Sweet Dreams (band)
Encyclopedia
Sweet Dreams were a British
vocal
trio
comprising teenagers Carrie Gray
, Helen Kray and Bobby McVay
who represented the UK in Eurovision 1983
with the song "I'm Never Giving Up
".
Assembled specifically to perform "I'm Never Giving Up" in the 1983 edition of A Song for Europe - A Song For Europe being the pre-selection round for UK in Eurovision - Sweet Dreams were often compared to Bucks Fizz
the mixed-gender quartet who'd given the UK a high profile victory at Eurovision 1981
with "Making Your Mind Up
": indeed Bucks Fizz were the evident prototype for several acts entered in the 1982 edition of A Song For Europe - including Lovin' Feeling a 1982 entrant which had featured Bobby McVay in an otherwise female quartet who'd finished fourth with "Different Worlds, Different People" - and also A Song For Europe 1983.
Sweet Dreams were the first of the eight entrants to perform on the BBC-TV's A Song For Europe broadcast live from the Television Theatre on March 24 1983. Based on the tally from eight regional juries "I'm Never Giving Up" was named the UK entrant for Eurovision 1983, the song being the clear winner with 109 points with second place finisher "We've Got All the Time in the World" by Mirror - also comprising two females and one male - topping out at 91 points.
On the night of Eurovision 1983, held at Rudi-Sedlmayer-Halle
in Munich
, Sweet Dreams performed "I'm Giving Up" third in a field of twenty to finish the contest in sixth place. In 2008 Carrie Gray - now known as Carrie Grant - would state: "We came sixth, which actually at the time was really shameful, but these days that would be a serious [ie. strong] result." While the sixth place finish of "I'm Never Giving Up" at Eurovision 1983 represented an improvement over the seventh place finish at Eurovision 1982
for the 1982 UK Eurovision entrant "One Step Further
" by Bardo
, "One Step Further" had afforded Bardo a #2 UK hit while Sweet Dreams' "I'm Never Giving Up" failed to reach the UK Top 20, a TOTP
performance by Sweet Dreams not boosting the song's Eurovison exposure to afford a higher chart peak higher than #21 UK. "I'm Never Giving Up" did afford Sweet Dreams a Top 30 hit in Ireland peaking there at #25.
The members of Sweet Dreams had a follow-up single to "I'm Never Giving Up" entitled "17 Electric (Look Out!)" released in August 1983: to downplay the group's Eurovision association the single was credited to Dreams. This single
"17 Electric (Look Out!)" failed to chart
predicating the dissolution of the Sweet Dreams/Dreams trio by the end of 1983. Carrie Grant would opine on the failure of "I'm Never Giving Up" to become a major hit or afford Sweet Dreams lasting success: "Eurovision was so popular [in the UK] when I was growing up. It started to go off the boil [in 1983 when] there was a backlash for the first time.
McVay went on to become a local radio presenter. Gray married singer David Grant
, and became a vocal coach. In this role she appeared in BBC Television's Fame Academy
in 2002-2004, and has also participated in BBC Three
Eurovision programmes.
The group should not be confused with the duo Sweet Dreams
, which had a hit in the 1970s, and also attempted to represent the UK at Eurovision in 1976.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
vocal
Human voice
The human voice consists of sound made by a human being using the vocal folds for talking, singing, laughing, crying, screaming, etc. Its frequency ranges from about 60 to 7000 Hz. The human voice is specifically that part of human sound production in which the vocal folds are the primary...
trio
Trio (music)
Trio is generally used in any of the following ways:* A group of three musicians playing the same or different musical instrument.* The performance of a piece of music by three people.* The contrasting section of a piece in ternary form...
comprising teenagers Carrie Gray
Carrie Grant
Carrie Grant is a British vocal coach and session singer. She is best known for her work on the television talent contests Fame Academy, Comic Relief does Fame Academy and Pop Idol, together with her husband and colleague David Grant. She is also personal voice coach to many successful pop stars...
, Helen Kray and Bobby McVay
Bobby McVay
Robert McVay is a British broadcaster and musician, currently the presenter of the breakfast show on Real Radio in South Wales....
who represented the UK in Eurovision 1983
Eurovision Song Contest 1983
The Eurovision Song Contest 1983, the 28th in the series, was held in Munich, then West Germany, on 23 April 1983. The presenter was Marlene Charell. Corinne Hermes was the winner of this Eurovision with the song, "Si la vie est cadeau". This was Luxembourg's fifth victory in the contest which...
with the song "I'm Never Giving Up
I'm Never Giving Up
"I'm Never Giving Up", written and composed by Ron Roker, Jan Pulsford, and Phil Wigger, was the United Kingdom's entry at the Eurovision Song Contest 1983, performed by the trio Sweet Dreams....
".
Assembled specifically to perform "I'm Never Giving Up" in the 1983 edition of A Song for Europe - A Song For Europe being the pre-selection round for UK in Eurovision - Sweet Dreams were often compared to Bucks Fizz
Bucks Fizz (band)
Bucks Fizz are an English pop group who achieved success in the 1980s, most notably for winning the 1981 Eurovision Song Contest with the song "Making Your Mind Up". The group was formed in January 1981 specifically for the contest and comprised four vocalists: Bobby G, Cheryl Baker, Mike Nolan and...
the mixed-gender quartet who'd given the UK a high profile victory at Eurovision 1981
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...
with "Making Your Mind Up
Making Your Mind Up
"Making Your Mind Up" is a song by British pop group Bucks Fizz. It was the winner of the 1981 Eurovision Song Contest and a UK Number-one single...
