Eurovision 2008 - Germany

Disappear
No Angels

Music: Remee, Hanne Sorvaag, Thomas Troelsen
Lyrics: Remee, Hanne Sorvaag, Thomas Troelsen


History (1956 to 2007):

Germany's previous appearances: 51 year(s) out of 52
Years participated: 1956-1995; 1997-
Best result: 1st (1982)

Together with France, Germany has made more Eurovision appearances than any other country, participating in 49 of the 50 contests to date. The only gap is 1996, when the country failed to get through the pre-selection stage - the sole occasion that such a process has been used. Ironically, the intended German song was one of the best it has come up with in recent years, with Leon's hi-energy 'Planet of Blue' sounding modern and fresh compared to many of the German entries before or since. On the other hand, German displeasure at their unjust ejection helped precipitate the introduction of 'Big 4 ' status for Germany, France, Spain and the UK, thus preventing any of the 'big beast' Eurovision nations from missing out again.

Considering the number of occasions that Germany has appeared, its record of Eurovision success is unspectacular. The country has won just once, in 1982, but did so very easily with Nicole and her beautiful song 'Ein Bisschen Frieden'. As 'A Little Peace', the song went on to international success, including spending two weeks at No.1 in the UK. Scarily, that was the last time a Eurovision winner scored a UK No.1 - even Johnny Logan in 1987 and Katrina in 1997 had to make do with a No.2 and No.3 respectively.

Back to Germany, the country's recent record has been mixed. Returning in 1997 after its enforced absence the previous year, Bianca Shomburg's 'Zeit' was tipped to do well, but could only finish 18th. Trying something completely different, Germany sent Guildo Horn in 1998, memorable for him clambering all over the set if not for his singing talent. Still, it was great fun, and the televoters rewarded him with 7th place. Normal service resumed in 1999, with a song written by the prolific Ralph Siegel, the composer of Germany's winner in 1982, among many others. 'Reise nach Jerusalem' was sung in a mix of German, Turkish and English, and was probably the strongest German entry since Nicole; it came close to winning, but eventually had to be happy with 3rd place - not bad for a song that only got to represent its country when the original winner of the National Final (Corinna May's lovely 'Hör den kindern einfach zu') was disqualified as a result of being released by a different singer in 1997.

In 2000, Germany went for humour again, with Stefan Raab - who had written Guildo's song two years earlier - performing a song himself. Once again, it was well-rewarded, finishing 5th. Interestingly, Raab qualified for Eurovision ahead of Corinna May, back for another go with the powerful 'I believe in God', after her abortive effort the year before - however, finishing 2nd, she once again missed out on representing her country.

In 2001, Corinna May had a year off, and Germany sent Michelle, a helium-voiced singer who made 'Wer liebe lebt' sound like the theme from 'Alvin and the Chipmunks'. Still, someone must have liked it, as it finished 8th; perhaps it was a vote for originality, given the novelty of a song not written by Ralph Siegel or Stefan Raab?

After a good run of top ten places, hopes were high for victory in 2002, with Corinna May finally getting to go to Eurovision with an extremely strong song - 'I can't live without music' - once again written by Ralph Siegel. Though it was the pre-Contest favourite, the performance on the night just didn't work - it seemed awkward and stilted, and the song finished a very disappointing 21st. Never one to give up, Ralph Siegel came back in 2003, this time with the orange-haired, wide-mouthed Lou. It was debatable whether the song or Lou herself was most frightening, but the televoters were unimpressed and 'Let's get happy' ended up a relatively disappointing 11th. Deciding that enough was enough, Germany's 2004 national final was restricted to successful chart acts, with techno group Scooter among the popular names taking part. The eventual winner, Max, secured a massive hit in Germany with the soulful and fresh 'Can't wait until tonight', but had to be content with 8th place at Eurovision. Still, it was enough to qualify Germany for the 2005 Final on its own merits, rather than by virtue of its 'Big 4' status.

For 2005, Germany once again sought a credible, chart-worthy entry, the result being Gracia with her song 'Run and hide'. Sadly for Germany it proved an unfortunate choice. First, 'Run and hide' gained the unenviable distinction of being the most scandal-hit entry of 2005, with allegations of chart manipulation causing the song to be expelled from the German Top 40 - quite a rumpus ensued, given that the song's eligibility for the Eurovision selection was as a direct result of it being a Top 40 hit. Then, as if that wasn't enough, Gracia's performance in Kiev managed to pick up just 2 points each from Moldova and Monaco, her 24th (and last) place managing to rob Stone and Stone (1995) of their place in history as Germany's worst ever Eurovision placing. However, Germany's dismal result was perhaps mitigated by the fact that the four bottom placings were all occupied by 'Big 4' countries, making Germany's failure seem less remarkable in the light of similarly poor results for France, Spain and the UK. Of course, the 'Big 4' nations automatically gain a place in the following year's Final regardless of how they perform the year before, a rule that seems increasingly anachronistic now that all countries are guaranteed participation every year.

In 2007 Germany was represented by the Romanian-German jazz singer Roger Cicero.


This year's entry:





My prediction & opinion:

This year Germany is sending a summer song, like the one Spain sent in 2006, but a little better.

My prediction for the Semi Final: N/A
My prediction for the Final: 14th to 16th