30/04/1988 - The day Celine Dion won the ESC!

[wjd]

30 April 1988. Twenty-five years ago yesterday…and an upbeat love song called Ne partez pas sans moi won the Eurovision Song Contest in Dublin, Ireland. The singer was one Céline Dion.

 

Back then, few had heard of the young star outside France and her native Canada. But after a nail-bitingly close contest that saw Céline beat the UK’s Scott Fitzgerald by only one point, it seemed the rest of Europe was ready to sit up and listen. Two years on, her single Where does my heart beat now, had hit the number 4 spot in the US charts and more success would follow, including her first US, UK and Australian number-one single in 1993, her cover of Jennifer Rush’s ballad, The power of love.

 

In the years since then, Céline Dion has gone on to win 5 Grammy Awards, 12 World Music Awards, 7 American Music Awards, 7 Billboard Music Awards, 21 Juno Awards, 39 Félix Awards and is one of the best-selling female recording artists of all time, with more than 200 million album sales under her belt.

 

But for a long time, it seemed that winning the Eurovision Song Contest was one achievement Céline Dion was not so proud of. For many years, she refused to talk about her participation in the contest, seeming to want to distance herself from it. Her 2001 autobiography, My story, my dream, made only slight reference to the contest, referring to it only as the night she got together with her manager and now-husband, René Angélil.

 

Finally, in 2007, Céline Dion, spoke publicly about winning the Eurovision Song Contest. In front of an audience that included 1970 Eurovision Song Contest winner, Dana, and 1998 host, Ulrika Johnson, Céline recorded An audience with Céline Dion for UK television channel, ITV. During the performance, she said –

 

First of all they came to me and asked me to represent a country that's not even mine. 'Would you represent us at the Eurovision Song Contest? No pressure!' I was very young but the song was amazing. I didn't look at it that I was representing everyone, just doing my best. I went and I sang my heart out the best I could and everything went so wonderfully well. I'm really grateful and it helped my career.

 

Twenty-five years on from her win and Céline Dion’s website states proudly: (in 1988) Celine won the prestigious Eurovision Song Contest in Dublin Ireland, where she performed live before a television audience of 600 million viewers throughout Europe, the USSR, the Middle-East, Japan, and Australia.

 

She continues to record new material, tour the world and she’s still selling out the Colosseum at Caesar’s Palace, Las Vegas, where she took up residency more than five years ago. After all her success, you might think that when she stood on the stage at RDS Simmonscourt Pavilion, Dublin, on 30 April 1988 and sang, Vous, qui cherchez l’étoile, vous, qui vivez un rêve…she might have been singing about herself.

 

Too good not to commemorate!

[LuisMa]

The voting for this edition has got to be the most dramatic in Eurovision history! Definitely a milestone in her career and a harbinger of things to come! Edited May 3, 2013 at 05:24 AM by LuisMa

[J-Man]

That night was my very first time seeing (and hearing) Celine Dion. 25 years ago, wow.

 

I would really love if she could perform NPPSM again in Europe to mark this 25th anniversary. It's still a great Celine song and she hasn't performed it live since 1989, when she began promoting the Unison album.

 

What would make it even better would be if she came out wearing a sequined cocktail dress with shoulder pads a short puffy skirt. But that might be hoping for too much.

[LuisMa]

 

I bet she now remembers those kinds of dresses and gets .

[DionFanAlways]

What would make it even better would be if she came out wearing a sequined cocktail dress with shoulder pads a short puffy skirt. But that might be hoping for too much.

Now that would be something

[Jeff Abbott]

 

I bet she now remembers those kinds of dresses and gets .

No wonder she rarely mentions her Eurovision win. Still, I adore that song.

[DionFanAlways]

No wonder she rarely mentions her Eurovision win. Still, I adore that song.

Lol! She doesn't want anyone to look up what she was wearing!

[Jeff Abbott]

Lol! She doesn't want anyone to look up what she was wearing!

I guess we cannot blame her for that.

[DionFanAlways]

I guess we cannot blame her for that.

That was top fasion!

[Jeff Abbott]

That was top fasion!

Of course, too bad people didn't appreciate it, maybe because it was 'ahead of its times'.

Edited May 4, 2013 at 12:30 PM by Jeff Abbott

[Daysleeper]

It was the first time I saw and heard Céline. I remember it so clearly. Eurovision was something I always loved to watch when I was kid. I never missed it. I remember I loved her voice and the song at once. I was impressed by her even I was only 6 and half years old. It was so obvious she was going to win. I still have somewhere an article from a newspaper after the contest saying that she was the only artist who brought some emotions that night and had a very professional performance.

 

A year later my country won the contest and it was great to see Céline presenting the award. I have recorded it on video and that's how I memorized Céline's name. I never heard of her since (except Beauty and the Beast, but I didn't know it was her)... and I always thought she was Swiss lol.

