#Maarja-Liis Ilus

[eurovision-revisited]

1997 Dublin - Number 16 - Maarja-Liis Ilus - "Keelatud Maa"

It's the second year at Eurovision in a row for Maarja, one of Eurolaul and later Eesti Laul's ever presents. Last year she got lucky, snagging the winning song when the intended singer looked like she couldn't make it. Even then she only scraped into Eurovision on a Eurolaul tie-break.

This year it's much clearer. Dominating Eurolaul 1997, Maarja-Liis Ilus bring Keelatud Maa (Forbidden Land) all the way to 8th place in the final - even if this was a little disappointing considering she'd been one of the favourites to win the entire contest, and it didn't hit the heady heights of fifth, where she'd finished in 1996. Nevertheless Estonia was becoming a Eurovision contender and Maarja was the voice driving that.

Keelatud Maa itself is a wistful ballad tinged with sadness. A lover reaching out to her partner, wanting them to adapt and not remain rooted in a past which they can't let go. It's a plea for them to move on, lest the forbidden, foggy, marshy land between them grow so impenetrable there's no way back together. That's a maturity that's not often witnessed at Eurovision; it's hauntingly poised on the threshold between encouragement and hopelessness.

Those wonderful lyrics were written by Kaari Sillamaa, the mother of Janika Sillamaa, Estonia's first ever Euro Laul winner in 1993 who nearly made it to Eurovision, but fell short in the qualification round. I've already written about her.

Maarja doesn't stop at having represented Estonia twice at Eurovision. She tried to get there twice more. She sang at Eurolaul 2004, but finished fourth. The year before that she entered Melodifestivalen in Sweden, but got eliminated in the heats. She's been spokesperson for Estonia twice and has also hosted Eesti Laul, most recently in 2022.

Beyond Eurovision, she's released 11 albums, been named as Estonia's best female singer four times, she's sung the role of Eva Péron in the Estonian production of Evita, as well as several other leading roles in musicals. She was a judge on three seasons of Eesti otsib superstari, including the season in which Jüri Pootsmann won. Maarja is absolutely one of the biggest names in Estonian music.

[deep-hearts-core]

1997

IT'S IRELAND TIME. well, not quite yet. but it is in that this is the last time they hosted the contest and also they scored second.

Cyprus Not bad & not a bad start. I don't have too much to say about it beyond the fact that I don't think it's bad. It's simultaneously very 90s Eurovision while also, I feel, laying the groundwork for the 00s entries to come. I've definitely heard bits of the chorus in compilation videos before.

Turkey Whoa, that was NOT how I was expecting the verses to sound based on that chorus. But they're really beautiful. S,ebnem knows how to use her voice and sings in a way that makes her ring through the arena, almost, I can almost hear it, during those gorgeously empty sections where it's just her and the drum. Maybe I might have my year winner already. This is GOOD. She looks good, she sounds good.

Norway I like a lot of the more upbeat country from this era, and there are parts of this that I like - like the harmonies and everyone playing the guitars. But it's not clicking. I don't think I like his voice, and for some reason my brain keeps trying to parse the Norwegian phrases as English and that's confusing me. Although that's not really the guy's fault.

Austria Loving the dance routine. It's well-executed and fitting to the song. She sounds good, too. Although, I don't love the outfits, and... I feel terrible for saying this but Bettina just looks old. She looks like a helicopter parent going to Zumba.

Ireland This song is just so 90s. I get why it scored well when it did, but I'm watching this from 2023, as someone who wasn't even born yet in 1997. It's SO of its time that I just cannot get into it. I bet my mom would like this song.

block ranking: Turkey > Cyprus > Austria > Norway > Ireland. this is a new thing i'm gonna try out for these 20+ song contests because I struggle with remembering everything and cut my watching into pomodoro-style blocks with breaks in between (i'm gonna go make some tea before SLO->ESP).

Slovenia It's just poorly constructed. I don't like the way the notes fit together.

Switzerland This, by contrast, is an alright song (backing singers did well!) but I dislike Barbara's voice a great deal.

Netherlands Yall know I love a good girl band. This is, at least, a middle of the road girl band. They're clearly having fun and I vibe with the verses (especially the last phrase before the chorus in each verse), and the chord progressions. However, the rhythm of the title lyric goes too quickly. This one also falls victim to the "too many wide shots" thing that absolutely drives me crazy.

