Bye Bye Krista, As she's leaves Melodifestivalen semi 2 in Malmo- sad face : (

        Krista Siegfrids she came, she (and still) concequed Melodifestivalen with her bubbly diva fun personality and amazing presentation of her song 'Faller' (Falling)

       For me Krista was the highlight of the night, as well as the fabulous Charlotte Perrelli who added a lot of more schlager magic to the second semi final. Then Charlotte even popped up in Denmarks Melodi Grand Prix final for a short interview during their interval, what a schlager trooper Charlotte is.
       As for the the songs, the only one that excites me was David Lindgren 'We Are Your Tomorrow'
and the best of the Second Chance round was Isa with  'I will Wait' her power pop- ballad
I felt certain Krista was worthy of at least a second chance placing, lets hope there is some more extra schlager-magic and sparkle due for the next Melodifestivalen semi final.

Melodifestivalen Swedish Chart action for Week: 12 Feb 2016

During Melodifestivalen season it's always good to see how the singles charts looks as the Melodifestivalen songs are released. As is traditional the grand final Melodifestivalen entries do not normally get a release until nearer to the time of the Melodifestivalen Grand Final.
So in the Top 10 we can see popular 'Bada Nakna' -Samir & Viktor who held top place in the i-tunes chart for so long after their Melodifestivalen 1st semi performance last weekend.
Will they hit the No:1 slot next week?
In fact this early release of Bada Nakna' could work out in their favour as the track should be getting lots of radio AirPlay and help Samir & Victor into the Final via the second chance round. They certainly have a huge summer hit on their hands two years running now.

Meanwhile the fellow 'second chance' round entry Albin & Mattrias "Rik" (Rich) is a new entry at No: 32, and should rise more with next week, just stay schlagertuned for more action....

                          Tack Samir & Viktor's facebook

1	2			Zayn Pillowtalk			Syco Music/rca Records / Sony Music SME	USRC11600069	2
2	1			Alan Walker Faded			Mer Musikk / Sony Music SME	NOG841549010	10
3				Samir & Viktor Bada nakna			Wm Sweden / Warner WMS	SEPQA1600011	1
4	3			Jonas Blue feat. Dakota Fast Car			Jonas Blue Music/universal Music / Universal UNI	GBUM71507621	8
5	4			Justin Bieber Love Yourself			Def Jam Recordings / Universal UNI	USUM71516761	13
6	5			G-Eazy X Bebe Rexha Me, Myself & I			Rca Records / Sony Music SME	USRC11502210	7
7	7			Otto Knows feat. Lindsey Stirling & Alex Aris Dying For You			Disconap Ab/wm Sweden / Warner WMS	SE4OX1500118	4
8	6			Major Lazer feat. Nyla & Fuse ODG Light It Up (Remix)			Warner Music Group / Warner WMS	QMUY41500014	13
9	10			Mike Posner I Took A Pill In Ibiza			Island / Universal UNI	USUM71509342	18
10	8			Justin Bieber Sorry			Def Jam Recordings / Universal UNI	USUM71516760	16

Many Thanks to: Sverige Topplistan site hitparad.se

All eyes will be on Denmark for the Melodi Grand Prix 2016- This weekend

Denmark have an amazing track record at Eurovision Song Contest, as well as they always seem to follow a Swedish win, with a win of their own on swedish soil. However the recent stripped down Melodi Grand Prix in 2015 failed to produce a song to take Denmark to the final with Anti- Social Media. If like me you through it's just not the same without Denmark at the grand final party, you'll be hoping for a return to form

We have got some great songs this year, my two favourites are: Anja Nissen with 'Never Alone' that has been wrote by former Eurovision winner Emile De Forest. Anja is a Sydneysider from a danish family as well as a winner of The Voice Australia. Anja has already voiced  how she would feel uncomfortable if in direct competion with Delta Goodrem. However if she wins MGP that is a strong possibly this will be her fate. Bracelet are the best song in the MGP for me and with the right performance on the night I hope we will see them in Stockholm, being made up of two swedes and one dane Globen will be second home to them anyhow.

As always you can never really know what might happen in Denmark's final and another outsider to watch is 'Blue Horizon' by Sophia Nohr, that could do well.

Austria has chosen Zoe for Stockholm, with a song completely in french!

Austria had a marathon 'Wer Singt Fur Osterreich'National final featuring 10 songs, plus a super final and two star judges with Conchitta & american Jule Frost (songwriter of Satellite in 2010) although a long process. I liked they way they presented the artists. The staging was very good, but lacked originality with a couple of songs, it was really a case of...did you not know that has been done before at ESC recently.

My own favourite was Sankil Jones, who had a different voice and a song called 'One More Sound' his performance was great. Only the song just lacked a little something, next year maybe?

