Ding-A-Dong
Encyclopedia
Ding-A-Dong was the title of the winning song in the Eurovision Song Contest 1975
. It was sung by Teach-In
, representing the Netherlands
, and was written by Dick Bakker, Will Luikinga, and Eddy Ouwens
.
's La La La in 1968 and Lulu
's Boom Bang-a-Bang
in 1969, later followed by the Herreys
' Diggi-Loo Diggi-Ley
in 1984. Ding-A-Dong was performed first on the performance night (preceding Ireland
's The Swarbriggs
with That's What Friends Are For
). The song was the first winner under the now-familiar Eurovision voting system whereby each country awards scores of 1-8, 10 and 12. At the close of voting, it had received 152 points, placing first in a field of nineteen. As the first song performed during the evening, the victory ran contrary to the fact that success usually went songs performed later in the broadcast. According to author and historian John Kennedy O'Connor's The Eurovision Song Contest - The Official History, this was the first of three occasions when the first song would win the contest, the second coming the following year in 1976.
The song, performed entirely in English, was an up-tempo ode to positive thought. The band (only the second to win the Contest in a non-native language after ABBA
the year before) sings that one should "sing a song that goes ding ding-a-dong" when one is feeling unhappy. On the night of the Dutch National Song Contest, the song had already been selected to be performed at the ESC, but there were two other singers competing for the honor of performing the song: Albert West and Debbie
.
Almost immediately, the song's lyrics became a source of ridicule, particularly in the UK, because the word "dong" is slang for penis. This did not stop the song from hitting number 13 in the UK singles chart. Besides the Dutch and English versions, Teach-In also recorded Ding-A-Dong in German as Ding ding-a-dong.
The song was succeeded in 1976 as contest winner by Brotherhood of Man
, representing the United Kingdom
, singing Save Your Kisses for Me
. It was succeeded as the Dutch representative
at the 1976 contest
by Sandra Reemer
with The Party's Over.
Eurovision Song Contest 1975
The Eurovision Song Contest 1975 was the 20th edition of the contest hosted by SR and held in Stockholm, Sweden. The arena for the event was the newly built Stockholm International Fairs in Älvsjö in southern Stockholm. ABBA's victory in Brighton the previous year gave Sweden the right to host the...
. It was sung by Teach-In
Teach-In
Teach-In was a Dutch band, best known for winning Eurovision Song Contest 1975 with the song Ding-A-Dong. The band was founded in 1969 and parted in 1980. Throughout this time there were several changes in lineup.-History:...
, representing the Netherlands
Netherlands in the Eurovision Song Contest
The Netherlands was one of the seven countries competing in the very first Eurovision Song Contest in 1956. It has missed only four contests so far...
, and was written by Dick Bakker, Will Luikinga, and Eddy Ouwens
Eddy Ouwens
Eddy Ouwens , aka Danny Mirror, is a Dutch musician and record producer.-Overview:He was a founder member in 1966 of the Rotterdam based group, Eddy Nelson & the Eddysons. After a few hits he left to work as a producer and produced Teach-In, Bolland & Bolland and The Shoes...
.
History
Ding-A-Dong was notable for being one of the Eurovision winners that had quirky or entirely nonsensical titles or lyrics, following in the footsteps of MassielMassiel
María de los Ángeles Felisa Santamaría Espinoza , professionally known as Massiel, is a Spanish pop singer...
's La La La in 1968 and Lulu
Lulu (singer)
Lulu Kennedy-Cairns, OBE , best known by her stage name Lulu, is a Scottish singer, actress, and television personality who has been successful in the entertainment business from the 1960s through to the present day...
's Boom Bang-a-Bang
Boom Bang-a-Bang
"Boom Bang-a-Bang" was the United Kingdom entry to the Eurovision Song Contest 1969It was sung by Lulu, and was co-written by Alan Moorhouse and Peter Warne aka Michael Julien, the latter of who also wrote "Kiss Me, Honey Honey, Kiss Me" for Shirley Bassey....
in 1969, later followed by the Herreys
Herreys
Herreys, or Herrey's, is a Swedish pop group, consisting of the three Mormon brothers Per Herrey , Richard Herrey and Louis Herrey . They won the Eurovision Song Contest 1984 with the song "Diggi-Loo Diggi-Ley". In 1985, they won the Sopot International Song Festival with "Sommarparty på Stranden"...
