Countries in Review: Austria (part three)

It's taken me over a month to sort through and rate all of the Austrian Eurovision songs.  The sheer number made it difficult to place them in an order.  But after going over them, I'm confident of my placing and hope you enjoy my top five songs.

Doing this review, I finally figured out how I can be Austrian-American and Lutheran.

So let's start with the song I ranked as fifth:

Global.Kryner   "Y Asi"  2005

You've got to love a song that's completely out of the box, and this fusion of yodeling, Austrian folk music, and Latin rhythms is just infectious.  I admit their performance was a little flat and I can see how they didn't make it out of the finals, but I can't rank a future Eurovisionary entry anywhere less than fifth.

What came in fourth was a complete surprise:



Stella Jones  "Die Welt dreht sich verkehrt"   1995

I would never have thought that a very 90s light R&B song would be up on the top of my list, but Ms. Jones, who started performing with her mother in Germany when she was seven years old, has the stage presence and light touch with the lyrics that makes me want to listen to the song again and again.

And let's face it, the female saxophonist with the blowout and the lace gloves is pretty freaking awesome.

Third place was another fun discovery:



Marianne Mendt   "Musik"  1971

It's 1971, so the song is hip and happening, the orchestra is a little heavy on the piccolo, and Mendt's nerves are definately on full display, but I cannot get this song out of my head.   It a tragedy she had to sing first in the 1971 contest; I suspect had she drawn someplace later in the contest, she would have done much better.

Second place was another suprise.

Camilla Corren   "Vielleicht geschieht ein Wunder"   1963

The BBC did wonders when they put on the 1963 Eurovision Song Contest and this allowed Corren to shine while performing her song.  Instead of a live concert, 1963 was the only contest that looked and felt like a pre-recorded show, and the shots of Ms. Corren selling this romantic ballad help make this song even better than is. 

That said, Corren's voice is lovely, and even without the visuals, it's a compelling song to me, with a rudimentary understanding of German, and is definately fantastic.

And finally, my top pick:



Nadine Beiler  "The Secret Is Love"  2011

The biggest issue with Austrian entrants to Eurovision is that they alway seem flat in one way or another.  Even with some of the top five, there's usually something not completely pulled together. 

However, Beiler's performance in 2011 was perfect in every way.  I cannot find a flaw with her performance, and although it wasn't to Europe's taste--she came in 18th in the final, I consider this to be Austria's best Eurovision song.

And that's my take on the Austrian Eurovision songs.  I'd love to know your opinion on Austrian entries, so feel free to post below or e-mail me at eurovisionalaska@gmail.com.