A short post compared to my usual tomes but last week I had a bit of a meltdown, where the very thought of looking at my home computer screen induced the collywobbles. ‘Tis all the fault of this new-fangled, hot desking, paperless office I have to turn up to every day – It’s not for me I’ve decided and Mr WIAA and I have been having very serious talks about what is to be done.
In the meantime, as this is in effect my web-diary, I want to record the fact that a very simple jazz ballad sung by a chap with a dicky ticker won last weekend’s Eurovision Song Contest for Portugal. It was written by his sister and after being announced as the winner, the pair got up on stage to perform the song together.
I am a fan of Eurovision and over the last 12 years we have watched it with the same set of friends who again came round for Saturday night’s show. I had intended to do a series of posts last week about the “Wacky World of Eurovision” (which is why some of you saw that title appear on your sidebar), but after the meltdown, that didn’t come to pass. Also I think I possibly had a bit of a wobble about ruining any music-blogging credibility I may have left!
In the end however, amidst a sea of the usual weird and wonderful big production numbers, it was a simple love song that came out on top. We all scored it in our top three and it seems the rest of Europe agreed. Reassuringly, our own UK entry sung by Lucie Jones also did pretty well (relatively speaking) and here I was thinking that after all the “triggering” that’s been going on around here recently, we would end up at the bottom of the pile.
And so I give you the winning song, Amar Pelos Dois, written by Luisa Sobral and sung by her brother Salvador Sobral. The lyrics were performed in Portuguese but somehow we could still tell that it was the story of a lost love and of the singer’s continuous search to find her.
Amar Pelos Dois by Salvador Sobral:
So, “What’s It All About?” – I love what all this new technology can do for us but having just worked out that some days I will now perhaps spend 16 hours in front of a bank of computer screens, something will have to be done. Mr Sobral above has given up all social media and the backdrop for his song was not pyrotechnics but calming scenes from nature. Why did his song win? It was beautiful indeed but I also think that those of us with addled brains found it a real solace to listen to, and for me, it harked back to simpler times. In the short-term I think I’ll have to battle on, but for the longer-term, the life of a robot is not for me – Thank you Salvador for reminding me of that on Saturday night and please, please look after that dicky ticker because I want you, and your sweet songs, to be around for some time to come.
Amar Pelos Dois Lyrics
(Song by Luisa Sobral)
If one day someone asks about me
Tell them I lived to love you
Before you, I only existed
Tired and with nothing to give
My dear, listen to my prayers
I beg you to return, to want me again
I know that one can’t love alone
Maybe slowly you might learn again
My dear, listen to my prayers
I beg you to return, to want me again
I know that one can’t love alone
Maybe slowly you might learn again
If your heart doesn’t wish to give in
Not to feel passion, not to suffer
Without making plans of what will come after
My heart can love for the both of us
Postscript:
Although I initially thought that Salvador’s win at Eurovision was purely down to the simplicity of his song there was most definitely another factor at play – The big winner at this year’s Oscars was the film La La Land (although we have to remind ourselves it didn’t actually win the award for Best Film despite having been announced as such by Warren Beatty on the night). It also harked back in style to the romantic musicals of the ’40s and ’50s, and the musical numbers were simple, jazz influenced, piano-accompanied delights. The “halo effect” is definitely a thing, and one I am always highly influenced by, so it is likely that those of us who enjoyed Salvador’s song subconsciously associated it with the music from La La Land. In case you’re not aware of any of the songs from its soundtrack, here is my favourite, City Of Stars sung by its two stars, Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone.
City of Stars by Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone:
What's It All About? 
Lovely song. I’d never heard of Salvador or his sister before.
Take care, Alyson —
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No I doubt very much that you would have heard of them as neither had we until last weekend! He does come across as a bit of a quirky eccentric but I am drawn to those types so fine by me.
Thanks for dropping by as I’m sure the whole Eurovision thing is a big mystery to you, but massive all over Europe – you either love it or hate it but I tend to fall into the former camp – nothing wrong with a bit of light-hearted musical fluff and nonsense once in a while!
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Sorry to hear you are having a bad time at work
I know the feeling
Grit the teeth, head down and every month is a bonus is how I’m getting through
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Am I a dinosaur? I’d really like to think not but if you’ve been used to a quiet office and lots of lovely stationery (I do love stationery!) it’s a cosmic leap away from that – Lots of noise, no stationery and banks of computer screens. I would love to just put in my earphones and listen to gentle songs like this one but not really an option. Because I gave up work to be a stay-at-home mum for some time I’m afraid there’s still an awful lot of months of gritting the teeth to be done! Time for a change maybe which I have been known to do every now and again and so far it’s always worked out.
Thanks for the commiserations – I’m getting that you know the feeling.
