14. FRANCE 2001
Je n'ai que mon ame.performed by Natasha St-Pier
OK, time to review the chances of the song that's got all the fans excited.
If I said 'it sounds a bit like Celine Dion', then it's probably clear why so many people like it. Perhaps I'm the wrong person to be talking about it, as I don't have an ear for ballads - and especially Eurovision ballads.
The guitar riff is ber-latantly pinched from REM's Everybody Hurts and the voice is clearly modelled on Ms Dion herself, the latter being more than enough reason for me to start wretching. Rumour has it that the last chorus will be in English - with rumour being the operative word..
Why can't we ever have an ESC song which sounds a bit like The Jam?
HEARD-IT: Already mentioned the guitar riff, but the song has a nautical sway to it which bobs along to the inevitable crescendo. It's been done 1003 times before.
AND ON THAT NOTE, WE'LL PREDICT: 11th-15th