Italy Alright, so one of the things I've noticed lately, singing in a barbershop quartet format (this is relevant, bear with me), is that head voice is a lot harder to tune, especially when vibrato slips in. This woman has that problem. She sounds good, but she's also above the rest of the music, just slightly. Also the beginning was weird and took me by surprise for some reason. Everything else was pretty good, though. Not my fave song ever but a solid 90s entry.

Spain And this one just bores me to tears. No personality to it. Sorry, Spain.

Block ranking: Italy > Netherlands > Slovenia > Switzerland > Spain.

Germany Conflicting feelings here. I enjoyed it, but also it feels dated, but also the beginning of the chorus is really good, but also I'm not sure if I like her voice or not, but also that outfit is queer af by today's standards and I kind of love it.

Poland Chorus is a little messy, but the song feels original and it has the perfect amount of sass for a song titled, if I'm understanding the Polish correctly, "But I Am". I love it. My only real complaint is that if the lady from Jalisse was slightly over the notes, Anna Maria is slightly under them.

Estonia This is a lovely subtle song, and Maarja-Liis Ilus has a sweet, very young sounding voice that is satisfying to me personally. However this is slightly to her detriment, because I feel like she kept trying to be just a little bit sexy and it just didn't work because she sounds like a seventeen year old trying to be sexy.

B&H I love love love the instrumental in these verses. They give me the vibes of the Yael Naim, Ingrid Michaelson type music I listened to in middle school. However with an instrumental like that the singer, I feel, needs to be a little smoother in tone (like Ingrid Michaelson or Yael Naim). And the chorus didn't fit with that instrumental at all. I was really enjoying it until the chorus kicked in and then suddenly it was a totally different vibe.

Portugal Distracted entirely by the fact that her backup singers are straight out of The Matrix.

Block ranking: Poland > Estonia > Germany > B&H > Portugal.

Sweden It's just kinda frenetic. It doesn't fit together and the rhythms in the instrumental are too fast. It's really not bad but... idk. Maybe i'm only saying that it's not bad because I have a certain affection for Swedish entries before their "scary success" era.

Greece The return of the hand cymbals! Eh, this one's okay. It's very Greek.

Malta Very pretty song, although she does run into the lady from Jalisse's head voice issue a couple of times herself. Or maybe her head voice is just a little shrill timbre-wise and that's just how my tired headache-having brain is interpreting it rn lol. But that dress though. Barbara Dex much?

Hungary While "Hungary goes Backstreet" is already not really my thing, this entry is further sunk by the fact that none of these guys are particularly great singers. I'll give them this, though: there's a cool shot in here where the singers are shot from behind and you can see the audience and a light kinda runs over the spectators. That looked pretty cool.

Russia Russia almost never sends things like this. But then again, this was fairly early in their participation, wasn't it. While it's not my speed, Alla definitely embodies the Primadonna title. She carries herself just like an aging leading lady. A good fit for the song.

Block ranking: Greece > Russia > Malta > Sweden > Hungary

Denmark We didn't need this. It sounds okay but like. Listen. Okay, these days I'm less of a hater of rap in Eurovision, but that's also because it's gotten better over the years. This 40something Danish man I don't think knows really how to rap well. And the dancers and the school aesthetic were def too much.

France It doesn't leave much of an impression, although I do enjoy listening to it. Mostly what I get out of this is that the singer is very young.

Croatia Heavy sigh. It's a no from me. They don't sound great, the outfits suck, and I'm no huge fan of [rifles through genres they used on Produce 101] new jack swing? Is that what this is?

UK It ain't no Walking On Sunshine, but it's still damn good. There's just this swell to it, this movement and push and growth, that feels like it's getting the song's message across. There's something in the composition that, when you listen to it, feels like love.

Iceland Gay rights I guess? Vampire rights also? It's so Eurodance (which I don't really like) and the mixing was off, I can't hear him very well. But gay rights, I guess.

ok sorter time!!!

My top 25 1)Turkey 2)Poland 3)UK 4)Italy 5)Germany 6)Cyprus 7)Estonia 8)Netherlands 9)Russia 10)Greece 11)Ireland 12)Norway 13)France 14)Switzerland 15)Malta 16)Austria 17)B&H 18)Slovenia 19)Portugal 20)Spain 21)Sweden 22)Iceland 23)Hungary 24)Denmark 25)Croatia

Miscellaneous thoughts I really enjoy the messages from past winners and other contestants that they played after every other performance. Best one was probably Niamh Kavanagh telling Linda Martin, "it's your fault, you started it" and Linda responding, "well, you gave them the heart attack the next year." Obsessed with how messy that winner's recap was. Katrina got the words wrong! The tambourines were off rhythm! It was endearing. I also love how multilingual this contest was. Not only English and French but a solid amount of Irish in there. I suspect we'll see less and less English as we go further back in time.

