6. Remedios Amaya – ¿Quién Maneja Mi Barca? (Spain 1983)
What went wrong?
This blend of traditional flamenco melodies and modern pop production (‘flamenco-rock’ as it was called at the time) was very something very different for Eurovision at the time, and sadly that was probably its downfall. A good decade before ethnic flavours came into favour at the contest, this was extremely Spanish, and probably too left-field for the stuffy jurors of early 80s Eurovision. Remedios’ style of singing was also probably an acquired taste for some, and the fact that the first minute of her performance was extremely nervy probably sealed its fate.
Redeeming features?
The reasons for its downfall are precisely the reasons I like this one – because it was a breath of fresh air for the contest. Whilst the production is quite 80s, the song has aged remarkably well and actually I would say if Spain dared to enter something like this again today, with a more assured performance it could do really rather well!
