Everyway That I Can
Encyclopedia
"Everyway That I Can" is the winning song of the 2003 Eurovision Song Contest
sung in English by Sertab Erener
.
in early 2003 and produced and arranged by Ozan Çolakoğlu
, famous for his works with pop idol Tarkan. Having previously selected Erener to represent the nation, Turkish broadcaster TRT chose her song to represent Turkey in the 2003 Eurovision Song Contest
in Riga
. Initially "Everyway That I Can" caused controversy with the Turkish public, considered too racy by some and too pop oriented by others. Criticism also arose by Sertab's decision to perform the song in English instead of in Turkish. The song, which combines up-tempo strings with Turkish traditional instruments, was not considered a favourite to win - in fact Russian duet t.A.T.u.
were the hottest favourites since Cliff Richard
's entrant in 1968, and Spain was second.
Turkey performed fourth on the night in May and received an explosive reception afterwards. The song had been re-written slightly to include some high notes and a belly dancing routine was added. Erener sang counter to the rhythm in places and the backing vocals were synthesised with Turkish stringed instruments. The voting on the night saw Russia, Turkey and Belgium
switch places at the top a number of times before Slovenia
eventually gave Turkey the victory by just two points.
, Greece
and Eastern Europe, holding the #1 position in Sweden
for three weeks, breaking the top ten in Belgium
, The Netherlands, Spain
and Austria
and charting in the top twenty in Germany
and Switzerland
. It received the platinum certification in Greece
and gold in Sweden
.
The video of the release sees Erener in an Ottoman
style castle, its rose gardens, imperial harem
(living quarters) and Turkish Bath (hamam). Rose
s carry a major symbolism throughout the video. Erener is dressed in traditional Turkish
styles, and Turkish female dancers are also present.
Remixes
of the song were also released, including a Turkish
version, a club remix, and a European dance remix. A live version was brought out and also included on the original single CD, along with two Galleon club remixes. The track was included on the official Eurovision 2003 CD as the original version, however.
Erener performed the single as a medley at the 2004 final in Istanbul
using male dancers but the same choreography, and included it in her first English album No Boundaries
. It was also entered at the 50th Anniversary Congratulations (Eurovision)
as one of the fourteen best ever Eurovision entrants, and finished ninth, beating popular artists such as Celine Dion
's "Ne partez pas sans moi
", Johnny Logan
and Dana International
in the process. Erener herself appeared onstage to perform the final verse of the song on the night.
In 2006 it was entered in Best of Eurovision
, a German version of the above, and beat off stiff competition from ABBA
's Waterloo and eleven others to finish second. Ruslana
's Wild Dances, the Ukrainian 2004 winning entry, was first.
The song was also included in a compilation of Sertab Erener's national and international hits released in 2007.
Eurovision Song Contest 2003
The Eurovision Song Contest 2003 was the forty-eighth Eurovision Song Contest, held at the Skonto Hall in Riga, Latvia on 24 May 2003. The hosts were Marie N and Renārs Kaupers. Sertab Erener, the Turkish entrant, won the contest with "Everyway That I Can", scoring 167 points. The winning...
sung in English by Sertab Erener
Sertab Erener
Sertab Erener is a Turkish pop music singer and also a cross-over soprano with a vocal range that extends to high F. She is one of the most successful female Turkish pop singers in her homeland, and is considered one of the divas of Turkish pop music...
.
Everyway That I Can
"Everyway That I Can" was written by Demir DemirkanDemir Demirkan
Demir Demirkan is a Turkish musician, Eurovision Song Contest winning composer, formerly guitarist for thrash metal band Mezarkabul. Demir Demirkan started his music life when he was 13 and played guitar with various groups in college...
in early 2003 and produced and arranged by Ozan Çolakoğlu
Ozan Çolakoglu
Ozan Çolakoğlu is a Turkish composer, songwriter and music producer; famous for his work with pop idol Tarkan and his various film scores. He co-founded the production company Sarı Ev , but left it in 2010 to work for dB Müzik....