The winner Zoe, was lucky second time around as just last year she came 3rd with a 1920's style 'Quel Filou' in the Austrian final. Last year Zoe sung in mainly english, although she writes and sings fully in french. So for this year she made the switch to full french with great success- Zoe won the ticket to Stockholm with her new track 'Loin d'ici'. It's interesting how the jury panel complained that french - may hold her back at Eurovision! One jury member even asked why she was not singing in german instead.

Thankfully the austrian public votes went almost totally differently from the jury votes on the night. It's worth noting Zoe's has a full french album released 'Debut' available on i-tunes. I have one firm favourite for Stockholm 2016 with "Loin d'ici"

Last year's third placed 'Quel Filou' by Zoe.

Melodifestivalen Semi Final 1: Goteburg : Ace & Robin all the way

The first show of the Melodifestivalen season kicked off in Goteburg, and what a wonderful show it was,  full of great music and the wonderful presenter Petra Mede. How could it go wrong?
Well we had the schlager tragedy (que Bee Gees) when Anna Book's song was disqualified just a head of Melodifestivalen week one. We still got to see Anna Book's schlager magic during the show and after the first round of voting, personally I loved the song, but I am not convinced "Himmel for Tva' would have made it out of the Second Chance round to be in the final in the end !

Melodifestivalen started how the Final in 2015 started with Samir & Viktor and 'Bada Nakna'- I luv this track,  it seems perhapes better than 'Groupie' and another swedish chart hit. You could see Viktor's real disapointment with not going direct to the Grand Final. I think this track will get through Second Change round without a problem. 'Bada Nakna' is already No: 1 on the swedish i-tunes chart, just above Mimi Werner's 'Ain't No Good' & "Rik" Albin & Mattias. "Rik" I did not rate too highly on the night, in fact Mimi Werner's song I through would be a better second changer. Ever popular singer Mattias carried the track and the public votes, I was asking myself is Sweden ready for a Samir & Viktor mark#2? Not just yet!

Then came Robin Bengtsson, who has been away from the swedish music scene for a short-while, but what a comeback track, I like 'Constellation Prize' a lot. Already I can see Robin Bengtsson as being one of the best songs of 2016. At this early stage I will place Robin Top 3 or Top 5. This track is very fresh and new, with a hint of One Direction-esque to it. Go Robin Go.

The big question in Goteberg was will Ace Wilder get a ticket direct to Friends Arena? Yes you can & she did, although 'Busy Doin Nothing'  was a mega hit for Ace Wilder. I was not a great fan of the song, it was caughty but too gimmicky if you asked me. So with 'Don't Worry' Ace has come up with a far better song and dropped the gimmicks and wham bam,  she will be back in the charts with this new single. I can also see those International juries of the Melodifestivalen Final liking Ace as well as Robin.

So great tunes already in the final, I cannot wait to see more next weekend.

Review of Germany's Song for Stockholm 2016- One's to watch out for..

                                Thanks to FB for photos cover pics

Well this year Germany have certainly turned things around after that last placing in Vienna. When
Ann Sophie sang 'Black Smoke' Then after much confusion about the Xavier Naidoo-saga last year, NDR did a 90 degree about turn, and went from a internal selection to finally having a National selection next month. (as they normally do anyhow! phew! )
Alot of the songs in the final, are released already this month and available to listen to, and I am impressed with a few entries. The standard seems to have lifted in the past 12 months in Germany, one of my favourites is KEOMA a duo who have the haunting 'Protected' song, with the right presentation this certainly has a 'goosebumps factor 9' and the one to check out for me. (I have it download already + dance mix)

Then we have a safer choice of Jamie Lee Kriewitz singing 'Ghost' this has already risen to No: 11 in the German charts last month, as Jamie Lee was the most recent winner of The Voice of Germany. So this will certainly be the one to beat as the german public should vote for a radio hit song they know so well.
Ralph Siegel has some serious competition with Laura Pinski, yet this tune has been kept under wraps and should be completely new and fresh, I hope it will be very different from 2015's 'Chain of Light' and put Herr Siegel back on top?

Here is the full line up for the German National Final, it should be an interesting and lets hope non of the artists opt out like what happened in 2015 at the national final.

Avantasia - Mystery Of A Blood Red Rose

Alex Diehl - Nur ein Lied

Ella Endlich - Adrenalin

Gregorian - Masters Of Chant

Jamie-Lee Kriewitz - Ghost

Joco - Full Moon

Keøma - Protected

Laura Pinski - Under The Sun We Are One

Luxuslärm - Solange Liebe in mir wohnt

Woods of Birnam - Lift Me Up (From The Underground)

The show 'Unsere lied for Stockholm' is on 28th February 2016

                                             'Hello, my name is Jamie- Lee from Germany'


Thanks to FB for photos cover pics

At Last, Ralph Siegel returns to Eurovision Germany 2016

         He is know as Mr Grand Prix with a long history of writing Eurovision hits for his homeland Germany. Ralph penned the first Germany winner 'Ein Bisschen Freiden' way back in 1982.
        In recent years Siegel has each year presented the San Marino Eurovision entry, three years running sung by non other than Valentina Monetta, and just last year Michele Perniola & Anita Simoncini's 'Chain of Light', Ralph has wrote the Germany Eurovision entry 14 times in the past.

