Summer Break

It is summer, holidays! Enjoy the days. Merci Chérie will make a break and is walking on some mountains. I will be back soon providing with rarities and fun stuff.

Paula Seling & Ovi - Playing With Fire (2010)

LINK: Paula Seling & Ovi - Playing With Fire

This song was the biggest surprise for me at this years Eurovision Song Contest in Oslo. Paula Seling and Ovi presented a very catchy pop tune and ended on 3rd place in the 2010 contest with Playing With Fire. It only received one time a 12 pointer (from Moldova of course) but received points from numerous countries and climbed at position 3.

Paula Seling was born on Christmas day 1978 in Baia Mare. Her first album Only Love was released 1998 in Germany. Since then twelve album followed. She also owns an own record studio and record company named Unicorn Records. So, she is big in Romania!

Ovi Martin (or Ovidiu Cernăuţeanu) is half Romanian and half Norwegian, which made Norwegians supporting the Romanian entry. He released his first album 2009 titled The Gig Almost Got Me Killed. In 2006 he particiapted at the Norwegian preselection with the song The Better Side Of Me which reached the second change round after the semi final. 2009 he tried it again with Seven Seconds and was in the final of the Norwegian Melodi Grand Prix. In 2010 he won the Romanian preselection with Paula Seling.

This release brings us the 2010 entry in it's original version and in two remixes, the 2009 Norwegian entry of Ovi and many other songs by the two artists.

Playing With Fire

1. Paula Seling & Ovi - Playing With Fire (Ovi Jacobsen)

2. Ovi - Bent Out Of Shape (Ovi - Simen M. Eriksrud - Bjørn Bergene)

3. Paula Seling - Believe (Paula Seling)

4. Ovi - Audrey (Ovi - Simen M. Eriksrud - Even Olsen - Preston Glass - Ovi - Simone Larsen)

5. Paula Seling - Promise (Paula & Paul Seling - Even Olsen)

6. Ovi - Vagabond (Ovi - Even Olsen)

7. Paula Seling - Just You (Paula & Paul Seling - Paula Seling)

8. Ovi - Seven Seconds (Simone - Simen M. Eriksrud - Simone)

9. Paula Seling - Get Up Now (Paula & Paul Seling - Paula Seling)

10. Paula Seling & Ovi - Playing With Fire (Fly DJs Remix) (Ovi Jacobsen)

11. Paula Seling & Ovi - Playing With Fire (Wind & Fire Remix) (Ovi Jacobsen)

On my way to Oslo

At my departure to Oslo I want to give you this parody of this years Finnish entry. I simply love it.

As I told you, I am leaving for Oslo now and will be back in June. I wish all visitors of the Merci Chérie blog all the best and a fabulous Eurovision week 2010.

You want to know what music the blog author likes this year? Well, the last years I was quiet sure about the winners before the contest. This year seems to be totally unpredictable. Most people think Azerbaijan will win. I don't. I don't like the song at all, to be honest. The Netherlands do have the most difficult entry. It could end with null points or win. I really don't know. Not my cup of Shalali. Germany is the second favourite. For the future of the contest a German victory would probably be a good thing. My favourite though is ... Israel.

Here my results, without knowing the live performances yet. I change my mind the last weeks rapidly, so this list could look very different on may 29th.

Israel 12

Estonia 10

Belgium 8

Germany 7

Iceland 6

Switzerland 5

Slovakia 4

Turkey 3

Lithuania 2

France 1

Kristina - Horehronie (2010)

LINK: Kristina - Horehronie

In Slovakia you can find a river named Hron. The region around that river, situated in the region of Banská Bystrica and Brezno is called Horehronie. The river is in a valley and surrounded by lovely and beautiful mountains of the Low Tatra. It is this touristic region, Kristina is singing about in her 2010 entry for Slovakia.

Kristína Palková, simply Kristina for the European audience, was born 1987. She started singing in some Jazz clubs where she met Martin Kavulič, who shall produce and compose her songs, including Horehronie. In 2008 she released her debut album ...ešte váham and she had already four hits in Slovakia. 2010 she won the Slovakian preselection with Horehronie, a tune between New Age and Orientalism.

Horehronie was a number one hit in Slovakia and the CD single release includes seven versions of the song. The bonus track on the CD single are four versions of Stonka, another hit of Kristina, released 2009.

