Fredi (singer)
Encyclopedia
Fredi, born as Matti Kalevi Siitonen (23 July 1942 in Mikkeli
, Finland
) is a Finnish
comedic actor and singer/songwriter. Domestically he is best known as a member of the comedic variety ensemble Kivikasvot. Internationally he represented his country at the Eurovision Song Contest 1967
in Vienna
, Austria
with the song "Varjoon - suojaan
" ("To the Shadow – To the Safe"), which received three points and finished 12th of 17 entries. He is also the husband of the former mayor of Helsinki
, Marja-Riitta Siitonen.
Fredi returned to Eurovision in 1976 in The Hague
, Netherlands
, with the group Fredi & The Friends. Their song "Pump-Pump
" received 44 points, finishing 11th out of 18. Coincidentally, both contests in which Fredi took part were won by the United Kingdom representatives - Sandie Shaw
in 1967 and Brotherhood of Man
in 1976.
In Finland Fredi has had more than 20 Top-10 Hit singles, and achieved Diamond status with many studio albums like Avaa sydämesi mulle (Open Your Heart to Me) and Rakkauslauluja (Lovesongs). In 1968, he did a Finnish cover of Tom Jones's "Delilah", and 5 years later, did a cover of David Bowie's "Starman". In 1978 he released one of his most critically acclaimed albums Tänään Fredi (Today Fredi). It contained hit singles "Syntinen yö" ("Night of Sin"), "Elää mä sain" ("Staying Alive
") a Finnish version of the Bee Gees
song and Space
cover "Magic Fly" with the Finnish title "Se outoa on" ("It's Weird"). The album reached over Gold status peaking # 5 in the Finnish Albums Chart. Fredi has over 177,000 certified records, which places him among the 100 best-selling music artists in Finland.
Mikkeli
Mikkeli is a town and municipality in Finland. It is located in what used to be the province of Eastern Finland and is part of the Southern Savonia region. The municipality has a population of and covers an area of of which is water...
, Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
) is a Finnish
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
comedic actor and singer/songwriter. Domestically he is best known as a member of the comedic variety ensemble Kivikasvot. Internationally he represented his country at the Eurovision Song Contest 1967
Eurovision Song Contest 1967
The Eurovision Song Contest 1967 was the twelfth Eurovision Song Contest. The presenter became confused whilst the voting was taking place, and declared the United Kingdom's entry to be the winner before the last country, Ireland, had announced its votes...
in Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
, 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...
with the song "Varjoon - suojaan
Varjoon - Suojaan
"Varjoon - suojaan" was the Finnish entry in the Eurovision Song Contest 1967, performed in Finnish by Fredi.The song was performed eighth on the night, following Sweden's Östen Warnerbring with "Som en dröm" and preceding Germany's Inge Brück with "Anouschka"...
" ("To the Shadow – To the Safe"), which received three points and finished 12th of 17 entries. He is also the husband of the former mayor of Helsinki
Helsinki
Helsinki is the capital and largest city in Finland. It is in the region of Uusimaa, located in southern Finland, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, an arm of the Baltic Sea. The population of the city of Helsinki is , making it by far the most populous municipality in Finland. Helsinki is...
, Marja-Riitta Siitonen.
Fredi returned to Eurovision in 1976 in The Hague
The Hague
The Hague is the capital city of the province of South Holland in the Netherlands. With a population of 500,000 inhabitants , it is the third largest city of the Netherlands, after Amsterdam and Rotterdam...
, Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
, with the group Fredi & The Friends. Their song "Pump-Pump
Pump-Pump
For Snoop Doggy Dogg's song named *Pump Pump", see here"Pump-Pump" was the Finnish entry in the Eurovision Song Contest 1976, performed in English by Fredi & Ystävät...
" received 44 points, finishing 11th out of 18. Coincidentally, both contests in which Fredi took part were won by the United Kingdom representatives - Sandie Shaw
Sandie Shaw
Sandie Shaw is an English pop singer, who was one of the most successful British female singers of the 1960s. In 1967 she was the first UK act to win the Eurovision Song Contest...
in 1967 and Brotherhood of Man
Brotherhood of Man
Brotherhood of Man are a British pop group who achieved success in the 1970s, most notably by winning the 1976 Eurovision Song Contest with "Save Your Kisses for Me"....
in 1976.
In Finland Fredi has had more than 20 Top-10 Hit singles, and achieved Diamond status with many studio albums like Avaa sydämesi mulle (Open Your Heart to Me) and Rakkauslauluja (Lovesongs). In 1968, he did a Finnish cover of Tom Jones's "Delilah", and 5 years later, did a cover of David Bowie's "Starman". In 1978 he released one of his most critically acclaimed albums Tänään Fredi (Today Fredi). It contained hit singles "Syntinen yö" ("Night of Sin"), "Elää mä sain" ("Staying Alive
Staying Alive
Staying Alive is the 1983 film sequel to Saturday Night Fever, starring John Travolta as dancer Tony Manero, with Cynthia Rhodes, Finola Hughes, Joyce Hyser, Steve Inwood, Julie Bovasso, and dancers Viktor Manoel, Kate Ann Wright, Kevyn Morrow and Nanette Tarpey...
") a Finnish version of the Bee Gees
Bee Gees
The Bee Gees are a musical group that originally comprised three brothers: Barry, Robin, and Maurice Gibb. The trio was successful for most of their 40-plus years of recording music, but they had two distinct periods of exceptional success: as a pop act in the late 1960s and early 1970s, and as a...
song and Space
Space
Space is the boundless, three-dimensional extent in which objects and events occur and have relative position and direction. Physical space is often conceived in three linear dimensions, although modern physicists usually consider it, with time, to be part of a boundless four-dimensional continuum...
cover "Magic Fly" with the Finnish title "Se outoa on" ("It's Weird"). The album reached over Gold status peaking # 5 in the Finnish Albums Chart. Fredi has over 177,000 certified records, which places him among the 100 best-selling music artists in Finland.
Fredi's # 1 albums in Finland
- 1969 - Fredi (Gold)
- 1972 - Niin paljon kuuluu rakkauteen (Diamond)
- 1973 - Rakkauden Sinfonia (Gold)
- 1974 - Avaa sydämesi mulle (Diamond)
- 1975 - Rakkauslauluja (Diamond)
- 1976 - Laula Kanssain (Gold)
- 1978 - Tänään Fredi (Gold)