurt - Zivot Je Sklopio Krug (Serbo-Croat)

Music/Lyrics: Srcan Matijevic/Stevan Raickovic

Conductor: Radivoj Spasic

Yugoslavia can count themselves unlucky not to have scored a single point. The song is an understated ballad which would certainly not make you want to switch off. The use of the alto-sax does spoil slightly the overall quality.

Switzerland - Anita Traversi - I Miei Pensieri (Italian)

Music/Lyrics: Giovanni Pelli/Sanzio Chiesa

Conductor: Fernando Paggi

While most of the countries upped their game in 1964, choosing songs which were more contemporary than in previous years, Switzerland continued where previous years had left off.

Belgium - Robert Cogoi - Près De Ma Rivière (French)

Music/Lyrics: Robert Cogoi/Robert Cogoi

Conductor: Henry Segers

Belgium chose a slow song whose pace remains more or less constant throughout, changing very briefly in the middle and towards the end.

Spain - Tim, Nelly and Tony – Caracola (Spanish)

Music/Lyrics: Fina de Calderón/Fina de Calderón

Conductor:  Rafael Ibarbia

While they might sound like children’s television presenters, the song would certainly not be used to entertain the kids, its serious Spanish fare. Tim and Tony are little more than backing singers.