Kristina - Horehronie

(all songs composed and written by Martin Kavulič - Kamil Peteraj)

1. Horehronie (Radio Edit)

2. Horehronie (Extended)

3. Horehronie (Akustická verzia)

4. Horehronie (KaMa Remix Radio Edit)

5. Horehronie (KaMa Remix Extended)

6. Horehronie (CJ Macintosh & Mambo DJ - Sirius Club Remix)

7. Horehronie (Karaoke)

8. Stonka (Radio Edit)

9. Stonka (Akustická verzia)

10. Stonka (KaMa Remix Radio Edit)

11. Stonka (KaMa Remix Extended)

InCulto - Eastern European Funk (2010)

LINK: InCulto - Eastern European Funk

Funny instruments and a funny song: The Band InCulto will represent Lithuania at the Eurovision Song Contest 2010 in Oslo. The band released it's debut album 2004 with the (again funny) title PostSovPop. They won several awards in Lithuania like Best New Act at the Bravo Music Awards 2004, in 2005 they won two awards as Best Band and Best Alternative Act.

The lead singer of InCulto is Columbian born but Lithuanian Jurgis Didžiulis. The other members are Aurelijus Morlencas, Sergej Makidon, Jievaras Jasinskis and Laurynas Lapė. In 2004 they tried their first attempt to represent their country at the Eurovision Song Contest. The song You Don't Know was the first song in the first semifinal of the Lithuanian preselection, but failed to reach the final show. In 2006 they came 2nd with Welcome To Lithuania, which can be heard on this CD single.

Eastern Euopean Funk ist actually a very good song, but very unpredictible, as it is not a classic Eurovision tune. The CD single brings us seven songs, including four versions of the Eurovision entry.

InCulto - Eastern European Funk

(all songs written by InCulto)

1. Eastern European Funk

2. Keep On Dancing

3. Sabroso

4. Welcome To Lithuania (Live)

5. Eastern European Funk (Acoustic)

6. Eastern European Funk (2Foxy Rmx)

7. Eastern European Reggaeton (Morlenka Remake)

Michael von der Heide - Bye Bye Bar (1999)

LINK: Michael von der Heide - Bye Bye Bar

The fantastic Swiss singer Michael von der Heide, which career I follow since several years (and I had the luck to meet him personally several times), represent his country this year with the wonderful song Il pleur de l'or, something between Europop and Chanson. I really like it a lot and hope Switzerland has more luck this year and we can see Michael in the final show. Switzerland would really deserve it. I liked the last two entries 2008 and 2009 a lot, but they failed to reach the final show.

Michael von der Heide participated 1999 in the German preselection show with the song Bye Bye Bar. Switzerland had to make a year break. In the German show of 1999 he was introduced as the "unofficial Swiss" representant, which was maybe a mistake, because why should Germans vote for a Swiss entry? Anyway: The song came 5th and was released on a CD single. The winner was Corinna May with Hör den Kindern einfach zu but the song had to be disqualified, which brought Ralph Siegels band Sürpriz to Jerusalem.

Michael von der Heide - Bye Bye Bar

1. Bye Bye Bar (Micha Lewinsky - Thomas Fessler - Jeannot Steck - Micha Lewinsky)

2. Grau (Michael von der Heide - Thomas Fessler - Markus Kühne - Michael von der Heide)

3. Fählsch mer (Martin Suter - Markus Kühne - Thomas Fessler)

Roger Cicero - Guess Who Rules The World (2007)

LINK: Roger Cicero - Guess Who Rules The World

When I saw a TV commercial for a concert of Roger Cicero a few weeks ago, I really had a huge laugh. In one part of the clip you could read "Eastern Europe doesn't like him". Well... At least Albania and Estonia gave the German artist some points. But probably Roger Cicero is too much a swing specialist and less suitable for Eurovision.

In Helsinki 2007 he performed Frauen regier'n die Welt. A rare promo CD features the English version, without mentioning the composer and the lyricist, which isn't quiet fair for those. The composer is Matthias Hass, the lyrics in German are from Frank Ramond. I don't know if he also wrote the English lyrics.

1. Roger Cicero - Guess Who Rules The World (Matthias Hass)