Malta

Music/Lyrics: Alfredo Valbuena, Luis Miguelez/Luis Miguelez

Conductor: Javier Losada

Serafin gave the contest a melodic and solid opening. Everything was uncomplicated, from the tune to the presentation.

Music/Lyrics: Claude Barzotti/Anne-Marie Gaspard

Conductor: Frank Fievez

Sixteen year old Morgane arrived in Malmö fresh from her debut single topping the Belgian charts. Nous On Veut Des Violons was her second release and she performed with the shy charm that had won over the accredited journalists all week during rehearsals. Given the title, there are no surprises contained within the arrangement.

Music/Lyrics: Kobi Oshrat/Ehud Manor

Conductor: Kobi Oshrat

Dafna came through one of the highest quality national finals of the year. Her backing singers had problems in rehearsals with the positioning of their microphones, which were eventually hung around their necks. Ze Rak Sport is up-tempo and was suitable in what was an Olympic year.

Music/Lyrics: Aldogan Simsekyay/Aylin Ucanlar~

Conductor: Aydin Özari

It was a family affair for Turkey. The composer (who somewhat worryingly hit the very high note every time) and his sons made up Aylin’s backing group. The song is flavoured with Turkish and European influences and is a bit underwhelming.  

Music/Lyrics: Christos Lagos/Christos Lagos

Conductor: Haris Andreadis

Traditional Greek rhythms and melody made this a strong contender, as did Cleopatra’s performance. 

Music/Lyrics: Kali/Rémi Bellenchombre

Conductor: Magdi Vasco Noverraz

This is the first, and so far last, Eurovision song to be sung in Creole. France continued its recent trend of entering songs with music from specific parts of the world. The tactic had earned it two successive second places, but didn’t work this time.

Music/Lyrics: Niklas Strömstedt/Niklas Strömstedt

Conductor: Anders Berglund

The hometown favourite had a lovely ballad. However, while it moves along freely and unspectacularly, it lacked the impact to make it memorable in a field of 22 songs. 

Music/Lyrics: Dina/Rosa Lobato de Faria

Conductor: Carlos Alberto Moniz

Diminutive Dina was very lively and so she should have been. There are more fruits than a supermarket in her song, which is a cheerful clap-along full of bounce. 

Music/Lyrics: George Theophanous/George Theophanous

Conductor: George Theophanous

Written by Evridiki’s husband, Teriazoume is quietly powerful. The false endings keep the listener guessing and Evridiki was seductive in her performance.

Music/Lyrics: Georgina Abela/Raymond Mahoney

Conductor: Paul Abela

Mary’s big ballad came across very well in the Isstadion, but unfortunately, some of the grandness was lost through the camera lens. Mary had the voice necessary to give the vocal performance the song needed to be a contender.

Music/Lyrics: Fredrik Karlsson, Grétar Örvarsson/Stefán Hilmarsson

Conductor: Nigel Wright

Heart 2 Heart was essentially Stjórnin, the group that represented Iceland in 1990, with a few more members. The song was a crowd pleaser and a mood lifter. 

Music/Lyrics: Pave/Heikki Haarma

Conductor: Olli Ahvenlahti

Pave seemed to have aspirations to be a rocker, but rock songs don’t have lyrics like Yamma Yamma does. The whole chorus is that one word repeated several times 

Music/Lyrics: Gordon Dent/Gordon Dent

Conductor: Roby Seidel

Daisy was only in the contest because the song that won the Swiss final was disqualified. They should have stuck with the other song! Mister Music Man is really just The Stripper with lyrics. 

Music/Lyrics: Jang Linster, Ab van Goor/Jang Linster, Ab van Goor

Conductor: Christian Jacob

Sou Fräi is only the second cong to represent Luxembourg is Luxembourgish instead of French. Her outfit looked not so much spray painted as splash painted. The song is a nice mid-tempo number which you will hum along to, but won’t make you dash for the ‘repeat’ button.

Music/Lyrics: Dieter Bohlen/Joachim Horn-Bernges

Conductor: Leon Ives

A big personality with a big voice; it’s one of Austria’s best, but perhaps it’s position in the running order, plonked immediately before the eventual top two, did it no favours. Tony’s voice sounded slightly strained in some sections of his epic ballad.

Music/Lyrics: Paul Davies, Tony Ryan, Victor Stratton/Paul Davies, Tony Ryan, Victor Stratton

Conductor: Ronnie Hazlehurst

Michael earned every penny of the large fee he was reported as having been paid by the BBC. His voice, charismatic stage presence and dynamic performance lifted One Step Out Of Time beyond where this up-tempo song would otherwise have finished. 

Music/Lyrics: Johnny Logan/Johnny Logan

Conductor: Noel Kelehan

Johnny Logan completed his hat-trick of victories with another ballad. Linda was an experienced singer and paced herself to be at her peak on the big night. 

Music/Lyrics: Carsten Warming/Carsten Warming

Conductor: Henrik Krogsgaard

This is not a lovey-dovey duet expressing eternal love. It’s a couple trying to sort out their relationship but, being Danish, it’s done in a jolly way.

