Eurovision’s Greatest Hits takes place in London on 31 March. The one-off concert will see a host of past Eurovision stars take to the stage to mark 60 years of the contest. While the show itself will be purely celebratory, we’ve decided to add a little competition to proceedings by ranking and reviewing all 18 Eurovision entries sung by the 14 confirmed acts. Today the Wiwi Jury— our in-house panel of musical unprofessionals — are transported back to Brussels 1987 to witness Johnny Logan’s historic second victory with “Hold Me Now”. Do we still hold the Irish man dear? Read on to find out…
http://youtu.be/kSXx7-EceBA
Robyn: If a lesser performer were to tackle this song, it would be horrible and cheesy. But Johnny Logan gives a near perfect performance. It’s strong and powerful at times, vulnerable at others. And even though I’ve watched the clip dozens of times before, there are still bits of this song that get me. No wonder they call him Mr Eurovision.
Score: 8/10
Sami: I like “What’s Another Year?” more, but “Hold Me Now” is good too. It’s one of the biggest Eurovision classics and a totally deserved winner. He is very professional and sounds great. Just the tongue annoys me… a lot.
Score: 8/10
Judit: I have a huge crush on Johnny Logan and “Hold Me Now” is one of my all time favourite ESC winners. People can say it’s too cheesy and full of cliché, but I love how Mr. Eurovision sang this. And I feel like he sang it to me, even though I wasn’t even born.
Score: 10/10
James: This song is a classic and speaks to me. It’s my favourite Logan entry, primarily because of its orchestral appeal. Plus, everyone can link hands and join in with a very powerful chorus – the loneliest of us in solidarity with one another! The lyrics are obviously meaningful. You wouldn’t have known its origins as a Eurovision song if you played it today on the radio. A true hallmark of the 80s. Those feels…
Score: 8/10
Kristín: THIS is the ultimate Eurovision winning ballad! No one does it like Johnny, though bless them all for trying. He’s the king. “Hold Me Now” is probably… no, it is my favourite winner of all time. I can’t help but sing my heart out with Johnny, whilst the tears roll down my face. And when he sings the end note… Oh….My… God! So you might say I kind of like it, yeah…
Score: 10/10
Inaki: A melody that endures so long deserves our respect. The passing of time has been much crueller to Johnny than to “Hold Me Now”. And even more so to his 80s “Star Wars outfit”. An equilibrated song with an effective chorus, repeated over and over again, that is part of the Olympia of elite Eurovision songs.
Score: 8/10
Ramadan: This is one of the most famous songs from Eurovision and it’s no surprise. I absolutely love everything about it, and it’s one of my favourite classics. Logan was wonderful performing this on the night and deserved every point he got.
Score: 10/10
Sopon: Ah, yes. The song that changed Eurovision history forever. “Hold Me Now” is timeless and awe-inspiring every time it’s played. Johnny Logan’s a very capable performer and really sold that performance. And this song, more than any other, deserved to change the game.
Score: 9/10
Denise: I don’t care that it’s almost 30 years old, this song is still amazing. The chorus especially is really, really strong. And look at his face when he’s singing, it’s full of emotion and he knows how to give us the same feeling. Love it!
Score: 9/10
Patrick: One of the best Eurovision winners in history. Johnny is a stunning singer, as he proved twice at Eurovision. It’s still played in radio stations, nearly everybody knows it and Johnny Logan is a freakin’ institution. It’s amazing, forever and ever!
Score: 10/10
All 18 members of our jury rate each song. However, we only have room to share 10 written reviews. Here are the remaining eight scores.
Angus: 8/10
Anthony: 9/10
Chris: 8/10
Josh: 7/10
Liam: 9/10
Mikhail: 6/10
Padraig: 8/10
William: 9/10
The highest and lowest scores are removed before calculating the final score. We have dropped a low of 6 and a high of 10.
Uh…no. Sorry, but I don’t even get “What’s Another Year” as a winner (above the supreme, glorious cheesefest that was “Theater”, no less), much less this pint of insipid dishwater. Apparently everyone and their grandmother loves Johnny Logan’s winners, but to me, this song deserves the company of the winners on either side of it, both of which (“J’aime la Vie” and “Ne partez pas sans moi”) are among my least favourite ESC winners. The fact that these two blackout ballads (as in, the opposite of a “power” ballad) are responsible for two of Germany’s four silver medals, at least… Read more »
@mario vision
bastardo? wow
i am so sorry
#JeSuisMarioVision
#FreeSpeech
No, this is not a cliche. This was the one based on which other songs are cliche. This one is original. It’s breathtaking and Johnny Logan is a truly talented performer. This song can’t die through the years, and marked Eurovision’s road in the years. A solid 10/10 from me.
@ If you have problem with my comments well its only your own problem here and not mine anyway!
If you are annoyed by my stuff for any reason of yours then simply avoid reading them and problem fixed!
And how dare you b@st@rdo demanding me to stop it..?? Its my own f**king comments after all and i have all the right to express my self how ever I want to!
Go f*** yourself ! XX
@mario vision
shut up, you are so annoying and you don’t even know the name of the contest, going through the comment section and seeing your comments is simply painful, could you just stop?
Hail to The KING Johnny Logan of our EuroVision Song Contest! <3 Truly essential winner entry and one of the best songs of the old era of Vision! <3 It was actually the very 1st winner entry in Vision after i was born and was in life..! <3 🙂 This song was voted as the 3rd best song in history of the 50 years of EuroVision back in 2005 in Copenhagen.. <3 🙂 In 1986 i would miss this chance eventually only by few days after the Vision of Norway's Bergen…{(i was born in May of 1986 and was conceived… Read more »