JOHNNY LOGAN, IRISH RECORD IN EUROVISION HISTORY

Johnny Logan in Eurovision, 1980

Today, The Grandma has been talking with The Watsons. They continue isolated and working in Rennette Watson's candidature to Eurovision Song Contest, although they do not know anything about the new date.

The Grandma has explained some curiosities about Johnny Logan, the only singer that has won this Contest twice in 1980 and in 1987 representing Ireland. He also helped to win another Contest for Ireland in 1992 as composer.

Johnny Logan became one of the most popular singers during the 80's thanks to his participations and triomphs in the Eurovision Song Contest.

Before talking about Johnny Logan, The Grandma has offered a new Cambridge Key English Test A2 Example to The Watsons, their first Listening.

Download Cambridge KET Exam Model-Listening (6)

  
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Download Cambridge KET Results Sheet-Listening (6)

Johnny Logan (born 13 May 1954) is an Australian-born Irish singer and composer.

He is known as being the only performer to have won the Eurovision Song Contest twice, in 1980 and 1987. He also composed the winning song in 1992.

Logan first won the Eurovision Song Contest in 1980, with the song What's Another Year written by Shay Healy. In 1984, Logan composed the song Terminal 3 which placed second at Eurovision, performed by Linda Martin.

He won the contest for a second time in 1987 with Hold Me Now, which he also wrote himself. His third win came in 1992, as composer of Linda Martin's winning entry Why Me?.

Johnny Logan won Eurovision in 1980

Johnny Logan was born on May 13, 1954 as Seán Patrick Michael Sherrard in Frankston, Australia.

Logan's father Charles Alphonsus Sherrard was a Derry-born Irish tenor known by the artistic name Patrick O'Hagan. The family moved back to Ireland when Logan was three years old. He learnt the guitar and began composing his own songs by the age of thirteen.

On leaving school he apprenticed as an electrician, while performing in pubs and cabaret. His earliest claim to fame was starring as Adam in the 1977 Irish musical Adam and Eve and Joseph in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.

Logan adopted the stage name Johnny Logan after the main character of the film Johnny Guitar and released his first single in 1978. He first attempted to participate in the Eurovision Song Contest in 1979, when he placed third in the Irish National Final with the song Angie. Readers of The Connaught Telegraph in Ireland voted Logan as Best New Male Artist.

In 1980, Logan again entered the Irish National selection for the Eurovision Song Contest with the Shay Healy song What's Another Year, winning the Irish final on 9 March in Dublin. Representing Ireland in the Netherlands, Logan won the Eurovision Song Contest on 19 April. The song became a hit all over Europe and reached number one in the UK.

In London was released in June and Save Me shortly after. With confusion by radio stations over which to play, both singles flopped. Another single released in late 1980, a cover of a recent Cliff Richard song, Give A Little Bit More was a more concerted effort and although it narrowly missed the chart.

Logan blames his lack of success in the UK on poor management and his inexperience.

More information: Johnny Logan

Most people are intelligent enough

to know when songs are contrived.

When you contrive songs,

you get four or five songs squeezed into one.
 

Johnny Logan

In early 1983, Logan attempted a comeback in the UK with the song Becoming Electric with a new sound and image and promotional push, but the failed to chart.

In 1985, Logan released his third studio album Straight From The Heart which failed to chart. He also collaborated on the charity single You'll Never Walk Alone in aid of the Bradford City Disaster Fund.

In 1986, Logan rebranded himself as Logan with the song Stab in the Back, which also failed to chart.

In 1987, Logan made another attempt at Eurovision and with his self-penned song, Hold Me Now, he represented Ireland at the Eurovision Song Contest in Belgium. The song won the contest and Logan became the first person to win the contest twice.

Hold Me Now became a major European hit and reached number two in the UK. Logan released a cover of the 10cc song I'm Not in Love, produced by Paul Hardcastle as a follow-up, and an album Hold Me Now.

More information: Eurovision Song Reviews

In 1988, Logan released Heartland which became a hit in the Irish charts and from then on, concentrated on his career in Ireland and Europe.

In 1990, Logan recorded a country version of Miss You Nights with Elvis Presley's backing band The Jordanaires. He also wrote and sung the theme song Angels Don't Hide for the German television show Blue Blood.

Having composed the Irish Eurovision Song Contest 1984 entry for Linda Martin, Terminal 3, which finished in second place, Logan repeated the collaboration in 1992 when he gave Martin another of his songs, Why Me.  

Johnny Logan won Eurovision in 1987

The song became the Irish entry at the finals in Sweden. The song took the title and cemented Logan as the most successful artist in Eurovision history with three wins.

Author and historian John Kennedy O'Connor notes in his book The Eurovision Song Contest - The Official History that Logan is the only lead singer to have sung two winning entries and one of only five authors/composers to have written/composed two winning songs.

On 16 April 1997 Logan left his handprints in concrete on the Walk of Fame in Rotterdam; The largest Star Boulevard in Europe.

Logan continues to perform and write songs. He is sometimes referred to as Mister Eurovision by fans of the contest and the media at large. He has continued his love of participating in musical theatre, having toured Norway with Which Witch, an opera-musical originating in that country.

In October 2005, Hold Me Now was voted as the third most popular song in Eurovision history at the 50th anniversary concert in Copenhagen, Denmark. What's Another Year was also nominated amongst the 14 finalists. Logan has sold more than 3 million copies worldwide. Hold Me Now is also a global million-seller.

Logan has continued to have success, particularly in the Scandinavian countries. His 2007 album, The Irish Connection went platinum in Denmark, twice platinum in Norway and gold in Sweden.

In 2009 and 2010, he performed in the Celtic rock opera Excalibur, and continued to do so in 2011.

Logan was one of the recording artists that appeared in the Irish TV series The Hit going against Duke Special. He shortlisted the song Prayin' by Alan Earls and Jamie Wilson's Rain from the pitching rooms. He chose to release Prayin' for the chart battle against Special who chose a song called 1969 by Aaron Hackett.

Logan won the chart battle with his song charting at number three in the charts while Special's charted at number five. Logan returned for the final where he performed Prayin' with the RTÉ Concert Orchestra and was runner-up to Finbar Furey.

More information: Irish News

Even without having heard the song beforehand, yes, I was.

I thought it was a really great thing for Eurovision.

The same countries winning all the time is

just not going to allow interest to spread.

Now, after the Estonians won last year,

everybody feels they have a shot at winning.

That’s good.
 

Johnny Logan