Music/Lyrics: Giuseppe Dati/Giancarlo Bigazzi

Conductor: Marco Falagiani

Having finished second in the Sanremo festival, Mimì, as she was affectionately known, was asked to perform in the Eurovision Song Contest for the second time.  This is a true Italian song, full of sincerity, emotion, intensity, with a hint of desperation. 

Music/Lyrics: Rade Radivojevic/Gale Jankovic

Conductor: Anders Berglund

This proved to be Yugoslavia’s last entry. In fact, the country was already started to disintegrate.  It went out in style with a song that starts softly and builds verse by verse to end the song and Yugoslavia’s participation on a high musically, if not high on the scoreboard. 

Music/Lyrics: Robert Morley/Eva Jansen

Conductor: Rolf Lôvland

Perky Merethe won many friends with her jolly personality while she was in Malmö. She even found time to laugh while she performed her anthem to save the planet, a theme that would crop up with boring regularity in years to come. 

Music/Lyrics: Ralph Siegel/Bernd Meinunger

Conductor: Norbert Daum

The same name, but a very different line up to the Wind of the 1985 and 1987 contests. The subject matter is the same, ’peace for all’, but the result was more deserved than the previous two. 

Music/Lyrics: Edwin Schimscheimer/Edwin Schimscheimer

Conductor: Harry van Hoof

The accordion made a rare appearance. Wijs Me De Weg tries to be a floor filler of a dance tune, but doesn’t quite achieve it. That said, it’s still a worthy tune and may have benefited from using a backing track rather than the orchestra. 

Yugoslavia - Baby Doll - Brazil (Serbo-Croat)

Music/Lyrics: Zoran Vracevic/Zoran Vracevic

Conductor: Slobodan Markovic

Getting things going with some eccentricity was the weird and wacky Baby Doll. She was certainly entertaining and the song, if you can look behind the image, is actually very good.

Iceland - Stefán and Eyfi - Nina (Icelandic)

Music/Lyrics: Eyjóolfur Kristjánsson/Eyjóolfur Kristjánsson

Conductor: Jorn Olafsson

Eyfi was adorned with a bandana to hide his receding hairline. It’s less quirky than Stefán’s song from the 1988 contest, but the regular ballad is an improvement and considerably easier on the ear.

Malta - Paul Giordimaina and Georgina - Could It Be (English)

Music/Lyrics: Paul Abela/Raymond Mahoney

Conductor: Paul Abela

This proved to be a very successful return for Malta. The arrangement was fuller than the preview video and this gave the ballad more substance.

Greece - Sofia Vossou - I Anixi (Greek)

Music/Lyrics: Andreas Mikroutsikos/Andreas Mikroutsikos

Conductor: Haris Andreasdis

Pre-contest, the Greek song was seen as a possible winner. All dreams were shattered by the sax solo, which failed to hit almost any note properly. Sofia pretended not to notice, but the juries definitely did. A real shame as the song deserves to be remembered more fondly. 

Switzerland - Sandra Simò - Canzone Per Te (Italian)

Music/Lyrics: Renato Mascetti/Renato Mascetti

Conductor: Flaviano Cuffari

The Swiss chose a song in Italian to represent them in Rome. It’s a ballad that builds well and surprised a few when finishing fifth.

Austria - Thomas Forstner - Venedig Im Regen (German)

Music/Lyrics: Robby Musenbichler, Hunbert Moser/Wolfgang Eltner

Conductor: Richard Österreicher

Things got off to a sartorially bad start when Thomas appeared on stage in a purple suit! As with his 1989 song, it tries to be an epic, unlike Nur Ein Lied, it doesn’t quite do it.

Luxembourg - Sarah Bray - Un Baiser Volé (French)

Music/Lyrics: Patrick Hippert/Mick Wersant, Linda Lecomte

Conductor: Francis Goya

After the saxophonist had ruined any chance of winning the contest, it was the turn of the guitarist to play his part. In fairness, one of the strings broke, which wasn’t his fault. Sarah remained unfazed and delivered her ballad well

Sweden - Carola - Fångad Av En Stormvind (Swedish)

Music/Lyrics: Stefan Berg/Stefan Berg

Conductor: Anders Berglund

Carola was the bookies favourite and she didn’t disappoint. She used her experience to good effect and had as much bounce as her winning song. Like it or hate it, it stays in your head.

France - Amina - C'est Le Dernier Qui A Parlé Qui A Raison (French)

Music/Lyrics: Wasis Diop/Amina Annabi

Conductor: Jérome Pillement

Having been influenced by African rhythms the year before, the French chose an Arabic flavoured song. The result was the same, second place, although it took the tie-break rule to separate Amina from Carola. While it might be more musically credible than the Swedish song, it’s not nearly as nice to listen to and that is what counts. Unlucky not to win? No, lucky to be second.

