Countries in Review: Croatia part 2

Ain't Dubrovnik pretty?

I love writing about my favorite songs for any country, because these are songs I want you to take a listen to and my favorite five Croatian songs are definitely ones that you should take a listen to.

Let's get started!

5.   Magazin & Lidija Horvat-Dunjko   “Nostalgija”   1995    

You take one of the biggest bands from Croatia and put them together with an opera singer and you get this song.  It is undeniably weird and I find it absolutely entrancing.   It wasn't accessible enough to win the contest, but it placed a respectable sixth in 1995.  It also grabbed "douze points" from Malta, Spain, and Slovenia.

4.   E.N.I.   “Probudi me”   1997   

Girl power was big in 1997 and E.N.I. was the Croatian response to it.  Yes, this performance isn't the greatest and they are obviously a knockoff of the Spice Girls.  But it's good bubblegum pop and these ladies are able to pull of some dance moves in cantilevered shoes.

3.   Danijela Martinović   "Neka mi ne svane"   1998  

Yep, Martinović was the singer in Magazin.  She came back as a soloist with this dramatic number three years later and landed in fifth place.  She has a clear voice with a beautiful tone that really pulls you into the song.  Just not crazy about the costumes change and the sexy arms...

2.   Nina Badrić   “Nebo”   2012   

I love this song.  I love her performance.  But the staging and camera angles ruined the song and sabotaged the chances for "Nebo" to make the finals.   There was no need for the dancers.   The backup singers needed to be hidden and in a darker color and Badrić needed to not wear a sheet.  Had they kept the shots on Badrić and allowed people to connect with the song, this would have made the finals.

1.  Goran Karan   "Kad zaspu anđeli"  2000  

This is how a Balkan ballad needs to be performed.  Straightforward staging.   Flawless vocals.  Karan is attractive and knows how to work the stage and camera.   Wish they had gotten rid of the girl in a bag.  But it's 2000--everybody had a gimmick.

And there's my top five Croatian entries.

Rumors are circulating that Croatia will return to Eurovision in 2016, and like many people I hope those rumors are true.   The more I watch Eurovision, the more I love the music from the former Yugoslavia.   Having Croatia back means more music from a region I love.

Next up--Cyprus.

Countries in Review: Croatia part 1

Back to my "Countries in Review" and back to the Balkans with Croatia.

Croatia used the TV show "Dora" to select their entrant for a number of years.

Croatia has entered Eurovision 21 times, starting in the first growth of the contest eastward in 1993.   After a rough couple of years, Croatia did quite well in the contest.   Croatians were perennially in the top ten in the early in the 1990s and early 2000s.   But poor finishes in recent years (combined with the European financial crisis) have made them sit out for the past two years.

In this entry I'm going to be looking at the songs I ranked from 6 to 21.  Watch for my next post for my favorite Croatian entries

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Croatia's sent two types of songs to Eurovision.  The first is the Balkan ballad, a dramatic song usually about love.  This type is exemplified by this interesting, technically difficult song from the 1996 contest.

"Sveta ljubav"   Maja Blagadan   1996

This song didn't crack my top five for one reason only--the high note that really doesn't need to be there.   I'm impressed Blagadan is able to hit B Flat 5, but the song doesn't need it.  (It did work in the voting, though.  Croatia came in fourth in 1996 garnering them one of their best results.)

The other type is the the female pop ballad.

Vesna Pisarović   "Everything I Want"   2002

Every country sends these sort of songs, and Croatia's entries were no better or worse than other countries' offerings.  Because of this, most of them fall in the middle of my list.

On occasion, Croatia would send something a little different--like this quirky little entry from 2008--

 Kraljevi ulice & 75 Cents   "Romanca"  2008

but you could really depend on Croatia to stick to those two types of songs.

That said, I have to highlight perhaps one of the worst songs ever presented at a Eurovision Song Contest.

Daria Kinzer   "Celebrate"   2011

Unlike a lot of other songs that come across horribly, this one is special because I feel nothing but pity for the singer.  "Celebrate" is a terrible song with staging ten years out of date and completely intimidated by the audience.  It's like the Croatian broadcasted spent the bare minimum to get Kinzer to Düsseldorf and it's not suprising Croatia stepped away from the contest a couple of years later.

For those of you who are curious where the other Croatian entries fall, here's my full ranking of the songs from 6 to 21.

6.   "Sveta ljubav"   Maja Blagadan   1996
7.   "Mižerja"   Klapa s Mora   2013   Cool but not a Eurovision song.
8.   "Romanca"   Kraljevi ulice & 75 Cents   2008

9.   "Marija Magdalena"   Doris Dragović   1999     It’s the most successful Croatian song in Eurovision, but the performance leaves me cold.
10.   "Lako je sve"   Feminem   2010   They are competent singers wearing bridesmaid dresses.

11.   "Lijepa Tena"  Igor Cukrov featuring Andrea  2009   He looks so smarmy and doesn’t have the charm to pull off the Balkan ballad the way other singers can.
12.   "Vukovi umiru sami"   Boris Novković feat. Lado     2005    A standard male Balkan ballad but, Novković does have a bit of charm.   Too much crap on stage, though.
13.   "Everything I Want"   Vesna Pisarović   2002
14.   "Vjerujem u ljubav"   Dragonfly feat. Dado Topić    2007   I like his voice, but she’s off key and it pulls the song down in my ranking.
15.   "Moja štikla"    Severina    2006   Highly ethnic in the ethnic period.  Lots of effort for no real result.
16.   "Strings of My Heart"   Vanna   2001   She has no stage presence.  That’s what knocks this song, when this is my favorite song on the CD.
17.   "Više nisam tvoja"    Claudia Beni    2003     I am sleeping.  The lack of enthusiasm and stage presence is making me cry.
18.   "Don’t Ever Cry"   Put   1993  I have no idea what they’re singing, but taken all together it feels like a Christmas song.
19.   "Nek' ti bude ljubav sva"  Tony Cetinski   1994   Did Chuck Mangione butt in for a trumpet solo?
20.   "You Are The Only One"   Ivan Mikulić    2004   Both dull and off key.

21.   "Celebrate"   Daria    2011