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Oh my heart goes out to you, Alyson. I met up with two old friends last week, both of whom work in (different sections of) the civil service; one has already gone the hot-desking, paperless office route, the other is just about to. We had a very passionate discussion about it and the changes in office life – and I know it’s not going to be of much consolation but if it just helps at all then I can confirm that you are at least very definitely not alone in your feelings about it! But perhaps it will instead present a new start/opportunity elsewhere – sometimes these things have a way of leading one to something better. I do hope so.
As for Eurovision – please don’t ever worry about this so-called ‘musical credibility’ thing! I really do think everything is credible – everything is valid – and always fun to read about, whether or not to our own taste!
Anyway, we watch Eurovision every year too – it’s entertaining and usually really heartwarming (I was so moved by Conchita Wurst’s popularity in 2014 – talk about positive!). I still feel that affinity with Europe, never mind Brexit, we’re still Europeans. aren’t we, and share that cultural history and geographical proximity regardless of politics – and the fact that our entry did quite well was reassuring on that level too! I like the little clips of the contestants in their home cities too ( a bit of armchair travelling). Salvador seemed really sweet and modest, the song was very different from the rest – a deserving winner, I reckon. The song that I remembered the most this year and ended up rooting for was from Hungary – loved the mix of traditional gypsy style folk song, with the dancer and the fiddle, and then suddenly the guy threw in a bit of rapping and in the native language too – seems to me this is what it should all be about, not just about trying to emulate the more anodyne type chart hits that could have come from anywhere.
Blimey, you got me started!
Good luck with everything, keep us posted!
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Oh dear I really am being a moaning Minnie about this aren’t I but as I said this blog has kind of ended up being my web diary so these frustrations spill out onto the pages. I think I may just be a bit too old for this brave new world but as you say, as one door closes, another sometimes opens so maybe a new opportunity might come along – Professional blogger would be nice but sadly not much money in that it seems!
Good to hear you like watching Eurovision as well – When I was young it was just great visiting all these cities vicariously and a couple of years ago we actually went to watch it live in Vienna where Conchita was one of the hosts (as she had won it the year before). Yes, we even got up close and personal with her as she presided over the green room which was right next to where we were standing. Loved Salvador this year but also loved the yodeller and the Moldovan brides/bridegrooms. So many 17-year-olds as well who absolutely nailed it – Such confidence in front of such a big audience.
Blogging as a stress-buster must work then as I am feeling a little better as I write this – thanks for the support as ever. Feel free to vent on your blog if similar issues arise (but I’m sure you would anyway). I will just mention that I did write a post about Conchita last year in case you want to visit it – Kept quiet about that one as one of my least visited posts but still live!
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It’s interesting the way songs can speak to things happening in our lives in a very personal way – even Eurovision hits!
I’m afraid that (despite my usual embrace of all things cheesy), I’ve never really been a Eurovision fan… not since Bucks Fizz, anyway. However, I do have friends – and serious music lovers too – who throw themselves into the spirit of it every year with a party. One of my housemates used to do that when I shared a house back in the 90s. I’d go out to the cinema that night.
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That’s ok – As it turns out I had a massive change of heart last week and ditched my planned Eurovision posts. In the course of writing this blog and taking a keener interest in the lyrics and back story to songs, suddenly the fluffy nonsense that is Eurovision seemed really embarrassing.
I watched it as a child however, have watched it with DD since she was a child, and now we usually have friends over for a bit of a party. Turned out to be quite good fun in the end this year and I was just so pleased that this song won as I am going through a phase where I want a return to a simpler way of life, and this song was perfect. Didn’t want pyrotechnics or gimmicks, just a good old-fashioned pared down song.
Thanks for dropping by, despite the fact you’re not a fan of Eurovision!
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I missed it this year: I was at a stag weekend in Cardiff; so, all in all, pretty similar really – all of life’s flotsam and jetsam laid bare.
As a footnote, I was in Lisbon earlier this year and I can confirm that they do have a penchant for bad salads – sorry, sad ballads.
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Yes very funny! Some of our Eurovision friends have actually already booked hotel rooms in Lisbon for next year – highly tempted as I do like a bad salad, I mean sad ballad.
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I hadn’t made that connection between La la Land and Sobral, the comparison makes sense. I missed Eurovision 2017, only heard the winner, and Danish entry by beauty Anja Nissen, which was tipped as a contender and underperformed, 20th out of 26 I think, some blaming it on its bombastic fireworks and slot right before the simpler emotion of the Portugese winner.
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Hi – I had to remind myself of the Danish entry and of course it was the blonde Danish/Australian girl. You are probably right in that it suffered by being right before the simple but beautiful Portugese entry. I’m still a bit smitten with Salvador – he was a very unique figure in this year’s Eurovision.
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