Australians who have done Eurovision
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German maid … Australian singer Jane Comerford represented Germany at Eurovision in 2006 with unlikely German country band Texas Lightning. They did not win.
Source: Supplied
GUY Sebastian may be Australia’s first Eurovision entrant, but Australians have sung at Eurovision before, just not representing Australia.
Indeed, one Australian-born man who most Australians have never heard of is the only person to win Eurovision twice.
Traitor … Gina G was born in Brisbane but busted Eurovision moves for the UK.
Source: AP
OLIVIA NEWTON-JOHN
Year: 1974
Song: Long Live Love
Country represented: UK
LIVVIE, who moved to Melbourne when she was six, has long hated Long Love Live, a song the British public voted as the tune she’d sung to represent her birth country of the UK in 1974. “I loved doing Eurovision but I didn’t like the song,” Livvie told us earlier this year. Displaying acting skills she’d later showcase in Grease and, um, Xanadu ONJ sang the heck out of this song and came fourth, a position the UK would kill for these days. She’d later record all the six songs that were her potential Eurovision tunes for an album called Long Live Love, with the title track making No. 11 in Australia and the UK.
JOHNNY LOGAN
Year: 1980
Song: What’s Another Year
Country represented: Ireland
AUSTRALIANS may not recognise Johnny Logan, but he’s a non-bogan from Frankston. Or, if you’re from Melbourne, Franga. Logan’s father was an Irish tenor and the family moved from Australia back to Ireland when Johnny was three. Born Sean Sherrard, he adopted the name Johnny Logan and had his first single released in Ireland in 1978. But he didn’t have any success until Logan won Eurovision in 1980 with ballad What’s Another Year. It’s a song about a husband mourning the death of his wife and went onto become a No. 1 hit in the UK, even though the party sax solo seems ill-fitting given the content.
JOHNNY LOGAN
Year: 1987
Song:Hold Me Now
Country represented: Ireland
MELBOURNE born Johnny Logan is the only person to have won Eurovision twice. After What’s Another Year his career had stalled somewhat. He wrote Hold Me Now himself and it won again for Ireland in 1987, giving him another UK hit but didn’t trouble the Australian chart. Logan would have more Eurovision glory behind the scenes — in 1992 he wrote a song called Hold Me for Irish contestant Linda Martin which won Eurovision (another song he wrote for Martin, Terminal 3, came second at Eurovision in 1984). He’s still making his own music, mainly Irish-related albums. It is unknown whether there is a plaque for ‘Mr Eurovision’ in downtown Frankston.
GINA G
Year: 1996
Song:Ooh Aah … Just a Little Bit
Country represented: UK
BORN in Brisbane, Gina G had some success when she moved to Melbourne and sang with Bass Culture who had a hit in 1992. By 1995 she’d moved to the UK and by 1996 represented Britain at Eurovision with this hi-NRG club banger written by Steve Rodway, who’d had some similar-sounding hits under the name Motiv8. Ooh … Aah came eighth at Eurovision but wound up becoming a genuine hit around the world, going to No. 1 in the UK, No. 5 in Australia and even No. 12 in the US, where it went on to be nominated for a Grammy for Best Dance Recording. Gina is now living in the US.
TEXAS LIGHTNING
Year: 2006
Song: No No Never
Country represented: Germany
AUSTRALIAN Jane Comerford sang lead vocals for Germany’s country-styled Eurovision entry in the year that Lordi won. Born in Newcastle, Jane went travelling and wound up falling in love with Berlin. Comerford wrote No No Never which came in at 14th. Comerford is still in Germany and has worked on Germany music reality TV as a judge and is also a vocal coach for hire.
