Love is Blue may not immediately strike the passer-by as the most typical Eurovision song to feature first in this blog. The song sung at the 1967 Eurovision by a 14 year-old Vicky Leandros doesn’t conform to all the usual Eurovision stereotypes.
There’s no key change for a start. There’s no oompah-oompah sound. No eye-catching costumes.
That was all to come in later years. Some even consider it was signalled by the song which won the contest the same year Love is Blue was performed – the UK’s Puppet on a String.
In stark contrast, Love is Blue offers a strong yet hauntingly simple melody with an unusual orchestral accompaniment. There’s an earthiness to the overall sound in no small part down to the medieval sound of chord progressions and the switch to a major chord right at the end of the song. The seemingly endless repetitions of the simple melodic phrase which opens the song sucessfully permeates the brain making this song difficult to forget.
Was it a calculated move on the part of the composer Andre Poppe? It would certainly have done much to have cemented the thought of the song in the mind of the international juries at the time. That combined with the surprisingly mature sound of its singer and its undoubtedly simple yet stylish presentation would have made an impact.
It wasn't to be. Luxembourg didn't exactly languish in the final ranking, but it's fourth place at the end of the voting is a little bemusing looking back now. The song contains some ingenious writing.
But it's the subsequent commercial success of Love is Blue which secures the song’s place in Eurovision history. Paul Mauriat’s instrumental version released in 1968 secured five weeks at the top of the US charts in the same year. Featuring Mauriat’s trademark easy listening orchestral sound, it was this version which championed Andre Poppe’s melody even if the finished product sounds a little sanitised in comparison.
Should Love is Blue have won instead in 1967? I’ve been agonising over whether or not it should have done but have settled on an answer which mixes hindsight with a sense of superiority. The fact the song has become famous in it’s own right since Vicky Leandross’ performance gives it a kudos far weightier than a Eurovision win could have given it. And where Eurovision is concerned, kudos is everything.
The video below features the 1968 re-recording in a live performance conducted by Paul Mauriat himself.
3 comments:
Certainly one of the most lovely and distinctive melodies ever featured at Eurovision.
I think an additional factor in its final placing was that it occupied the most famous "death slot" of them all; in 52 Eurovisions so far, [b]no[/b] song performed second in the running order has ever won (or indeed qualified from the semi-final either).
Written by Mr Poppe, eh? We know someone of that name, don't we, boys and girls.
That orchestral version is the first instrumental I've ever seen which has 'singers' who hold microphones to their mouths, but remain unheard.
That must be long lost Uncle Andre. I wonder if he'll leave me his millions?
It's a beautiful song. Very loungey 60s.
Post a Comment