Showing posts with label Simone de Oliveira. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Simone de Oliveira. Show all posts

Wednesday, March 28, 2018

Portugal No Coração: Namorados Da Cidade

Digital Release Image
It's the Portugal No Coração weeks at Eurocovers. With the impending Lisbon contest we'll take a look at some Portuguese classics, coverversions and all that. Browsing through my lists, records (and cassette tapes!) I'm sure there's enough to fill some Eurocovers pages, Portugal took their time....
Here's one that is as fresh as it can get though, it was released last February.

Namorados Da Cidade are a Lisbon rock band forged in 2015. I guess they named themselves after a well known Carlos Do Carmo song which translates as 'Boyfriends of the city' and is a lovesong to Lisbon life. (but I could be wrong of course).

The band have some tunes of their own but also play coverversions including some from your beloved Eurovision Song Contest (or rather the Festival da Canção).
If you check out their youtube you'll see live performances of songs like  Um grande Grande Amor (José Cid 1980), O Vento Mudou (Eduardo Nascimento 1967) and A Festa Da Vida (Carlos Mendes 1972).

But now the band have released their first album Namorados Da Cidade and three Eurocovers made it to the tracklist.
Silencio A Tanta Gente is the 1984 entry by Maria Guinot (11th place). It gets a gentle rock makeover and is actually quite fantastic.
There's also A Festa Da Vida but the main attraction is Desfolhada Portuguesa, the 1969 entry by Simone De Oliveira which ended at an inexcusable 15th place. Bad bad juries.
The legendary singer herself joins the band for this great version of her signature song which of course is a treat for Eurovision fans.
You can find the NdC album at your digital stores and streamers, a CD version is available in the Portuguese shops. I've seen it online at FNAC.
They have been touring the FNAC shops and you can still catch them there on March 30 (In Albufeira and Faro, check their facebook, links below)

The Namorados look like this: Picture taken from Namorados Facebook

Links and sources:
Namorados Da Cidade: Website, Facebook, Youtube channel
Other Portugal No Coração posts:
Dias Do Vinil - Some vinyl re-issues of Portuguese Eurovision classics.
Simone De Oliveira, Rainha do festivais has Simone's Eurovision/Eurocovers discography.

In the comments of the Dias Do Vinil post ERK gave us a link to a great list of coverversions of Portuguese entries he created at Discogs. Find it here. Thanks ERK!

An then there's this:
The Portuguese 2018 entry
The Lisbon Collection keeps track of the releases, versions and whathaveyou's of the 2018 contest, check it out.
These are a few of the latest updated pages:
Germany - Michael Schulte's Lied Für Lissabon. Dreamer album info
France - Destination Eurovision for Madame Monsieur, Mercy already a top 10 hit. Vu D'Ici album info
Estonia - Eurolaul goes Classic: La Forza to Lisbon, Remixes out now!
Israel - Netta Barzilai wins HaKokhav HaBa and comes a'cluckin'.  single version, remixes released.
Let's Get Physical - Quick list of physical releases
Portugal the country - Cláudia Pascoal wins Festival da Canção. FdC CD out now
Spain - Operación Triunfo revived, Alfred & Amaia to Eurovision, Eurovision Gala CD on February 23. New version of the Cancion and even more OT CDs, cdsingle on March 23
Poland - Gromee and Lukas win Krajowych Eliminacji Eurowizji 2018, CD Chapter One on March 16. promo info


Wednesday, February 25, 2015

Simone de Oliveira, Rainha do festivais


A living legend, Simone De Oliveira, returns to the Festival RTP da Canção, the Portuguese  national selection for Eurovision. À Espera das Canções is the song she will try to return to the contest with, 45 years after her last visit to the Eurovision stage.
As far as festivals go, Simone de Oliveira is royalty.
The Portuguese final of 2015 is on March 7.
Update: So Simone didn't make it to Vienna, which is a shame of course. But here at Eurocovers we're happy she's still out there and we hope to see her again in some Festival or another.

Promo EP 1969
Simone De Oliveira made her first appearances at the Festival da Canção Portuguesa* in the late 50’s and early sixties, winning a few of them along the way.

Other festivals she attended are Festival da Canção da Figueira da Foz. (winning in 1962), Festival Internacional da Canção do Rio de Janeiro, Festival da Nova Canção de Lisboa (winner in 1979) and the 1980 OTI festival (Songcontest of Spanish and Portuguese speaking countries)

* Not to be confused with the Eurovision selection Festival RTP da Canção.