[newestmusic]

(via Maarja-Liis Ilus & Ivo Linna - Kaelakee Hääl (parka dnb edit))

[hopelessimmer]

Maarja Liis Ilus laulmine Sa ju tead televiisoris. 

[anotherescsite]

100 days of Eurovision

Maarja-Liis Ilus & Ivo Linna - Kaelakee hääl

Estonia

Estonia appeared for the first time at Eurovision in 1994, after failing in the pre-selection of 1993. The 1994 effort did not do so well, coming second to last with two points. With 1995 as a rest year, Estonia came back with a pleasant song that made the audience sit up. It is a very gentle entry which grows and grows as it continues. 

To say that the artists are the beauty and the beast are an understatement. But the gentle young voice of Maarja co-ordinated very nicely with the older gruff voice of Ivo. Could two people who were aged closer have done a better job? Possibly, but it is what it is. 

[eurovisionsongaday]

Looks like it’s round two for Maarja-Liis Ilus!

[womenofesc]

[maschasrankings]

1997: Top 25

Turkey: Şebnem Paker - Dinle

Iceland: Páll Oskár - Minn Hinsti Dans

Estonia: Maarja-Liis Ilus - Keelatud Maa

Switzerland: Barbara Berta - Dentro Di Me

Cyprus: Hara & Andreas Konstantinou - Mana Mou

Italy: Jalisse - Fiumi Di Parole

Poland: Anna Maria Jopek - Ale Jestem

Greece: Marianna Zorba - Horepse

Ireland: Marc Roberts - Mysterious Woman

Portugal: Célia Lawson - Antes Do Adeus

Norway: Tor Endresen - San Francisco

United Kingdom: Katrina & The Waves - Love Shine A Light

France: Fanny - Sentiments Songes

Croatia: ENI - Probudi Me

Malta: Debbie Scerri - Let Me Fly

Spain: Marcos Llunas - Sin Rencor

Sweden: Blond - Bara Hon Älskar Mig

Bosnia & Herzegovina: Alma Čardžić - Goodbye

Denmark: Kølig Kaj - Stemmen I Mit Liv

Hungary: VIP - Miért Kell, Hogy Elmenj?

Germany: Bianca Shomburg - Zeit

Netherlands: Mrs. Einstein - Niemand Heeft Nog Tijd

Austria: Bettina Soriat - One Step

Russia: Alla Pugacheva - Primadonna

Slovenia: Tanja Ribič - Zbudi Se

[betweenthetimeandsound]

Three Minutes to Eternity: My ESC 250 (intermission + honorable mentions)

Eurovision has >1600 songs in its discography, with the exact number varying on whether to count the songs that didn't qualify from the 1993 and 1996 pre-qualifier rounds, along with the 2020 songs lost to the pandemic (1603 without both categories, 1614 including the pre-qualifier songs but without the 2020 songs, 1644 with the lost 2020 songs, and 1655 including both).

Either way, taking 250 from so many songs is a challenge, and a lot get lost the way. (250 into each of them would round out to 15% of all Eurovision songs ever. By the time we get to song #2000, it will only be one eighth of all of them. It's a very exclusive club)

As a result, here's an honorable mentions list for the songs that didn't make it on the list, but I still adore (in chronological order). Later, I'll give you songs that I love, but fell into the categories above, and where they would place.

If by the end of this project, you could replace any of the songs in my top 250 with any of these, which ones would you go for?

Jacqueline Boyer: Tom Pillibi (France 1960)

Nora Brockstedt: Voi Voi (Norway 1960)

Betty Curtis: Al di la (Italy 1961)

Marion Rung: Tipi-tii (Finland 1962)

Isabelle Aubert: Un premier amour (France 1962)

Udo Jurgens: Warum nur, warum? (Austria 1964)

Tonia: Un peu de poivre, un peu de sel (Belgium 1966)

Lili Lindfors and Svante Thuresson: Nygammal vals (Sweden 1966)

Raphael: Hableamos del Amor (Spain 1967)

Eduoardo nascimento: O vento mudou (Portugal 1967)

Inge Brück - Anouschka (Germany 1967)

Noelle Cordier: il doit faire beau là-bas (France 1967)

