Udo Jürgens, Austria’s first winner of the ESC, turns 80 today!
A career that spans over six decades has established Udo Jürgens as one of the most notable Evergreens singers and songwriters from Central Europe. He has written more than 1000 songs, his combined international sales exceed over 100 million records, and he has performed on stage for over half a century. Alao, he’s the first performer who won the Grand Prix Eurovision de la Chanson for Austria back in 1966.
Jürgens firstly represented Austria at the contest in 1964 with “Warum nur warum?”, when he finished sixth. The following year he tested his luck again by singing “Sag ihr, ich lass sie grüßen”, achieving a remarkable fourth place. Then, in 1966, he finally won with “Merci, Chérie”, which became a hit even beyond the German-speaking world, making it one of his most recognised compositions.
The 1966 winning song, “Merci Chérie”, has over the years been translated and modified into several languages and covered by numerous artists. Some of the most notable covers include: “Merci Chérie” by Claude Carrère and André Salvet (in French), “Merci” by Vito Pallavicini (in Italian), “Merci Cherie” by Baker Cavendish (in English), and “Merci Cherie” by Fred Bekky (in Dutch), to name a few.
However, it is not only “Merci, Chérie” for which Jürgens is most recognised for. Some of his other hits include songs like “Siebzehn Jahr, blondes Haar “, “Mit 66 Jahren”, “Griechischer Wein”, “Aber bitte mit Sahne”, and, of course, “Buenos Días, Argentina”, which he performed with the German national football team in 1978.
This autumn, Udo Jürgens is going on tour with the motto “Mitten im Leben”, performing both old hits and some new tunes in 26 cities across Austria, Germany and Switzerland.
From all of us at ESCBubble, we wish Mr Jürgens a very Happy 80th, and a successful tour!