' Diggi-Loo Diggi-Ley
Diggi-Loo Diggi-Ley
"Diggi-Loo Diggi-Ley" was the winning song in the Eurovision Song Contest 1984 performed in Swedish by a trio of brothers named Herrey's. Lyrics were written by Britt Lindeborg, and the tune by Torgny Söderberg...
in 1984. Ding-A-Dong was performed first on the performance night (preceding Ireland
Republic of Ireland
Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
's The Swarbriggs
The Swarbriggs
Thomas Sheridan and John James Swarbrigg are Irish music promoters and former pop musicians. As The Swarbriggs they represented Ireland at the 1975 Eurovision Song Contest with That's What Friends Are For. As The Swarbriggs Plus Two, with Nicola Kerr and Alma Carroll, they competed again in 1977...
with That's What Friends Are For
That's What Friends Are For (Eurovision song)
That's What Friends Are For was the Irish entry in the Eurovision Song Contest 1975, performed in English by The Swarbriggs.The song is an mid-tempo number, with the singers calling on their listeners to help each other in times of need, because "That's what friends are for"...
). The song was the first winner under the now-familiar Eurovision voting system whereby each country awards scores of 1-8, 10 and 12. At the close of voting, it had received 152 points, placing first in a field of nineteen. As the first song performed during the evening, the victory ran contrary to the fact that success usually went songs performed later in the broadcast. According to author and historian John Kennedy O'Connor's The Eurovision Song Contest - The Official History, this was the first of three occasions when the first song would win the contest, the second coming the following year in 1976.
The song, performed entirely in English, was an up-tempo ode to positive thought. The band (only the second to win the Contest in a non-native language after ABBA
ABBA
ABBA was a Swedish pop group formed in Stockholm in 1970 which consisted of Anni-Frid Lyngstad, Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson and Agnetha Fältskog...
the year before) sings that one should "sing a song that goes ding ding-a-dong" when one is feeling unhappy. On the night of the Dutch National Song Contest, the song had already been selected to be performed at the ESC, but there were two other singers competing for the honor of performing the song: Albert West and Debbie
Debbie
Debbie is a fairly common given name, usually feminine, short for Deborah and is popular in most English-speaking countries...
.
Almost immediately, the song's lyrics became a source of ridicule, particularly in the UK, because the word "dong" is slang for penis. This did not stop the song from hitting number 13 in the UK singles chart. Besides the Dutch and English versions, Teach-In also recorded Ding-A-Dong in German as Ding ding-a-dong.
The song was succeeded in 1976 as contest winner by Brotherhood of Man
Brotherhood of Man
Brotherhood of Man are a British pop group who achieved success in the 1970s, most notably by winning the 1976 Eurovision Song Contest with "Save Your Kisses for Me"....
, representing the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, singing Save Your Kisses for Me
Save Your Kisses For Me
"Save Your Kisses for Me" was the winning song of the Eurovision Song Contest 1976, performed for the United Kingdom by Brotherhood of Man in The Hague, Netherlands. The lyrics and music were written by Tony Hiller, Lee Sheriden, and Martin Lee, the latter two being members of the band...
. It was succeeded as the Dutch representative
Netherlands in the Eurovision Song Contest
The Netherlands was one of the seven countries competing in the very first Eurovision Song Contest in 1956. It has missed only four contests so far...
at the 1976 contest
Eurovision Song Contest 1976
The Eurovision Song Contest 1976, the 21st in the series, was held in The Hague, Netherlands, on 3 April 1976. With Corry Brokken as the presenter – the first time a previous winner of the contest had played hostess – the contest was won by Brotherhood of Man, representing the United...
by Sandra Reemer
Sandra Reemer
Barbara Alexandra "Sandra" Reemer is a Dutch Indo singer of Dutch, Chinese and Javanese extraction...
with The Party's Over.
Charts
| Charts (1975) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Swiss Singles Chart | 1 |
| UK Singles Chart UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ... |
13 |
| Dutch Singles Chart Dutch Top 40 The Dutch Top 40 is a weekly music chart, which started as the "Veronica Top 40", because the offshore radio station Radio Veronica was the first to introduce it. It remained "The Veronica Top 40" until 1974, when the station was forced to stop broadcasting... |
3 |
| Norwegian Singles Chart VG-lista VG-listen is a Norwegian record chart. It is weekly presented in the newspaper VG and the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation program Topp 20. It is considered the primary Norwegian record chart, charting albums and singles from countries and continent around the world. The data is collected by... |
1 |
Covers
- 4 Tune Fairytales (disco version)
- As Petit Train by French singer Rika ZaraïRika ZaraïRika Zaraï , is an Israeli singer and writer, who performed in Hebrew, English, then in French, Italian, Spanish and German. She celebrated her 50 years of her career in 2008. She has a daughter named Yael, born in 1959.She became famous in 1969 with Casatchok and Alors je chante...
- Ding-A-DongDing-A-Dong (beFour Song)Ding-A-Dong is a 2009 cover of the winning 1975 Eurovision song performed by Teach-In performed by German band beFour on their fourth studio album Friends 4 Ever, as the second single in Germany, Austria and Switzerland...
by beFourBeFourbeFour is a German pop group founded in Cologne. The members were cast for the television show beFour: Das Star-Tagebuch , which has been broadcast daily at 14:20 for three months. The first single "Magic Melody" is a cover version of the song "Around The World" by ATC, that is a cover of the song...
in 2009