Euro-Vision
Encyclopedia
"Euro-Vision" was the Belgian
entry in the Eurovision Song Contest 1980
, performed in French by Telex
.
The song was performed nineteenth on the night, following Spain
's Trigo Limpio
with "Quédate esta noche
". At the close of voting, it had received 14 points, placing 17th in a field of 19. The band were moderately pleased with the outcome of the Contest, but for a somewhat unusual reason. At the time lead singer Marc Moulin
was quoted as saying: "We had hoped to finish last, but Portugal decided otherwise. We got ten points from them and finished on the 19th (sic!) spot". In hindsight their participation in the Contest however seems to have served its marketing purposes; some thirty years on "Euro-Vision" still remains one of the band's best-known songs, both in Belgium and internationally.
The song has in fact become known as one of the landmarks of Eurovision, as it was the first entry ever to mention the Contest by name as part of what is generally agreed to have been a send-up of the whole event (previous entries such as Schmetterlinge's "Boom Boom Boomerang
" had parodied the Contest without actually naming it). Further, in contrast to the upbeat and generally living entries submitted from other entrants, Telex performed from behind synthesisers and in a robotic - somewhat Kraftwerk
-esque - manner.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, the song remains controversial among fans. One school of thought is that, much as in the musical mainstream, robotic techno beats were still ahead of their time at the Contest. Another school of thought is that the time to send the entire institution up has still not arrived.
Telex released the song in French and English language versions and the band subsequently re-recorded the track for their first 'greatest hits' compilation More than Distance, also released in 1980, then retitled "Neurovision". Furthermore, in 1993 Telex released their first CD box set, once again with a reference to their Eurovision participation back in 1980; the album was entitled Belgium...One Point.
It was succeeded as Belgian representative
in the 1981 Contest
by Emly Starr
singing "Samson
".
A similarly controversial song, sending up the process of Eurovision, was entered by Lithuania
in 2006
, when LT United
performed "We Are The Winners
", which repeatedly used the lyrics "We are the winners, of Eurovision ... So you've got to vote, vote, vote, vote, vote for the winners". This song joined an exclusive group of Eurovision songs to be booed by the live audience, but managed to reach 6th place in the final results.
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
entry in the Eurovision Song Contest 1980
Eurovision Song Contest 1980
The Eurovision Song Contest 1980 was the 25th Eurovision Song Contest and was held on 19 April 1980 in The Hague. The presenter was Marlous Fluitsma, although each song was introduced by a presenter from the nation represented...
, performed in French by Telex
Telex (band)
The Belgian synth-pop group Telex was formed in 1978 by Marc Moulin, Dan Lacksman, and Michel Moers, with the intention of "Making something really European, different from rock, without guitar — and the idea was electronic music." Mixing the aesthetics of disco, punk and experimental electronic...
.
The song was performed nineteenth on the night, following Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
's Trigo Limpio
Trigo Limpio
Trigo Limpio were a spanish musical trio very popular in Spain in the 1970s and 1980s. It was formed by Amaya Saizar, Iñaki de Pablo and Luis Carlos Gil....
with "Quédate esta noche
Quédate esta noche
"Quédate esta noche" was the Spanish entry in the Eurovision Song Contest 1980, performed in Spanish by Trigo Limpio....
". At the close of voting, it had received 14 points, placing 17th in a field of 19. The band were moderately pleased with the outcome of the Contest, but for a somewhat unusual reason. At the time lead singer Marc Moulin
Marc Moulin
Marc Moulin was a Belgian musician and journalist . He was a member of the avant-rock band Aksak Maboul in 1977 and formed the pop group Telex in 1978...
was quoted as saying: "We had hoped to finish last, but Portugal decided otherwise. We got ten points from them and finished on the 19th (sic!) spot". In hindsight their participation in the Contest however seems to have served its marketing purposes; some thirty years on "Euro-Vision" still remains one of the band's best-known songs, both in Belgium and internationally.