Isabelle Aubert: La Source (France 1968)

Dubrovački Trubaduri - Jedan Dan (Yugoslavia 1968)

Katja Ebstein: Wunder gibt es immer wieder (Germany 1970)

The New Seekers: Beg, Steal, or Borrow (United Kingdom 1972)

Sandie Jones: Ceol an ghrá (Ireland 1972)

Ilanit: Ey sham (Israel 1973)

Carlos do Carmo - Uma flor de verde pinho (Portugal 1976)

Ilanit: Ahava hi shir lishnayim (Israel 1977)

Izhar Cohen and the Alpha Beta: A-bi-na-bi (Israel 1978)

Springtime: Mrs. Caroline Robinson (Austria 1978)

Gali Atari and Milk and Honey: Hallelujah (Israel 1979)

Ted Gardestad: Satellit (Sweden 1979)

Tommy Seebach & Debbie Cameron - Krøller Eller Ej (Denmark 1981)

Peter, Sue, and Marc: Io senza te (Switzerland 1981)

Guy Bonnet: Vivre (France 1983)

Maria Guinot: Silencio e tanta gente (Portugal 1984)

Kikki Danielsson: Bra vibrationer (Sweden 1985)

Gerard Joling: Shangri-la (Netherlands 1988)

Karoline Kruger: For Vår Jord (Norway 1988)

Scott Fitzgerald: Go (United Kingdom 1988)

Peppino di Capri: Comme E' Ddoce 'O Mare (Italy 1991)

Sergio Dalma: Bailar Pegados (Spain 1991)

Clouseau: Geef het op (Belgium 1991)

Dafna Dekel: Ze rak sport (Israel 1992)

Extra Nena: Ljubim te pesmama (Yugoslavia 1992)

Kali: Monte la rivie (France 1992)

Annie Cotton: Moi, tout simplement (Switzerland 1993)

Paul Harrington and Charlie Mcgettigan: Rock n Roll Kids (Ireland 1994)

Nina Morato: Je suis un vrai garcon (France 1994)

MeKaDo: Wir geben ne Party (Germany 1994)

Maarja-Liis Ilus & Ivo Linha: Kaelakee Hääl (Estonia 1996)

Fanny: Sentiments songes (France 1997)

Michalis Hatzigiannis : Genesis (Cyprus 1998)

Dana International: Diva (Israel 1998)

Jill Johnson: Karleken ar (Sweden 1998)

Vanessa Chintor: Like the Wind (Belgium 1999)

Alsou: Solo (Russia 2000)

Goran Karan: Kada zaspu anđeli (Croatia 2000)

Nusa Derenda: Energy (Slovenia 2001)

Walter and Kazha: The War is not Over (Latvia 2005)

Zdob si Zdob: Boonika Bate Toba (Moldova 2005)

Wig Wam: In My Dreams (Norway 2005)

Luminita Anghel & Sistem: Let Me Try (Romania 2005)

Feminnem: Call Me (Bosnia and Herzegovina 2005)

Chiara: Angel (Malta 2005)

Hanna Pakarien: Leave Me Alone (Finland 2007)

Sarbel: Yassou Maria (Greece 2007)

Euroband: This is My Life (Iceland 2008)

Sebastian Tillier: Divine (France 2008)

Miodio: Complice (San Marino 2008)

Svetlana Loboda: Be My Valentine! (Anti-Crisis Girl) (Ukraine 2009)

InCulto: Eastern European Funk (Lithuania 2010)

Tom Dice: Me and My Guitar (Belgium 2010)

Kristina: Horehronie (Slovakia 2010)

Juliana Pasha: It's All About You (Albania 2010)

Jon Lillygreen and the Islanders: Life Looks Better in the Spring (Cyprus 2010)

Jessy Matador: Allez ola ole! (France 2010)

Anna Bergendahl: This is My Life (Sweden 2010)

Lena: Taken By a Stranger (Germany 2011)

Loukas Giorkas and Stereo Mike: Watch My Dance (Greece 2011)

A Friend in London: New Tomorrow (Denmark 2011)

Loreen: Euphoria (Sweden 2012)--probably the weirdest omission here, because it's my second place, but I preferred a good number of songs above it in the sorters. It's not something I would listen to, but it has a beautiful staging and it definitely made waves for the contest. As a result, I'll always have mixed feelings for Euphoria, though it is a complete package.

Rona Nishliu: Suus (Albania 2012)

Greta Salome and Jonsi: Never Forget (Iceland 2012)--actually my second favorite from Iceland!

