Colm

Damn. I missed this.

If I was to slot in some of this year's entries, they might go in like this 02 Austria 15 Greece 25 Malta

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Some other stats Top Years by Points 2023 222 2018 209 2019 174 2024 152 2020 145 2012 69 2021 68 2014 50 2016 50 2022 47 2017 46 2010 29 2015 14 Top 10 Countries by Points Austria 124 Switzerland 122 Italy 109 Serbia 84 Armenia 78 Bulgaria 62 Albania 61 Croatia 61 Netherlands 56 Portugal 46

There's quite a contrast 😁

1 - Austria 2014 Conchita Wurst - Rise Like a Phoenix My number 1 won't come as a surprise to some of you. There have been times in the last few years when I watched this repeatedly maybe 5 times and still wanted more. And it does need to be watched live. The defiant, soaring vocals make me feel stronger and more resilient. And we need that. As insane as it feels to type these words, in 2023 my choir were invited by Conchita to singing backing vocals at a surprise performance of Rise Like a Phoenix at a prominent gay bar in Dublin. She was so sweet and had no ego. When we were singing during the sound check our choir leader kept asking her what she wanted us to do. She just said let them have fun with it. Best bit: 2:31 the fist-clenching key change.

2 - Croatia 2023 Let 3 - Mama ŠČ! This is without any doubt, the most underrated Eurovision entry. Creative chaos,. The breakdown (of sorts) about a minute into the song might be the most avant garde thing to ever happen on the Eurovision stage. And then there's the operatic backing vocals - genius. Both of these things could be lifted off Mansun's second album Six. The main melody later on in the song is very strong too. Even though he sort of shouts it, it's still there and enjoyable. It's too much for some Eurovision fans who see it as a joke entry. Joke entries don't have this much musicality in them. It works without the visuals too. Best bit: 1:07 the chaotic diversion into madness.

3 - Serbia 2023 Luke Black - Samo Mi Se Spava An immediate favourite of mine from the time I heard it in the Serbian national selection. It's just really well produced with lots of Nine Inch Nails sonics. And Luke's voice is so hypnotic. We'll never know how well this would have done if it was sound-mixed properly in the final. Best bit: the laughter bit 😁

Most people I've discussed this with would agree with you.

4 - Switzerland Gjon's Tears - Répondez-Moi What places this 2 spots above Tout L'Univers is the shock factor. His almost supernaturally gorgeous voice was known to us by 2021 but here is where we were first introduced to the marvel of it and that still stuns me to this day. Best bit: 0:53 the first time we hear Gjon's characteristic vocal flutter.

5 - Portugal 2024 Iolanda - Grito I'm not sure if there's another victory on the horizon for Portugal because the televote isn't often their friend but it's not because they don't enter quality. It doesn't need emphasising but this just exudes a rare purity found on the Eurovision stage - an almost magical melancholy. Best bit: 2:36 the white-out climax.

Top 5 tomorrow Still 2 more from 2023 and one each from 2024, 2020 and 2014. Guesses welcome

6 - Switzerland 2021 Gjon's Tears - Tout l'Univers Gjon had raised expectations to an almost impossibly matchable level in 2020 but with Tout l'Univers he didn't disappoint. An absolutely sumptuous vocal tone and the bombast turned up to 11 made this utterly compelling. A winning performance in most other years. Best Bit: 1:29 the piano phrase that reminds me of Radiohead's Pyramid Song.

7 - Armenia 2023 Brunette - Future Lover I totally dismissed this until the semi-final. I had travelled over to Liverpool to be in the city for at least some of the contest. The crowd in bar that we were in had just witnessed the shockingly flimsy performance of Denmark's Riley when on comes Brunette with her striking, multi-faceted performance of Future Lover. What's also impressive about this song is that, even thought it twists and turns in different directions, it wasn't written by committee but by Brunette herself. Yeah - the dance break is unnecessary but it wasn't totally inappropriate either. Best bit: 2:53 the Armenian part

8 - Netherlands 2019 Duncan Laurence - Arcade What starts off as mildly pedestrian piano ballad quickly develops into a towering crowd-pleaser of an anthem. Goosebumps all round. Best bit : 2:43 his high note harmony .

9 - Ukraine 2016 Jamala - 1944 I can't really say much that hasn't already been said about this song. Quite rightly regarded as one of the most arresting performances ever seen on the Eurovision stage. Who knows how much of that is because of the subject matter but it's certainly part of the impact. Best bit: A tough choice between the "tree moment" and the high pitched note at 3:02

10 - Latvia 2023 Sudden Lights - Aijā There's something very early 00s about this. I don't know if it's because it has the emotional tug of a Jimmy Eat World ballad or because of the System of a Down coda. But it definitely my favourite entry that didn't qualify. It's speckled with gorgeous musical touches. Best bit: 2:13 the understated, almost inaudible climax of guitar leading into the Latvian closing piece.

No. It's 2010 to 2024.

10 songs left One country appears twice. One year has 4 appearances still to go. 😱

11 - Austria 2018 Cesár Sampson - Nobody But You This was far from my favourite back when I watched the 2018 contest. And even before I started compiling and ranking this list I didn't pick this is a highlight either. Some of it does come across as a bit affected but OMG that chorus. The clunky staging does it no favourite. Best bit: 2:40 the best rendition of that chorus.

12 - Ireland 2018 Ryan O’Shaughnessy - Together This is Ireland doing what Ireland did best back in the 90s. A quality ballad. Not the tedious, dated and inadequate stuff that had been sent in most cases since the turn of the century and in most cases since. It was a strong semi and Ryan didn't just scrape through either. Best bit: 2:40 the backing vocals.

I describe it as a mashup between Running Up That Hill and Bizarre Love Triangle.

I did some work with God is in the TV. I didn't get paid 😭

I wonder if proficiency in English is a factor. The artists are more markable abroad so we've heard of more of them. Similarly, Ireland. A population of 5 million (only recently - it was 3.5 at the turn of the century) and we all know how many successful acts come from Ireland.

Semi 2 sync tube soon?