 

Few years later there was some kind of commercial on TV that included a track "The Power of Love"... When I heard it I thought the voice sounded like the one of this Eurovision singer. I was suprised when I discovered that I was right. It was really her. I became a fan later with "D'eux".

 

So I think Eurovision brought me to Céline in some way.

 

It would be awesome if she sings the song again.

[garçon]

Now, any explanations for Celine not alluding to her ESC win earlier than 2007? Anyone? I don't understand.

 

[Daysleeper]

I think this article is stupid. Céline talked about Eurovision on lot of occasions. In both official biographies there is more pages about the contest and everything about it.

And to be really honest, Eurovision didn't really help Céline in her international career. It all started in US with "Where Does My Heart Beat Now". In Europe it was with "The Power of Love" and "Think Twice".

[Jeff Abbott]

That was epic and funny at the same time. Check out (2:15) I guess he felt like c... at that moment. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W7y9SM-VAII

[DionFanAlways]

^I wonder what happened to the other contestants? Edited May 4, 2013 at 01:25 PM by DionFanAlways

[Jeff Abbott]

^I wonder what happened to the other contestants?

Well, I know what happened to the contestant from Luxembourg. No clue about the rest.

[DionFanAlways]

What happened?

[Daysleeper]

What happened?

 

It's Lara Fabian who represented Luxembourg.

[Jeff Abbott]

It's Lara Fabian who represented Luxembourg.

Exactly, I know Celine was absolutely the best, but Lara showed great class at ESC 1988 too.

[DionFanAlways]

Oh ok thanks

[Jeff Abbott]

A little bit off topic (sorry about that ) but I hope next year it'll be ESC 2014 in Rome.

[Daysleeper]

A little bit off topic (sorry about that ) but I hope next year it'll be ESC 2014 in Rome.

 

I totally agree. But Eurovision lost its charm over the years. Italian song is very decent and there is another one that I like. I think it's Iceland.

 

another off topic... I never put any video from youtube here, so please, just a quick tip how to do it

[comingback]

 

the dress and the hair but what a voice

[Daysleeper]

I found some videos that might be interesting.

 

This is a dress rehearsal. It's not too different, but it's rare:

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OVWiZ3lP79M

 

Céline comes back to Canada after winning the Eurovision:

 

 

Céline wins the swiss national final and is elected to represent Switzerland:

 

 

 

 

The UK representative talks about the contest and his loss by one point:

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kKSSFB1jqjQ

[Jeff Abbott]

I found some videos that might be interesting.

 

This is a dress rehearsal. It's not too different, but it's rare:

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OVWiZ3lP79M

 

Céline comes back to Canada after winning the Eurovision:

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TzCd27WGuqA

 

Céline wins the swiss national final and is elected to represent Switzerland:

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=16Irey5GwH4

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d8D9uZRrq3A

 

 

The UK representative talks about the contest and his loss by one point:

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kKSSFB1jqjQ

Thanks, I've never seen the footage of Celine returning to Canada after her win at ESC 1988. Also, some of the comments expressed by the callers in that BBC programme were hilarious (and bitter). I can see they were pissed that their representative had lost.

Edited May 4, 2013 at 02:31 PM by Jeff Abbott

[Daysleeper]

I posted this in the Youtube video topic, but I think it should be here too. A rare interview of Céline after she won Eurovision.

 

[Davey84]

Sooo funny!!

 

http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20160502/cb0766b3dd9af895429dca2a9821705b.jpg

 

http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20160502/48a981844bf567df4d1218af02949e4a.jpg

 

Celine saved every important outfit she ever wore and TC even made a joke!!

 

 

On his LinkedIn Michel Robidas says he made the costumes for Incognito (I think he means the tour). He must have been Quebec's hottest fashion designer back then!

Edited May 2, 2016 at 09:16 PM by Davey84

[Davey84]

Here are some pictures from the museum! Thanks to Dutch fan Patrick!

 

 

 

 

SO sweet of her to keep it all these years as a good luck charm!

 

I never noticed the gold in the dress! I always thought it was white!

 

 

 

 

 

[comingback]

http://www.express.c...ext-Celine-Dion

 

Timblerlake wants to find 'the next Celine Dion'

 

JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE has set the bench mark for this weekend's Eurovision Song Contest live final, claiming that he wants to find the "next Celine Dion".

Edited May 12, 2016 at 03:45 PM by comingback

[Daysleeper]

If this trend of inviting big stars to perform at the Eurovision as special guests continues, we might see Céline in one of the next contests. Maybe to promote the new English single. And why not "Ne patez pas sans moi" as well. Let's hope Edited May 12, 2016 at 04:09 PM by Daysleeper