        The last time was back in 2003 when Germany finished in 11th place and Lou sang 'Lets get happy' it's been a long while since then.

The new song is 'Under the sun we are one' for the Germany and will be sung by Laura Pinski on 25th February 2016, it will be great to see Ralphy back in Stockholm this year.

Eurovision Song Contest: Time Machine Flashback 1988.

The year was 1988 the tune- Shangri-La, the location  was Dublin, Ireland just after Johnny Logan's second runaway victory of 1987 The song written by songwriter Peter de Wjn, who wrote 'Ticket to the tropics' a previous dutch number one hit for Gerard Joling in 1985
On the scoreboard, Greece and Luxembourg gave Netherlands 12 points, however the song was up against tunes from Celine Dion and UK's Scott Fitzgerald.

Gerard's career took off after Eurovision not only in Netherlands he sold many Gold records in Asia as well, later in 2005 Gerard became a headliner of the popular schlager group De Toppers and this meant he returned to Eurovision stage in 2009  in Moscow with the song 'Shine'.

As was the requiement at Eurovision 1988 this song was sung in dutch, I enjoy the english version alot more and it is available still in i-tunes, if you can check it out as well.

Dateline: Eurovision 1988
Country: Netherlands
Song: Shangri-La
Result: 9th place
Artist: Gerard Joling

Måns & Petra Mede to be the host duo for Eurovision in Stockholm 2016

Sweden's newspaper Expressen have released the story, hot on the heals of SVTs big announcement on Monday, It's taken a while for the decision to be made at SVT and this may well have been while contracts for the hosts was being drawn up.

Further words heard on the Stockholm gamla streets is that Mans wants to present his new music during the Eurovision shows, as super-Mans is busy touring and recording a planned new album release next year, as well. That would be a wonderful idea and I hope that becomes a reality too.

Mans Zelmerlow really is one of the best TV presenters already in his homeland. As Mans has proved during his long music and stage career. So it's not a case of the winning singer stepping in to try out abit of something new here.
Then what can be said about the amazing fantastic Petra Mede, she simply delighted the Eurovision world in Malmö 2013.
Petra made doing a one woman show, look so very easy, and her fast takin funny comments are just Euro gold itself. Personally I think no single host has made such an impression since Katie Boyle way back then in the Eurovision history book.
It will be a good choice from SVT to have a duo of presenters that work well together, it's a formular that has worked well at Eurovision Song Contests in the past.
Finally lets hope the rumour is true, when all is officially released on Monday. To quote the old Pointer Sisters 'I'm so excited. And I just can't hide it.......'
This story just had to be told.

Eurovision Song Contest: Time Machine Flashback 1994.

Before the National Final season gets into full swing in europe, we are taking a time to choose an historical entry from past years. A song that maybe did not do so well but should not be forgotten. I just luv delving into the ole Eurovision history book, as there is often a little gem to find and even download as some have stayed around in i-tunes and found on spotify.

Dateline: Eurovision 1992
Country: Croatia
Song: Nek Ti Bude Ljubav Sva
Result: 16th place
Artist: Tony Cetinski

This was the second time Croatia had entered Eurovision Song Contest, the best result they have produced to date in the contest is with Doris Dragovic & Maja Blagdan finishing in 4th place in 1999 & 1996. While back in 1992, Tony was already a new Croatian singer and his success grew to make him one of the best known singers through out the balkan countries today. Tony is also best known for his duet with the late Tose Proeski. He sang 'Nek Ti Bude Ljubav Sva' in 1992 this gave him the first huge hit, and this classic tune is available on i-tunes as I discovered and added to my evergreen collection.

Donny is finally back for Lituania for 2016.

How can anyone forget the 'Love is Blind' performance in Baku  from Donny Montell (Donatas Montvydas) back in 2012.

Lithuania is a country that have never won Eurovision yet they certainly know how to make an impression at the contest. This sometimes works like LT United's 'We are the Winners' in 2006, (6th place) other times it leaves a long lasting impression like InCulto's 'Easten European Funk' in Eurovision 2010 that somehow failed to quailfy for the grand final! Since LT United, Lithuania seem to take the contest alot more serious and the results like Donny's 'Love is Blind' 14th placing are on the up.

Well appearently Donny has been waiting for the right song to make his return to the Eurovision stage. The song has arrived with 'I've been waiting for this night' and an impressive video in the can, filmed on location in Stockholm. A song written by Jonas Thander & Beatrice Robertsson and we like it, however it may not be a winning song for Stockholm.

Last year the Lithuanian national final became abit of a puzzle they have Artist selection and a song selection, and some how the two are married together. It worked really well for the calibration of two artists Monika Linkytė & Vaidas Baumila to present 'This Time' we are wondering how this will work for Donny who has a fantatstic solo track. You can see the new song video below: