Hi, I decided to write my own reviews of every Eurovision year. My musical knowledge is rather amateurish, so everything’s going to be analysed based on how it makes me feel.
Every song will be rated on the scale from 1 to 100. There are no concrete definitions for the tiers, a flawed song that I can enjoy will end up higher than a well-produced song that I find empty and/or derivative. Again, the scale is mostly based on my enjoyment, though I might add and subtract some points for technical merit.
Basically, there’s going to be almost no objectivity.
Now, I’m familiar with some of the entries from most years, so other entries that I’m unfamiliar with might be at a disadvantage. I don’t expect it to be a big issue though since I rarely start liking songs after having listened to them for a while
Anyway, here we go with the first year - 1956, the only one where countries were allowed to submit two entries.
A nice upbeat song about about the birds of Holland. Musically, it isn’t very complex, but varied enough to not get repetitive.
Score: 59
Another upbeat song about an old carousel. I like how the music speeds up in the middle and slows down at the end - just like a carousel ride. Overall, it’s a great symbolism of life - childhood always seems to drag and drag, then your teenage years speed up, adulthood enters in full swing and doesn’t slow down until you really start to get on in years.
Score: 88
This song has a very dark theme and owns it 100%. The mood is dark and ominous in some parts, but then speeds up and sweeps you away. The music is composed really well too.
Score: 71
This song already makes me understand why the length rule was imposed. It drags on for a bit too long. I’m not a big fan of the spoken parts, though the sung parts aren’t too bad. At least the orchestration is good and the singer has a nice voice, so it never gets unpleasant to listen to.
This song also has a story to tell, which is always a positive in my opinion.
Score: 58
As far as French songs about love sung in a soprano voice go, this is definitely one of them. It’s just really a lot of nothing.
Score: 18
Despite the very upbeat feeling, the lyrics are quite depressing - telling a story of how nothing will last forever, you’ll get old, fat and ugly. I feel like this contrast works really well though. I love it, it’s the first song of the night that I really loved.
Score: 97
A lovely song about the coming of spring. It’s definitely how I always feel when spring finally comes. The orchestration is lovely, though the lyrics aren’t the most complex.
Score: 84
Corry Brokken (who would go on to win ESC 1957) sings about the end of her love and how it’s “over for good”. It seems a bit old-fashioned, more early-40s than late-50s to me, though her voice is nice.
Score: 53
The winning song of 1956. I can definitely see why it won - it’s a ballad that doesn’t veer too far into the sad territory despite the not very cheerful topic. It’s musically interesting, which is always good. The backing singers also put in a lot of work into making it sound interesting.
I find it funny how much the audience applauded it after it had finished - if that’s any indication, I bet it would’ve won the televote if that had existed back then.
Score: 75
It’s a rather average song in French about love. Nonetheless, the performer does manage to grip me. The song moves at a decent pace, so it doesn’t bore me.
Score: 36
Wow, what an entry. It completely stands out between other entries, being some hybrid between blues and jazz and early rock and roll. I did not expect to hear anything like this at Eurovision in the 1950s.
Score: 95
A much more upbeat song about love. I like it much more than France’s first entry. The singer sounds like she’s having a lot of fun singing it.
Score: 73
A ballad about two lovers who meet at midnight. It strikes a nice balance between slow and mid-tempo parts.
Score: 47
There’s something about Italian which makes it suit ballads quite well. The orchestration also helps to keep it from getting too sad, with occasional explosions of brass. Definitely one of the better ballads this evening.
Score: 57
| R/O | Country | Song | Score | Place |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 | Luxembourg 1 | Ne crois pas | 97 | 1 |
| 11 | Germany 2 | So geht das jede Nacht | 95 | 2 |
| 2 | Switzerland 1 | Das alte Karussel | 88 | 3 |
| 7 | Italy 1 | Aprite le finestre | 84 | 4 |
| 9 | Switzerland 2 | Refrain | 75 | 5 |
| 12 | France 2 | Il esl là | 73 | 6 |
| 3 | Belgium 1 | Messieurs les noyés de la Seine | 71 | 7 |
| 1 | Netherlandns 1 | De vogels van Holland | 59 | 8 |
| 4 | Germany 1 | Im Wartesaal zum großen Glück | 58 | 9 |
| 14 | Italy 2 | Amami se vuoi | 57 | 10 |
| 8 | Netherlands 2 | Voorgoed voorbij | 53 | 11 |
| 13 | Luxembourg 2 | Les amants de minuit | 47 | 12 |
| 10 | Belgium 2 | Le plus beau jour de ma vie | 36 | 13 |
| 5 | France 1 | Le temps perdu | 18 | 14 |
Average score: 65.071
Median score: 65.0
The interval act is a little bit of bird whistling accompanied by a piano. It’s suprisingly charming. I liked it.
Despite having taken place almost 70 years ago, it definitely feels like Eurovision. Some songs blend in a bit (though not a lot, having a producer-decided order helps a lot, which is why I prefer it to a random draw). I could see myself sitting in my living room, staring at the brand new television set, rooting for my favourite song.