Turkey - Izel Çeliköz, Rayhan Soykarçi and Can Ugurluér - Iki Dakika (Turkish)

Music/Lyrics: Sevket Ugurluer/Aysel Gurel

Conductor: Turan Yukseler

This song moves along at an almost frantic speed, but if you can keep up, it’s good for a toe-tap. The trio gave it their all and were constantly smiling.  

Ireland - Kim Jackson - Could It Be That I'm In Love (English)

Music/Lyrics: Liam Reilly/Liam Reilly

Conductor: Noel Kelehan

Kim had been one of Liam’s backing singers in Zagreb the year before. She wasn’t quite up to the task of of giving his ballad the necessary boost it needed and the result was underwhelming. 

Portugal - Dulce - Lusitana Paixão (Portuguese)

Music/Lyrics: Fred Micaelo, Jorge Quintela/Fred Micaelo, Jorge Quintela

Conductor: Fernando Correia-Martins

Finally Portugal got close to achieving a deserved high position on the scoreboard. Dulce oozed class, as did her song. It’s not as melancholy as the traditional Fado style it is about, but it is could only be Portuguese. 

Denmark - Anders Frandsen - Lige Der Hvor Hjertet Slår (Danish)

Music/Lyrics: Michael Elo/Michael Elo

Conductor: Henrik Krogsgaard 

Denmark’s song is an understated ballad. If you want to knock it, you should first listen to the song that it beat into second place in the Danish final, and be grateful it exists.  

Norway - Just 4 Fun - Mrs. Thompson (Norwegian)

Music/Lyrics: P.G. Roness, Dag Kolsrud/P.G. Roness, Kaare Skevik

Conductor: Pete Knutsen

Without knowing what NRK (the Norwegian broadcaster) had rejected, it seems they made a good choice of song. Mrs Thompson is catchy yet musically credible, with an easy to remember refrain. 

Israel - Duo Datz - Kan (Hebrew)

Music/Lyrics: Uzi Chitman/Uzi Chitman

Conductor: Kobi Oshrat

Husband and wife duo Orna and Moshe Datz had more chemistry than a high street full of pharmacies. The song is a wonderful Israeli sing-along and very memorable. It was always going to be in contention.

Finland - Kaija - Hullu Yö (Finnish)

Music/Lyrics: Ile Kallio/Jukka Välimaa

Conductor: Olli Ahvenlahti

Once again, the Finns can count themselves unlucky to score so few points. Hullu Yö is a rock song with a restrained power which Kaija delivered with the required level of feeling.

Germany - Atlantis 2000 - Dieser Traum Darf Niemals Sterben (German)

Music/Lyrics: Alfons Weindorf/Helmut Frey

Conductor: Hermann Weindorf

Yet again, the Germans had an anthemic song urging peace and love to everyone. Following the fall of the Berlin wall, the group even included an East German woman for good measure.  

Belgium - Clouseau - Geef Het Op (Flemish)

Music/Lyrics: Kris Wauters, Koen Wauters, Bob Savenburg, Jan Leyers/Kris Wauters, Koen Wauters, Bob Savenburg, Jan Leyers

Conductor: Roland Verlooven

Clouseau were the biggest name in Belgian music at the time they tried to expand their success to the rest of Europe with an uplifting, brassy pop song which deserved better. The performance was very professional.  

Spain - Sergio Dalma - Bailar Pegados (Spanish)

Music/Lyrics: Julio Seijas/Luis Escolar

Conductor: Eduardo Leiva

Host Toto Cotugno nicknamed Sergio ‘little Toto’. Bailar Pegados was one of the favourites going into the contest and rightly so. It’s a classic Spanish ballad which, if given an additional chorus, could have done better. At two minutes 32 seconds, it ends rather unexpectedly and quickly. 

United Kingdom - Samantha Janus - A Message To Your Heart (English)

Music/Lyrics: Paul Curtis/Paul Curtis

Conductor: Ronnie Hazlehurst

The United Kingdom delegation arrived in Rome with hopes high. However, the rock element of the song seemed to have been left behind in London. This, combined with inappropriate outfits (including the backing singers) and Samantha’s nerves on the night combined to scupper any hope of winning. Samantha’s engagement to her Italian boyfriend during the week (an engagement that was soon broken off) may have proved a distraction. A great, great shame as the studio version of the song demonstrates how good it really sounds and it would have been a worthy winner.

Cyprus - Elena Patroclou - SOS (Greek)

Music/Lyrics: Kypros Charalambous/Andrteas Christou

Conductor: Alexandro Kirou-Zografou

This song is weaker than a shandy without the lager. Songwriters ego overcame common sense and Kypros appeared on stage with his bass guitar when there was absolutely no need for him to be there. The presentation needed only Elena and no-one else to be on the stage.

Italy - Peppino di Capri - Comme E' Ddoce 'o Mare (Italian)

Music/Lyrics: Marcello Marrocchi/Giampiero Artegiani

Conductor: Bruno Canfora

This song was originally intended for the Sanremo festival, but RAI instead nicked it to represent Italy in the Eurovision. It’s in Peppino’s native Neapolitan dialect, which adds a greater flavour to the Neapolitan style of the song.