France has really kicked off the 2018 Eurovision season in grande style with its new national final 'Destination Eurovision’, the Grand Final of which takes place tonight.
France has made a formidable return to form at Eurovision over the past few years. This is largely due to the direction of the new French Head of Delegation Edoardo Grassi. Thanks to his youthful approach and careful internal selections in 2016 and 2017, France seems to have found their groove and love for the Contest once again. Hard to imagine, given the country's free fall from grace over the past two decades.
And this year, Grassi seems to have pulled off the impossible once again, providing a revamped national final and a line up of songs that are edgy, modern and oh-so-French chic. This is the kind of French music I listen to outside the Contest, and the kind of French music that should be sent to the Contest. With thousands of fans praising the calibre of entries to be best amongst all national finals in recent memory, two highly enjoyable and dramatic semi-finals and one extremely strong final lineup, it’s going to be a bloodbath as eight talented acts vie to make it to Lisbon.
To celebrate an epic start to the national finals season, as well as France’s new love affair with Eurovision, I’ve decided to look back on the country’s 60 years of participation and share my Top 10 favourite French entries.
No. 10 - Requiem by Alma, France 2017 - 12th place
Dramatic with a dash of pop, Alma’s Requiem continued France’s return to the left hand side of scoreboard. She dazzled with her spirited performance of this catchy number, but I felt that the stage presentation left much to be desired. While the stage visuals were amazing, the styling left Alma lost and hard to see. Still, it’s quite a bop and quintessentially French. No other country could have sent this.
No. 9 - Sognu by Amaury Vassili, France 2011 - 15th place
Marking France’s first time not singing in French (to national outcry), Sognu was performed entirely in Corisican and went into the 2011 Eurovision Song Contest as the bookies’ favourite to win. Such was the confidence, that France Télévisions provisionally booked the Bercy Arena in Paris, just in case France lifted the trophy and had to host the Contest in 2012. Unfortunately, it wasn’t meant to be and Sognu ended up 15th on the night.
Random 2011 Fun Fact: If it weren't for Lithuania and their song C'est Ma Vie, it would have been the first ever Eurovision final without any French. Thankfully, that travesty was avoided.
No. 8 - Je N'ai Que Mon Âme by Natasha St-Pier, France 2001 - 4th place
Sung by French-Canadian chanteuse Natasha St-Pier, this song was also a hotly-tipped favourite, giving many the impression that St-Pier could well pull off a Celine Dion. With an exceptional performance in both English & French, Je N'ai Que Mon Âme was a strong signal that vintage France still had currency as the Contest moved into the new millennium.
No. 7 - Echo (You And I) by Anggun, France 2012 - 22nd place
In the intervening years, France saw a mixed bag of results at the Contest, more bad than good. So when the announcement came that superstar Anggun was internally selected with a song by William Rousseau and Jean-Pierre Pilot - famous for their work with Maroon5 and Britney Spears - many saw it as a reversal of France’s fortunes. And with Jean-Paul Gaultier called up on styling duty, it seemed France was destined for great things.
No. 6 - Tom Pillibi by Jacqueline Boyer, France 1960 - 1st place (Winner)
We rewind all the way to 1960 for my No. 6. Tom Pillibi was France’s second victory in the four years of the then fledgling Contest’s existence - a sign of the powerhouse France was to become. Sung by young ingenue Jacqueline Boyer, the song spoke of her great love - the titular character and his vast wealth & charm before candidly admitting that he has "only one fault", that being that he is "such a liar" and that none of what she had said about him previously was true. Nonetheless, she sings, she still loves him.
No. 5 - White And Black Blues by Joëlle Ursull, France 1990 - 2nd place
White and Black Blues was co-written by French pop provocateur Serge Gainsbourg (who had previously penned the 1965 Eurovision-winning song Poupée De Cire, Poupée De Son) and performed by Joëlle Ursull - the first black woman selected to represent France. Fittingly, this accordion-led song spoke about the struggles of overcoming prejudices of skin colour. The national juries were won over though, and White And Black Blues ended in second place on the night.
No. 4 - Mama Corsica by Patrick Fiori, France 1993 - 4th place
This jaunty contribution has the distinction of being the first instance Corsican was performed on the Eurovision stage for France. In the lyrics, Fiori sings in French about the beauty of this sun-soaked paradise, before telling the island "tonight I am singing in Corsican for you", which he then does, proclaiming that it is as if the whole world were doing so.
No. 3 - Et S'il Fallait Le Faire by Patricia Kaas, France 2009 - 8th place
When Moscow hosted the Eurovision Song Contest in 2009, France took to the stage with the the biggest-selling French artist of all time. Patricia Kaas was a venerable artist who left the arena stunned with her performance of the dark chanson Et S'il Fallait Le Faire, alone on stage. The song gave France her best result in the noughties.
No. 2 - L'oiseau Et L'enfant by Marie Myriam, France 1977 - 1st place (Winner)
Possibly one of the most beloved Eurovision-winning songs, L'oiseau Et L'enfant never fails to jerk a tear. A tender love letter from child to mother, it describes the joy and beauty of the world with a naivety and innocence that had the juries spellbound, eventually beating the Ivor Novello-winning song Rock Bottom from the United Kingdom.
And finally, my number one... *cue drum roll*...
No. 1 - C'est Le Dernier Qui A Parlé Qui A Raison by Amina, France 1991 - 2nd place
In what must have been the tensest voting sequences in Eurovision history, this beautiful, mysterious French entry was left, disappointingly, in second place behind Sweden’s victorious whirlwind of limbs. Deep and sensual, artist Amina delivered C'est Le Dernier Qui A Parlé Qui A Raison with grace, poise and a certain North African ‘je ne sais quoi’ that leaves me spellbound every time I see and hear it.
We'll find out tonight!
Image Credit: Eurovision.tv
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