Well, we’re one month away from the Eurovision song contest, so I thought I’d use that as an excuse to listen to some music and then tell the internet what I thought of it. I’ll be going through all the entrants in more detail nearer the time, but for now I’d like to focus on the six countries already confirmed to be competing: France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Great Britain, and of course the hosts, Azerbaijan. Let us eschew all forms of cultural and national bias and begin with my home country, Great Britain, being represented by Engelbert Humperdinck.
Engelbert Humperdinck - Love Will Set You Free
I confess, I had never heard of Mr. dinck before, so you can imagine my anxiety upon hearing the news that after the humiliation of last year’s teeth-pullingly bad entrant “I Can”, Britain would be represented by a man who’s last name is shared by a prince in “The Princess Bride”. My mixed feelings were completely washed away upon hearing what is, in my humble opinion, the best Eurovision entrant Britain has had in many a year. The song opens with some smooth, lonely guitar chords, perhaps partially influenced by Spanish flamenco, before Humperdinck comes in with some incredibly velvety crooning, showing no trace of his borderline 76 years. It’s a very welcome pegging back of the usually over-the-top production that Eurovision has become known for in recent years, there’s little else but Humperdinck and a guitar, and that’s all the song needed. Humperdinck’s… experience, shall we put it politely, ultimately works to his advantage, because when he’s singing what are simplistic but effective lyrics, he actually has the air of someone who really has been through what he’s singing about, unlike the vast majority of pop “sensation” 20 year olds singing about love as though they have any idea what it is, (Disclaimer: I’m 19, I just hate my generation) Humperdinck is actually (incidentally I’m also not gay) believable when he sings about missing the woman who is the subject of the song forever. The song finishes with a beautiful high note that I hope for Britain’s sake Humperdinck is able to pull off live on the night, but in terms of the song, it’s a great finish to this quiet, brilliant ballad. If I had to levy one criticism at it, I would say that, while the lyrics do work, they are occasionally a little too simplistic, particularly a chorus totally void of rhyme which undoes some perfectly solid and occasionally pretty good verses. But ultimately, the lyrics aren’t much of an issue, the certainly never stopped me singing along, and they aren’t going to stop Humperdinck from having one of the best songs of the show, in spite of how the politically skewed voting goes.
Tomorrow, we’ll be taking a look at the hosts and defending champions, Azerbaijan.
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