, famous for his works with pop idol Tarkan. Having previously selected Erener to represent the nation, Turkish broadcaster TRT chose her song to represent Turkey in the 2003 Eurovision Song Contest
Eurovision Song Contest
The Eurovision Song Contest is an annual competition held among active member countries of the European Broadcasting Union .Each member country submits a song to be performed on live television and then casts votes for the other countries' songs to determine the most popular song in the competition...
in Riga
Riga
Riga is the capital and largest city of Latvia. With 702,891 inhabitants Riga is the largest city of the Baltic states, one of the largest cities in Northern Europe and home to more than one third of Latvia's population. The city is an important seaport and a major industrial, commercial,...
. Initially "Everyway That I Can" caused controversy with the Turkish public, considered too racy by some and too pop oriented by others. Criticism also arose by Sertab's decision to perform the song in English instead of in Turkish. The song, which combines up-tempo strings with Turkish traditional instruments, was not considered a favourite to win - in fact Russian duet t.A.T.u.
T.A.T.u.
t.A.T.u. was a duo formed in Moscow, Russia in 1999 by Ivan Shapovalov. The group consisted of Lena Katina and Yulia Volkova.Their debut single "Ya Soshla S Uma" was released in December 2000. The single had a huge success in Russia and Eastern Europe...
were the hottest favourites since Cliff Richard
Cliff Richard
Sir Cliff Richard, OBE is a British pop singer, musician, performer, actor, and philanthropist who has sold over an estimated 250 million records worldwide....
's entrant in 1968, and Spain was second.
Turkey performed fourth on the night in May and received an explosive reception afterwards. The song had been re-written slightly to include some high notes and a belly dancing routine was added. Erener sang counter to the rhythm in places and the backing vocals were synthesised with Turkish stringed instruments. The voting on the night saw Russia, Turkey and Belgium
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...
switch places at the top a number of times before Slovenia
Slovenia
Slovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of...
eventually gave Turkey the victory by just two points.
Eurovision Victory and Worldwide Success
The track was released all over Europe after the win, shooting to the top of the charts in TurkeyTurkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
, Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
and Eastern Europe, holding the #1 position in Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
for three weeks, breaking the top ten in Belgium
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...
, The Netherlands, 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...
and Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
and charting in the top twenty in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
and Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
. It received the platinum certification in Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
and gold in Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
.
The video of the release sees Erener in an Ottoman
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
style castle, its rose gardens, imperial harem
Imperial Harem
The Imperial Harem of the Ottoman Empire was one of the most important elements of the Ottoman court. It was known in the West as "the Seraglio", an Italian term.- Harem quarters:...
(living quarters) and Turkish Bath (hamam). Rose
Rose
A rose is a woody perennial of the genus Rosa, within the family Rosaceae. There are over 100 species. They form a group of erect shrubs, and climbing or trailing plants, with stems that are often armed with sharp prickles. Flowers are large and showy, in colours ranging from white through yellows...
s carry a major symbolism throughout the video. Erener is dressed in traditional Turkish
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
styles, and Turkish female dancers are also present.
Remixes
RemixeS
RemixeS is a compilation of French singer Mylène Farmer's singles by various famous DJ's, including JXL, Felix Da Housecat and Paul Oakenfold.-Brackground, writing and release:...
of the song were also released, including a Turkish
Turkish language
Turkish is a language spoken as a native language by over 83 million people worldwide, making it the most commonly spoken of the Turkic languages. Its speakers are located predominantly in Turkey and Northern Cyprus with smaller groups in Iraq, Greece, Bulgaria, the Republic of Macedonia, Kosovo,...
version, a club remix, and a European dance remix. A live version was brought out and also included on the original single CD, along with two Galleon club remixes. The track was included on the official Eurovision 2003 CD as the original version, however.