Ivi Adamou: La La Love (Cyprus 2012)

Zlata Ognevich: Gravity (Ukraine 2013)

ByeAlex: Kedvesem (Hungary 2013)

Who See: Igranka (Montenegro 2013)

Donatan & Cleo - My Słowianie - We Are Slavic (Poland 2014)

Marta Jandová & Václav Noid Bárta: Hope Never Dies (Czech Republic 2015)

Maraaya: Here for You (Slovenia 2015)

Uzari and Maimuna: Time (Belarus 2015)

Molly Sterling: Playing with Numbers (Ireland 2015)

Voltaj: De la capăt (All Over Again) (Romania 2015)

Edurne: Amanecer (Spain 2015)

Nika Kocharov and the Young Georgian Lolitaz: Midnight Gold (Georgia 2016)

Greta Salome: Hear Them Calling (Iceland 2016)

Justs: Heartbeat (Latvia 2016)

Lucie Jones: Never Give Up on You (United Kingdom 2017)

Norma John: Blackbird (Finland 2017)

Kasia Mos: Flashlight (Poland 2017)

Naviband: Story of My Life (Belarus 2017)

Nevena Božović: Kruna (Serbia 2019)

Luca Haani: She Got Me (Switzerland 2019)

KEiiNO: Spirit in the Sky (Norway 2019)

Ester Peony: On a Sunday (Romania 2019)

Destiny: Je me casse (Malta 2021)

Victoria: Growing Up is Getting Old (Bulgaria 2021)

[mexicaneurolover]

Eurovision 1997 my top 25

Hello, and welcome to another episode of this series of tops about the ESC, and I go back to May 3, 1997, when the contest was held again in Dublin, Ireland, after Eimear Quinn’s victory in Oslo last year. 25 countries took part, while Denmark, Italy, Germany, Hungary and Russia returned to the contest, Finland, Belgium and Slovakia were relegated because of their low scores. The contest was won by the United Kingdom with Katrina and the Waves with the song Love shine a light, making this their 5th and last win to date, also with a record score at the time. And now, let’s review the songs.

1st Place: TURKEY/Sebnem Paker & Grup Ethnic-Dinle (Real Placing: 3rd-121 points)  

I’M SO IN LOVE WITH THIS WONDERFUL SONG, this is so cooooool and catchy, since the first time I heard it I was stunned by this song, and her voice again is so nice and appropriate for this song. I must admit this is my favorite Turkish song and... wow. 

2nd Place: UNITED KINGDOM/Katrina & The Waves-Love shine a light (Real Placing: 1st-227 points)

The winning song... and I love it, the music is so inspiring and brights my attitude, it’s catch, effective and I enjoy this song so much, her voice is so stunning and yeah, it was a deserved winner and what a victory! 

3rd Place: ITALY/Jalisse-Fiumi di parole (Real Placing: 4th-114 points) 

Oh this entry is so amazing! She sings so good and the music is so nice in this one. I’m so stunned about this song, this is a very good Italian song and I like the lyrics as well, this was the last Italian entry for a loooong time, and I’ll see them many years later. 

4th Place: GREECE/Marianna Zorba-Horepse (Real Placing: =12th-39 points)

Another amazing song from Greece, the music is so ethnic and I want to dance along to it. I’m so hypnotized by the music and her voice is so good. Oh Greece, you are so good at making ethnic songs. I love this one so much. 

5th Place: ICELAND/Paul Oskar-Minn hinsti dans (Real Placing: 20th-18 points) 

I’m so crazy about this entry, he’s so wonderful on stage, the performance is effective but a bit dirty, the music is so modern and I must agree that if this song was on other year with full televote, like in 1998 or 1999, this would’ve done a lot better. 

6th Place: RUSSIA/Alla Pugacheva-Primadonna (Real Placing: 15th-33 points)

Oh what a wonderful song! Alla’s voice is so good and elegant, the music is such a delight to hear, this is so nostalgic and her performance is so classy, this song makes me cry because it’s very beautiful. 

7th Place: CYPRUS/Hara & Andreas Konstantinou-Mana mou (Real Placing: 5th-98 points) 

Also this song is very good, I like the ethnic elements on this one that mix so well with the modern elements. They sing so well and the chorus is so catchy, and the dabadabadam is so contagious. What a wonderful song!

