Telefon, Telefon

Germany "Telefon, Telefon"
Eurovision Song Contest 1957 entry
Country
Artist(s)
Language
Composer(s)
Friedrich Meyer
Lyricist(s)
Ralph Maria Siegel
Conductor
Willy Berking
Finals performance
Final result
4th
Final points
8
Appearance chronology
◄ "So geht das jede Nacht" (1956)   
"Für zwei Groschen Musik" (1958) ►

"Telefon, Telefon" (Telephone, Telephone) was the German entry in the Eurovision Song Contest 1957, performed in German by Margot Hielscher.

The song was performed seventh on the night (following the Netherlands' Corry Brokken with "Net als toen" and preceding France's Paule Desjardins with "La belle amour"). At the close of voting, it had received 8 points, placing 4th in a field of 10.

The song is a ballad, with Hielscher singing to a telephone and telling it that she enjoys receiving news (from the lyrics, it is implied that this is news from a lover) via that medium. In the course of the song, she answers the telephone and responds in English, French, Italian and Spanish. This section of the lyrics gave rise to what is generally considered the first "gimmick performance" in Contest history, with Hielscher in fact picking up a real telephone receiver during her performance. At the end of the song, she picks up the telephone again and explains (on the telephone) that she can't talk anymore because her song (which was actually this song) is ending.

It was succeeded as German representative at the 1958 Contest by Hielscher again, this time with "Für zwei Groschen Musik".

An interesting point is that the word Telefon is a German adaptation of the Latin term "telephone" which is very common in German speaking copuncties, however the actual German word for telephone is "Fernsprecher".

References and external links

Preceded by
co-participation
"Im Wartesaal zum großen Glück" by Walter Andreas Schwarz,
"So geht das jede Nacht" by Freddy Quinn
Germany in the Eurovision Song Contest
1957
Succeeded by
"Für zwei Groschen Musik"
by Margot Hielscher


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