": indeed Bucks Fizz were the evident prototype for several acts entered in the 1982 edition of A Song For Europe - including Lovin' Feeling a 1982 entrant which had featured Bobby McVay in an otherwise female quartet who'd finished fourth with "Different Worlds, Different People" - and also A Song For Europe 1983.
Sweet Dreams were the first of the eight entrants to perform on the BBC-TV's A Song For Europe broadcast live from the Television Theatre on March 24 1983. Based on the tally from eight regional juries "I'm Never Giving Up" was named the UK entrant for Eurovision 1983, the song being the clear winner with 109 points with second place finisher "We've Got All the Time in the World" by Mirror - also comprising two females and one male - topping out at 91 points.
On the night of Eurovision 1983, held at Rudi-Sedlmayer-Halle
Rudi-Sedlmayer-Halle
Audi Dome is an arena in Sendling-Westpark, Munich, Germany. It is also known as Rudi-Sedlmayer-Halle, named after the president of the Bavarian State Sport Association from 1955 to 1973...
in Munich
Munich
Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...
, Sweet Dreams performed "I'm Giving Up" third in a field of twenty to finish the contest in sixth place. In 2008 Carrie Gray - now known as Carrie Grant - would state: "We came sixth, which actually at the time was really shameful, but these days that would be a serious [ie. strong] result." While the sixth place finish of "I'm Never Giving Up" at Eurovision 1983 represented an improvement over the seventh place finish at Eurovision 1982
Eurovision Song Contest 1982
The Eurovision Song Contest 1982 was the 27th Eurovision Song Contest and was held on 24 April 1982 in Harrogate, North Yorkshire, United Kingdom. The presenter was Jan Leeming. The opening of the contest showed a map of Europe, with the translation "Where is Harrogate?" popping up on-screen from...
for the 1982 UK Eurovision entrant "One Step Further
One Step Further
"One Step Further", written by Simon Jefferies, was the United Kingdom's entry at the Eurovision Song Contest 1982, performed by Sally Ann Triplett and Stephen Fischer, comprising the duo Bardo.- Background :...
" by Bardo
Bardo (band)
Bardo was a male/female pop music duo formed to represent the United Kingdom in the 1982 Eurovision Song Contest with the song "One Step Further"....
, "One Step Further" had afforded Bardo a #2 UK hit while Sweet Dreams' "I'm Never Giving Up" failed to reach the UK Top 20, a TOTP
Top of the Pops
Top of the Pops, also known as TOTP, is a British music chart television programme, made by the BBC and originally broadcast weekly from 1 January 1964 to 30 July 2006. After 25 December 2006 it became a radio program, now hosted by Tony Blackburn...
performance by Sweet Dreams not boosting the song's Eurovison exposure to afford a higher chart peak higher than #21 UK. "I'm Never Giving Up" did afford Sweet Dreams a Top 30 hit in Ireland peaking there at #25.
The members of Sweet Dreams had a follow-up single to "I'm Never Giving Up" entitled "17 Electric (Look Out!)" released in August 1983: to downplay the group's Eurovision association the single was credited to Dreams. This single
Single (music)
In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...
"17 Electric (Look Out!)" failed to chart
Record chart
A record chart is a ranking of recorded music according to popularity during a given period of time. Examples of music charts are the Hit parade, Hot 100 or Top 40....
predicating the dissolution of the Sweet Dreams/Dreams trio by the end of 1983. Carrie Grant would opine on the failure of "I'm Never Giving Up" to become a major hit or afford Sweet Dreams lasting success: "Eurovision was so popular [in the UK] when I was growing up. It started to go off the boil [in 1983 when] there was a backlash for the first time.
McVay went on to become a local radio presenter. Gray married singer David Grant
David Grant
David Grant CBE, FREng, FIET is the Vice-Chancellor of Cardiff University in Wales. Since his appointment in 2001, Dr Grant has overseen the merger between Cardiff University and the University of Wales College of Medicine, which was completed in 2004, and the awarding of University Status to...
, and became a vocal coach. In this role she appeared in BBC Television's Fame Academy
Fame Academy
Fame Academy is a televised competition to search for and educate new musical talents. The winner received a chance to become a successful music artist. The prize consisted of a £1m recording contract with a major record company, plus the use of a luxury apartment in London and a sports car for one...
in 2002-2004, and has also participated in BBC Three
BBC Three
BBC Three is a television network from the BBC broadcasting via digital cable, terrestrial, IPTV and satellite platforms. The channel's target audience includes those in the 16-34 year old age group, and has the purpose of providing "innovative" content to younger audiences, focusing on new talent...
Eurovision programmes.
The group should not be confused with the duo Sweet Dreams
Sweet Dreams (1970s band)
Sweet Dreams were an English studio group who in 1974 scored the English hit version of the ABBA song "Honey Honey".-Career:A cover of an ABBA album track, "Honey Honey" was recorded by a session group backing vocalist Polly Brown, who the track's producers Ron Roker and Gerry Shury had admired...
, which had a hit in the 1970s, and also attempted to represent the UK at Eurovision in 1976.