8th Place: SPAIN/Marcos Llunas-Sin rencor (Real Placing: 6th-96 points)

This entry is so lovely, the music is so cool and his voice is great, the lyrics are so heartbreaking and overall, I love this song, everything here works so well and this makes me cry. 

9th Place: IRELAND/Marc Roberts-Mysterious woman (Real Placing: 2nd-157 points)

At first I thought this song was so mediocre and boring, and I always skipped it, but one day I listened the whole song and it’s so nice, I like the song and the lyrics are very good, also he has a nice voice, the chorus is so catchy and I enjoy it now. This song was Ireland’s last top 5 finish, and I hope the day they will make the top again, as in the 90′s. 

10th Place: ESTONIA/Maarja-Liis Ilus-Keelatud maa (Real Placing: 8th-82 points)

Oh she’s back! And with another amazing song, the music is sweet in the verses and the chorus is so powerful. Her voice is perfect, as it was indeed last year. This is such a nice song, it’s so relaxing. 

11th Place: FRANCE/Fanny-Sentiments songes (Real Placing: 7th-95 points)

Such a classy and elegant song, this music is so modern and she’s such a cute singer, her voice is amazing and this relaxes me so much, I like this song and the overall atmosphere is very French. 

12th Place: POLAND/Anna Maria Jopek-Ale jestem (Real Placing: 11th-54 points) 

Another magical song, the music is so wonderful and her voice is so good, I like the verses and the chorus is so powerful. This is such a catchy song and I love how Polish sounds in this song. 

13th Place: SLOVENIA/Tanja Ribič-Zbudi se (Real Placing: 10th-60 points)

A sweet song with a charming melody, this is like a song from an animated movie, her voice is so cute and enchanting and I’m mesmerized by it, the ending is one of the best parts and the verses are stunning. 

14th Place: PORTUGAL/Célia Lawson-Antes do adeus (Real Placing: =24th-0 points/last)

HOW THIS SONG FINISHED WITH 0 POINTS? This song is very good, the music is so dark but good, maybe the backing singers were the problem here but her voice is so stunning, I’m so confused about the result, such an undeserved last place. 

15th Place: BOSNIA & HERZEGOVINA/Alma Čardžić-Goodbye (Real Placing: =18th-22 points)

This song is one of the songs I enjoy the most this year, the intro is very good and she sings so well, the chorus is lovely and I like the music so much. Overall this song is so nice and I don’t know how this didn’t do well in the night. 

16th Place: MALTA/Debbie Scerri-Let me fly (Real Placing: 9th-66 points)

This song isn’t that bad, and her voice is good, the music is very pleasant to hear and overall this is a nice song, but at the second listen I realized that it bored me after the chorus. Also, that dress is so colorful, and it’s like a hot-air balloon. 

17th Place: DENMARK/Kølig Kaj-Stemmen i mit liv (Real Placing: 16th-25 points)

Again, as with the UK entry in 1995, I’m not a big fan of rap, but this song somehow entertains me, the lyrics are funny and the performance is so crazy, also, what’s going on with his pants. 

18th Place: HUNGARY/V.I.P.-Miért kell, hogy elmenj? (Real Placing: =12th-39 points)

Oh a boyband! This song is lovely and current for the time, and this has a nice vibe to it and I like it, but as with the previous songs, I can’t say it’s awesome because it’s missing something that I don’t know what it is. 

19th Place: THE NETHERLANDS/Mrs. Einstein-Niemand heeft nog tijd (Real Placing: =22nd-5 points)

This song has one of the craziest melodies I’ve ever heard, and I like it so much, they sing nice but maybe this song needed a bit of a punch, I love the chorus and the key change makes this song better. 

20th Place: CROATIA/E.N.I.-Probudi me (Real Placing: 17th-24 points)

Oh the Croatian girl group, this song is very 90′s and it’s like a song from the Spice Girls, but sadly this fails to impress and their voices are bad, this song would’ve been better with another group of singers. 

21st Place: GERMANY/Bianca Shomburg-Zeit (Real Placing: =18th-22 points)

Another nice ballad with a wonderful singer, but the only thing I like about this one is the chorus, because it’s the most memorable part of this song. An average song in a quite strong field. 

22nd Place: SWITZERLAND/Barbara Berta-Dentro di me (Real Placing: =22nd-5 points)

Ok this is actually nice, but there were many better songs than this one, the music is so lovely and her voice is so good. This little song is nice but maybe in other year it would’ve placed higher. 

