How Swede It Is

Articles

Robin Alan Bell

How Swede It Is – Week 11
Mar 17, 2003

The sun is shining and the snow has almost all melted. Even our once five foot tall snowman has been reduced to a dejected looking six inch pile of contorted ice. There are signs of the bulbs peeking out of the soil under the kitchen windows and on the Siberian Pea Tree hedge the buds are beginning to open.

Yes, it must be spring here in Sweden. All the signs are here. The steel studs on the winter tyres on the cars and trucks can be heard clicking on bitumen, rather than ice. The smell of woodsmoke from the open fires and heaters around the country is being replaced by the exhaust fumes of motorcycles, chain saws and lawn-mowers. But what surer sign can there be but the appearance on radio and television of that most extraordinary event – the Eurovision Song Contest. Or should I say Melodifestivalen, as it’s known here. The search is on to find the song that will bring recognition and status to Sweden again.

Each year, thousands of hopeful songwriters submit what they are sure will be their path to fame and glory in the great schlagerfest. But only one will triumph in the final selection process, held in the Globe Arena in Stockholm, after the heats have been heard and seen all over the country on national television for successive Saturday nights in March. The winner in Stockholm will become the official Swedish entry to the Grand Final, to be held in Riga in Lettland on 24th May this year.

This year we have had the usual selection of similar sounding songs, delivered by similar looking bright young things. But there have been exceptions to the monotony. Who would expect to find in the final, for example, a song called “Maria”, sung by a group called “Östen med resten”, who look suspiciously like Mexicans, complete with Mexican hats and footwork that makes even The Shadows routine from the sixties look positively complicated. Or even “Genom Eld och Vatten” (Through Fire and Water), performed by a group of four called Sarek who are described as a cross between ABBA and a Nordic folk group, complete with traditional Nordic instruments. We also had Sweden’s Shania Twain, Jill Johnson, performing a strong country song called “Crazy in Love” and an all girl group, Bubbles, so young that two of the members were not even allowed on stage as they were underaged.

Possibly my favourite was the entry by the Brändsta City Släckers – a group of firemen who last year nearly pulled off the impossible and won the right to represent Sweden in the Grand Final, only to be foiled by Afro-Dite, a girl trio who are also back again this year. Sadly, the firemen didn’t even get through to the selection final this year, despite the soot stained fireman uniforms they wore.

And so on Saturday we settled back to cast our votes to decide who would represent us in the Grand Final. Voting was by a series of juries located around the land in eleven different towns, from the far north to the deep south. The twelfth series of votes was cast by the TV watchers who phoned in. The best part was that for each phone vote cast, 8.50 swedish kronor was donated to the World’s Children Fund. At the end of the contest, including the heats and the final, the total donated was close to 29 074 140 kronor, a new record.

Incidentally, readers may be wondering about the title of this week’s episode. The reason is that here in Sweden, progress through the year is reckoned in weeks, numbered, logically, from week one to week 52. All calendars sold here show the week number clearly. So it being well into March, we are now in week eleven. Simple when you know, but to a new immigrant it took me a while to catch on and trying to book a holiday cottage in the Stockholm archipelago a couple of years ago caused much confusion.

And who won the contest? Actually it was so exciting that I went to sleep before the end. But the newspapers next day told me that Fame, with “Give Me Your Love” were the winners. In all honesty, I still can’t remember how that song goes...

For those that are seriously interested, here is the official result of the final:

1/ Fame: Give me your love
2/ Pernilla Wahlgren och Jan Johansen: Let your spirit fly
3/ Alcazar: Not a sinner, nor a saint
4/ Jill Johnson: Crazy in love
5/ Sanna Nielsen: Hela världen för mig
6/ Sarek: Genom eld och vatten
7/ Afro-Dite: Aqua playa
8/ Östen med resten: Maria
9/ Bubbles: T.K.O. (Knock you out)
10/ Barbados: Bye bye

Halsningar till nasta vecka,

About the author: Robin Alan Bell is an Englishman by birth, but migrated to Australia back in '72. Married and divorced there. Spent the last 3 years living by myself on a remote farm in rural New South Wales with no mains electricity, water etc. All power, heating was from natural resources (solar, wind, wood). "Met" a Swedish girl on the internet, came to Sweden for a holiday, loved the place (and the girl), moved to Sweden permanently Christmas 2001 and married the girl in Easter 2002. Living happily ever after... Email Robin Alan Bell: sosoft@ozemail.com.au

------------

Comment on this column in the forum.
------------