Eurovision – United Kingdom

I’ve been watching the fan polls on the ‘official’ Eurovision fan site, ESC Nation, and I’m a little dissapointed. Though obviously not representative of the actual future results, this list (may need to log in to see it) does not show the UK doing as well as I think it should. Not surprisingly, Norway is at the top of both poll lists (one accounts for the voter’s country of origin, the other does not), with Turkey, Azerbaijan, Estonia, Spain, Finland and Greece close favorites. The UK is in the top 10 standing with both predictions, but not top 3, as expected. Also surprising is the fuss over Estonia, an entry which I’ve completely overlooked.

All I can say is, “Go Jade  (and Aysel & Arash)!” We’ll see how things start to pan out closer to the big day.

AySel and Arash are just too cute in this interview (skip the ’sumo wrestling’).

And for some reason, I have forgotten about Norway for a few weeks. Alexander Rybak, his fiddle, and his team of stellar–guess what–dancers are serious contenders for the gold. Ignore this New York Times article entitled “Imported Cheese” featuring Rybak’s adorable face (though calling Eurovision “the most fun you can have on the internet without a credit card” is pretty apt).

But just so you know that I still love Jade, I’ve become her facebook fan: see the page.

Though it’s not the most traveled Eurovision message board, the BBC website seems to have a few die-hards posting. Here are the most popular countries favored to win:

Azerbaijan: There are so many good things about this entry that I can’t believe I haven’t heard more about “Always” on the internet. The perfectly balanced duo of AySel and Arash, the ethnic instrumentals, and the catchy Scandenavian pop beat fuse for an irresistible sound.  And we all know how much I like a good dance number.

Slovenia: My second pick for non-UK entry, “Love Symphony” is actually unique AND fun and catchy in the moment. Also, the cellist from Quartissimo dances with his cello–that’s pretty impressive.

Romania: “The Balkan Girls” hot dance number will probably appeal to everyone, and bumps up the entry a few notches in my book.

Montenegro: “Get out of My Life” also has a catchy euro-club beat but is pretty generic musically. The lyrics don’t seem to have any real significance

Turkey: “Dum Tek Tek” is an obvious favorite just for getting its music video banned in conservative countries. Nothing like a little sex to take home a trophy.

Andorra: There’s a lot of talk about this one, but the song and style are way too cute for my taste, and I don’t think it will be the show stopper it needs to be to beat out countries like Turkey and Greece.

 Iceland: The cello is a good touch, and the “Is it True?” is a winner, but if Yohanna’s voice has to go up against Jade’s in the UK ballade, there’s no contest here.

Malta: Though not on the high end of the gossip chain, Malta seems ready to make a competitive showing with “What if We.”  Chiara Siracusa herself has gotten Malta to the top 3 in 1998 (3rd) and 2005 (runner-up). There’s no reason that her gorgeous voice and the hopeful lyrics of “What if We” couldn’t carry Malta to the top again.

Greece: Sakis Rouvas looks like the lead-man for any mid-90s boy band, but the lyrics to “This is Our Night” might capture the audience’s attention. And again, back-up dancers never hurt.

Notables:

1. Andorra’s song is the only non-English song of the above.

2. Greece has the only male vocalist of the above.

3. I have it on good authority from a fellow (and more informed, I might add) blogger that a Russian clairvoyant has forecasted Jade and the UK as the Eurovision contest winner. I guess I can stop worrying about the lack of back-up dancers now–it’s in the bag.

In Jade Ewen’s promotional video, she explains that “It’s My Time” is a message from the UK to the rest of Eurovision that they care about the results of this year’s competition and have chosen their representatives accordingly. Jade mentions the UK’s poor results in recent years and says that the choice of Lloyd Webber to write her “passionate, emotive,” song should be seen as a sign of the UK taking the competition more seriously.

Citing former Eurovision star Celine Dion as her inspiration, I suppose Jade hopes that the Eurovision will take her budding career as a vocalist seriously as well.

This quality effort is admirable on the part of the UK. However, I still hardly think in the wake of a world financial crisis and with recent news headlines such as ‘Swine Flu Pandemic’, that European audiences will be drawn to the “serious” contestant.

So I’ll reiterate my plea:

Give me some dancers!

Okay, I can’t actually keep pretending that I think the UK’s Jade Ewen is going to win the Eurovision contest. Sure, she’s a terrific singer… and the song “It’s My Time,” seems like the appropriate morale-booster that the UK needs… and no one can deny the brilliance of Andrew Lloyd Webber and Diane Warren….

…but there aren’t any dancers. “It’s My Time” isn’t much of an act at all when compared to, for example, the fiesty Greece and Turkey entries, both of which have great beats and dancing to boot. Though “It’s My Time” pulls at the heartstrings, and though Jade looks and sounds like a rock star, the UK is going to need more than a sparkly-dressed barbie doll on stage to win this one. It’s just my honest opinion.

This year, Jade Ewen will perform a song co-written by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Diane Warren.  This trio team represents an international appeal as well as national pride.

Jade, though born and raised in London, comes from a multi-national background, with a Jamaican mother and a half-Sicilian father. Jade also has ties to the disabled community; both of her parents are seeing-impaired, and Jade’s mother suffers from a neurological auto-immune disorder that also limits her hearing.

Webber, a symbol of English talent and theater, has the status of an international superstar. Webber’s success on Broadway has made him an American idol, and he has won many awards in the U.S., including 7 prestigious Tony Awards. His name is ubiquitous in the field of musical theater, and each of his shows has produced hit songs reproduced all over the world.

Diane Warren is a California native, but her work, like Webber’s, has traveled the globe. The self proclaimed “most prolific and successful contemporary songwriter of our time,” has worked with such superstars as Aretha Franklin, Celine Dion, and Elton John.  The selection of Warren might seem U.S.-centric, but her songwriting is really an international symbol of romance and popular music.

All in all, the UK performance will represent the multi-ethnicity of the country. Despite Jade’s international ethnicity, she seems to be an English girl at heart, having grown up and finally acheived recognition in her country of birth. Her full bio is available through the Eurovision 2009 website.

The UK has competed in every single Eurovision competition since 1957, with five wins and 23 placements in the top 3. Though the UK fared better in the early days, when it was one of fewer contestants, the country’s pick has never received lower than a 25th place ranking. The most recent first place for the UK was given to Katrina and The Waves in 1997, for their song ‘Love Shine A Light.’ The following year brought a silver with Imaani’s ‘Where Are You?’ and Jessica Garlick took third place in 2002 with ‘Come Back.’ Since then, the UK has fallen out of the top ten, with their lowest scores in the contest history in 2003 and 2008. This year is a perfect year for the UK to get out of the slump and reclaim their Eurovision glory!