23rd Place: AUSTRIA/Bettina Soriat-One step (Real Placing: 21st-12 points) 

Ok, not another bad pop song, her voice isn’t pleasant and maybe this was too much. I want to like this one but I end up hating it more and more. 

24th Place: SWEDEN/Blond-Bara hon älskar mig (Real Placing: 14th-36 points) 

This is such a mediocre pop song, their voices aren’t that good and the overall performance is poor, and the song itself isn’t good. I don’t like this and IMO this, along with 1990 is one of the worst songs ever. 

25th Place: NORWAY/Tor Endresen-San Francisco (Real Placing: =24th-0 points/last)

Why Norway, you were doing amazing and then this came, the song is mediocre, Tor’s voice is good but not my taste and I don’t like this overall. That year, another band called Manjari deserved to go with the song Lys, it would’ve been better. 

[unofficial-estonia]

ESTONIA THROUGH EUROVISION → Maarja-Liis Ilus “Keelatud maa” 1997

Maarja-Liis Ilus returned to Eurovision to represent Estonia in 1997. She was successful and received 82 points placing 8th. The song got 12 points from Italy and 10 from the UK while giving 12 points to France. 

[eurovision-revisited]

Eurovision 1997: The actual result

RTÉ may not have required the help of the Northern Irish tourist board to fund Eurovision in 1997, but they couldn't stretch to a fully-virtual scoreboard like Oslo managed. It was back to the normal screen with flags and numbers, and a font of which I'm not fond.

Here is my regular spoiler warning for a competition that happened over 25 years ago. If you don't want to know who actually won Eurovision in 1997 don't read any further. Close the article and scroll on by.

Ireland's years of reigning are over but singing in English is still the advantage the Scandinavian countries have been claiming it was since the 1970s. The UK won for the fifth time and fairly easily. For the second year in a row, their singer was not British. Instead the BBC were relying on the anglophone world to provide, and after the Gina G hiccup, Katrina brought home the goods.

Ireland just about did the perfect thing, by managing to finish second. The best you can get without winning and for that RTÉ were truly happy. Below them come Turkey in third with by far their best result ever in over twenty years of trying. Italy on their return came fourth, but would that be enough to keep them coming back? Estonia maintained their good finish in 1996 by getting another top 10.

At the bottom there was that rarest of things with a double null-points from Norway and Portugal.

Here then is the full scoreboard.

United Kingdom - Katrina and the Waves - "Love Shine a Light"

Ireland - Marc Roberts - "Mysterious Woman"

Turkey - Şebnem Paker & Etnic - "Dinle"

Italy - Jalisse - "Fiumi Di Parole"

Cyprus - Chara and Andreas Konstantinou - "Mana Mou"

Spain - Marcos Llunas - "Sin Rencor"

France - Fanny - "Sentiments Songes"

Estonia - Maarja-Liis Ilus - "Keelatud Maa"

Malta - Debbie Scerri - "Let Me Fly"

Slovenia - Tanja Ribič - "Zbudi Se"

Poland - Anna Maria Jopek - "Ale Jestem"

Greece - Marianna Zorba - "Horepse"

Hungary - VIP - "Miert Kell, Hogy Elmenj?"

Sweden - Blond - "Bara Hon älskar Mig"

Russia - Alla Pugachova - "Primadonna"

Denmark - Kølig Kaj - "Stemmen I Mit Liv"

Croatia - ENI - "Probudi Me"

Germany - Bianca Shomburg - "Zeit"

Bosnia & Herzegovina - Alma Cardzic - "Goodbye"

Iceland - Paul Oscar - "Minn Hinsti Dans"

Austria - Bettina Soriat - "One Step"

Switzerland - Barbara Berta - "Dentro Di Me"

Netherlands - Mrs. Einstein - "Niemand Heeft Nog Tijd"

Norway - Tor Endresen - "San Francisco"

(24th equal) Portugal - Célia Lawson - "Antes Do Adeus"

[archeesecake]

Uplifting Holiday Ad That's Sure to Make You Smile "Sinuta Ei Saa"