After Eurovision
Erener performed the single as a medley at the 2004 final in Istanbul
Istanbul
Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...
using male dancers but the same choreography, and included it in her first English album No Boundaries
No Boundaries (Sertab Erener album)
No Boundaries is the seventh album from Turkish popstar Sertab Erener. It has been credited with introducing her music to mainland Europe upon its release in 2004, having previously been a huge domestic success in her native country...
. It was also entered at the 50th Anniversary Congratulations (Eurovision)
Congratulations (Eurovision)
Congratulations: 50 Years of the Eurovision Song Contest was a television programme organised by the European Broadcasting Union to commemorate the Eurovision Song Contest's fiftieth anniversary and to determine the Contest's most popular entrant of its fifty years. It took place at Forum,...
as one of the fourteen best ever Eurovision entrants, and finished ninth, beating popular artists such as Celine Dion
Celine Dion
Céline Marie Claudette Dion, , , is a Canadian singer. Born to a large family from Charlemagne, Quebec, Dion emerged as a teen star in the French-speaking world after her manager and future husband René Angélil mortgaged his home to finance her first record...
's "Ne partez pas sans moi
Ne Partez Pas Sans Moi
"Ne partez pas sans moi" is the Swiss winning entry in the Eurovision Song Contest 1988, performed by Céline Dion. It was released as a single in Europe on May 6, 1988...
", Johnny Logan
Johnny Logan (singer)
Johnny Logan , is an Australian-born Irish singer and composer. He is regarded as "Mister Eurovision", having participated in the Eurovision Song Contest many times since the 1970s, and, since 1992, has been the most successful artist in Eurovision history.Logan has won the international contest on...
and Dana International
Dana International
Sharon Cohen , professionally known as Dana International is an Israeli pop singer of Yemenite Jewish ancestry. She has released eight albums and three additional compilation albums, positioning herself as one of Israel's most successful musical acts ever...
in the process. Erener herself appeared onstage to perform the final verse of the song on the night.
In 2006 it was entered in Best of Eurovision
Best of Eurovision
The Best of Eurovision was a unique event, held in Hamburg, Germany on May 20, 2006. Its aim was to determine the best song from the Eurovision Song Contest, by means of an opinion poll....
, a German version of the above, and beat off stiff competition from ABBA
ABBA
ABBA was a Swedish pop group formed in Stockholm in 1970 which consisted of Anni-Frid Lyngstad, Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson and Agnetha Fältskog...
's Waterloo and eleven others to finish second. Ruslana
Ruslana
Ruslana Stepanivna Lyzhychko is a World Music Award winning and MTV Europe Music Award nominated artist, and the winner of the Eurovision Song Contest 2004....
's Wild Dances, the Ukrainian 2004 winning entry, was first.
The song was also included in a compilation of Sertab Erener's national and international hits released in 2007.
Charts
| Chart (2003) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Austrian Singles Chart | 10 |
| Belgium (Flanders) Singles Chart Ultratop Ultratop is an organization which generates and publishes the official record charts in Belgium, and it is also the name of most of those charts... |
6 |
| Belgium (Wallonia) Singles Chart Ultratop Ultratop is an organization which generates and publishes the official record charts in Belgium, and it is also the name of most of those charts... |
30 |
| Dutch Singles Chart | 4 |
| German Singles Chart | 12 |
| Greek top 50 singles Chart Greece Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe.... |
1 |
| Hungarian Airplay Chart Mahasz Mahasz is the Hungarian music industry association, founded in 1992. Mahasz hands out the Hungarian Music Awards and maintains the music charts for Hungary.... |
21 |
| Irish Singles Chart Irish Singles Chart The Irish Singles Chart is Ireland's music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association and compiled on behalf of the IRMA by Chart-Track. Chart rankings are based on sales, which are compiled through over-the-counter retail data captured... |
35 |
| Spanish Singles Chart | 5 |
| Swedish Singles Chart | 1 |
| Swiss Singles Chart | 17 |
| UK Singles Chart UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ... |
72 |