The song has in fact become known as one of the landmarks of Eurovision, as it was the first entry ever to mention the Contest by name as part of what is generally agreed to have been a send-up of the whole event (previous entries such as Schmetterlinge's "Boom Boom Boomerang
Boom Boom Boomerang
"Boom Boom Boomerang" was the Austrian representative in the Eurovision Song Contest 1977, performed in German by Schmetterlinge....
" had parodied the Contest without actually naming it). Further, in contrast to the upbeat and generally living entries submitted from other entrants, Telex performed from behind synthesisers and in a robotic - somewhat Kraftwerk
Kraftwerk
Kraftwerk is an influential electronic music band from Düsseldorf, Germany. The group was formed by Ralf Hütter and Florian Schneider in 1970, and was fronted by them until Schneider's departure in 2008...
-esque - manner.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, the song remains controversial among fans. One school of thought is that, much as in the musical mainstream, robotic techno beats were still ahead of their time at the Contest. Another school of thought is that the time to send the entire institution up has still not arrived.
Telex released the song in French and English language versions and the band subsequently re-recorded the track for their first 'greatest hits' compilation More than Distance, also released in 1980, then retitled "Neurovision". Furthermore, in 1993 Telex released their first CD box set, once again with a reference to their Eurovision participation back in 1980; the album was entitled Belgium...One Point.
It was succeeded as Belgian representative
Belgium in the Eurovision Song Contest
Belgium is a founding member of the Eurovision Song Contest. Since 1956, the country has participated 52 times, only being absent three times in total: in 1994, 1997 and 2001, due to low scores in the previous contests that relegated Belgium from the contest.-History of Belgium in the Eurovision...
in the 1981 Contest
Eurovision Song Contest 1981
The Eurovision Song Contest 1981 was the 26th Eurovision Song Contest and was held on 4 April 1981 at the Simmonscourt Pavilion of the Royal Dublin Society in Dublin. The presenter was Doireann Ní Bhriain...
by Emly Starr
Emly Starr
Emly Starr is a Belgian singer in the Dutch language. She also appeared in the documentary film Santiago Lovers by Romano Ferrari....
singing "Samson
Samson (song)
"Samson" was the Belgian entry in the Eurovision Song Contest 1981, performed in Dutch by Emly Starr.The song was performed sixteenth on the night, following Portugal's Carlos Paião with "Playback" and preceding Greece's Yiannis Dimitras with "Feggari Kalokerino"...
".
A similarly controversial song, sending up the process of Eurovision, was entered by Lithuania
Lithuania
Lithuania , officially the Republic of Lithuania is a country in Northern Europe, the biggest of the three Baltic states. It is situated along the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea, whereby to the west lie Sweden and Denmark...
in 2006
Eurovision Song Contest 2006
The Eurovision Song Contest 2006 was the 51st Eurovision Song Contest, held at the Olympic Indoor Hall in Athens, Greece on 18 May and 20 May 2006 . The hosting national broadcaster of the contest was Ellinikí Radiofonía Tileórasi . The Finnish band Lordi won the contest with the song "Hard Rock...
, when LT United
LT United
LT United is a six-piece alternative-pop musical group created in 2006 for the sole purpose of representing Lithuania in the Eurovision Song Contest 2006...
performed "We Are The Winners
We Are the Winners
"We Are the Winners" was the 2006 entry into the Eurovision Song Contest for Lithuania, sung by Lithuanian all-star group LT United.The song, thematically reminiscent of Queen's "We Are the Champions", is a cheery tongue-in-cheek celebration of their supposedly inevitable victory at the Eurovision...
", which repeatedly used the lyrics "We are the winners, of Eurovision ... So you've got to vote, vote, vote, vote, vote for the winners". This song joined an exclusive group of Eurovision songs to be booed by the live audience, but managed to reach 6th place in the final results.