A beautiful ad for Eesti Telekom with music by Estonian singer Maarja-Liis Ilus. Subscribe for more creative, impactful, and interesting ads. (See English and Estonian lyrics below.) Ad: "Sinuta Ei Saa" (2015) Director: Tanel Toom Cinematographer: Heiko Sikka Agency: Optimist Music: "Nii sind ootan" by Maarja Brand: Eesti Telekom Director Tanel Toom: http://bit.ly/2FMxhwJ Full song by Maarja: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fIe3ZUh_Wjw Lyrics Translation to English: A breeze of wind I send to you, so it would whisper in secret, so it would tell you everything, tell you about how much I need you. I would send the clouds to you, so they would stand beside you, and explain to you, so you could see what's going on inside me. And I'm waiting for you here so, that I don't know what I would do with myself, I'm missing you so and hoping, that you will once bring back my heart. I sent the night to you, without you bleak it is, I send kisses on your lips it's the only thing I can still do. And I'm waiting for you here so, that I don't know what I would do with myself, I'm missing you so and hoping, that you will once bring back, And I'm waiting for you here so, that I don't know what to do with myself, I'm missing you so and hoping, that you will once bring back my heart. Bring back I send the moon to you, so it could show you the way, through an agonizing sleep, through the nights, many more. Translation from: from http://bit.ly/2rb9e0r NOTE: Ad lyrics contain only the first and last stanzas. Lyrics in Estonian: Saadan tuule su juurde, et ta sosistaks salaja, et ta räägiks kõigest sulle, räägiks sellest kuidas vajan sind ma. Saadan pilved su juurde, et nad seisaks su ees, et nad seletaksid sulle, et sa näeksid mis toimub mu sees. Ja ma sind nii siin ootan, et ei tea mida endaga teeks igatsen nii ja loodan, et kord tagasi tood mu südame. Saadan öö su juurde ilma sinuta kõle on see saadan suudlused suule see on ainus mida teha võin veel. Ja ma sind nii siin ootan, et ei tea mida endaga teeks igatsen nii ja loodan, et kord tagasi tood, ja ma sind nii siin ootan, et ei tea mida endaga teen, igatsen nii ja loodan, et kord tagasi tood mu südame. Tagasi tood Saadan kuu su juurde, et ta näitaks sulle teed läbi piinava une läbi ööde mitmete veel. from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cmrt9SzRKaQ

[newestmusic]

Kaelakee hääl / Voice of the necklace - Ivo Linna ja Maarja-Liis Ilus (T...

[unibrowzz]

oooof! Sorry, one last question, what should I do about double names e.g, Maarja-Liis Ilus, or all those Icelandic singers who go by their first and middle names?

I say count both. A double-barrelled name is still a name after all 🤔

[eurovisionfuntimes]

Eurovision 1996: My Ranking

1996 is one of those years that while I don’t necessarily hate the winner, I find it to be an incredibly mediocre song. Out of Ireland’s 4 90′s wins, I’d say only one of them is a win I 100% stand by: In Your Eyes. The rest divide me, and so does The Voice. Also, this is a year where me and the juries disagree big time - Diwanit bugale is a STUNNING piece of music, and they only finished 19th! Blasphemous. 1996 is a year of great songs but lots of midtable filler, and rings in at an average of 3.21 stars.

FIVE STARS

1. France: Dan Ar Braz & L'Héritage des Celtes - Diwanit bugale

2. Portugal: Lucia Moniz - O meu curacao nao tem cor

3. Estonia: Maarja-Liis Ilus & Ivo Linna - Kaelakee hääl

4. Norway: Elisabeth Andreassen - I evighet

5. Poland: Kasia Kowalska - Chcę znać swój grzech

6. Croatia: Maja Blagdan - Sveta ljubav

FOUR STARS

7. Turkey: Sebnam Paker - Besinci mevsim

8. Greece: Mariana Efstratiou - Emis forame to himona anixiatika

9. Cyprus: Constantinos Christoforou - Mono Gia Mas

10.Slovakia: Marcel Palonder - Kým nás máš

THREE STARS

11. Bosnia and Herzegovina: Amila Glamočak - Za našu ljubav

12. Finland: Jasmine - Niin kaunis on taivas

13. Sweden: One More Time - Den vilda

14. United Kingdom: Gina G - Just a Little Bit

15. Switzerland: Cathy Leander - Mon coeur l'aime

16. Ireland: Eimear Quinn - The Voice

17. Slovenia: Regina - Dan najlepših sanj

TWO STARS

18. Malta: Miriam Christine - In a Woman's Heart

19. The Netherlands: Maxine & Franklin Brown - De eerste keer'

20. Belgium: Lisa del Bo - Liefde is een kaartspel

ONE STAR

21. Iceland: Anna Mjöll - Sjubidu

22. Spain: Antonio Carbonell - Ay, qué deseo!

23. Austria: George Naussbaumer - Weil's dr guat got