Simone De Oliveira entered Eurovision twice. In 1965 with Sol De Inverno and in 1969 with Desfolhada Portuguesa. She only finished 13th and 15th but both songs now rank top five of Great Portuguese Classics that happened to be Eurovision entries. 
I think Desfolhada Portuguesa only has to leave the 1974 entry E Depois Do Adeus (Paulo De Carvalho) before it in the Portuguese evergeen immortality stakes.
Both of Simones songs have been recorded by many artists and are still covered and performed today.


Simone also recorded a few interesting Eurocovers. There's Volare and Puppet On A String (but who hasn't covered these?) but also the 1968 entries of Germany and Monaco.
Eurocovers loves lists, so below you can find the discography of Simone's own entries and her Eurocovers. Finally there's a list of Festival RTP da Canção entries.





Simones Eurovision songs and versions
Portugal 1965 - Sol De Inverno (13th place)
- Sol De Inverno (Portuguese) - on EP (Continental Rec. P-QB 192)
- Sol De Invierno (Spanish) on EP Nàpoles 1965 (with three other ESC entries) (ES: Belter 51.520)
Note: Spanish EP Sol De Invierno has the Portuguese version (Belter 51.509, Spain)
Thanks for the correction Jean François!
- Sol De Inverno (in Medley Português) on LP Algumas Canções Do Meu Caminho (Live) (Ariola 1106844, 1992)
- Sol De Inverno (live acoustic 2004) on CD Intimidades (Vidisco, also on DVD)
Note: French EP Soleil d'Hiver (Decca PEP 1088) is sung in Portuguese, French version unconfirmed.

Portugal 1969 - Desfolhada Portuguesa (15th place)
- Desfolhada Portguesa (Portuguese) on EP (Decca PEP 1276)
- Deshojada (Spanish) on 7” inch single  (Decca MO 648, Spain)
- Terre guitarre (French) on 7”  (Decca PN 110, France, also has Spanish version)
- Promo EP (Decca VC4) has Portuguese, Spanish, French & Instrumental by Thilo’s Combo. The Instrumental is actually track 1 on side A.
- Desfolhada (live 1992) on LP Algumas Canções Do Meu Caminho (Live)
- Desfolhada (live acoustic 2004) on CD Intimidades (Vidisco, also on DVD)
- Desfolhada Portuguesa (2018) - Namorados Da Cidade ft. Simone De Oliveira on CD Namorades Da Cidade. All info on this 2018 release is here at Eurocovers.





Simone De Oliveira Eurocovers
Italy 1958 - Nel Blu Dipinto Di Blu (Volare) - Domenico Modugno
- Nos Teus Olhos Vejo O Céu - EP   (Alvorada mep 60136, 1959)

Spain 1966 - Yo Soy Aquel - Raphael
- Tu És Aquele - EP Música No Coração 
  (Decca PEP 1131) see video above

U.K. 1967 - Puppet On A String - Sandie Shaw
- Marionette - EP (Decca PEP 1204)

Germany 1968 - Ein Hoch Der Liebe - Wenche Myhre
- Viva O Amor - EP (Decca PEP 1250)

Monaco 1968 - A Chacun Son Chanson - Line et Willy
-  Para cada um sua canção - EP (Decca PEP 1250)
The 1968 songs can be found on the same EP

Germany 1967 - Anoushka 
                               - Simone and Marco Paulo
- Duet on EP Tu Só Tu (Decca Pep 1211)
I’m not sure about this one, track could be by Marco Paulo only. If you know more, e-mail me or leave a comment, thanks. 
Update: It is indeed a song by Marco Paulo solo. Many thanks for the info Klaus! The EP features one duet, two tracks by Simone and one by Marco Paulo.

Simone de Oliveira at the Festival RTP da Canção
1964 Olhos nós olhos - 3rd
1964 Amar é ressurgir - 8th
1965 Sol de inverno - 1st
1965 Silhuetas ao luar - 4th
1968 Dentro do outro mundo - 8th
1968 Canção ao meu piano velho - 6th
1969 Desfolhada Portuguesa - 1st
1973 Apenas o meu povo  - 8th
2015 À espera das canções - finalist

Some links and sources
Simone De Oliveira FB
Festivais da Canção History pages
The 10.000 coverversions project.
EP discography at Os Reis Do Vinyl
4x40 - Eurovision 1969 at Eurocovers