"J'aime la vie" was the winner of the
Eurovision Song Contest 1986The Eurovision Song Contest 1986 was the 31st Eurovision Song Contest and was held on 3 May 1986 in the Grieg Hall in Bergen, Norway. It was the first occasion on which Norway played host to the contest...
, performed for
BelgiumBelgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
by
Sandra KimSandra Caldarone , better known as Sandra Kim, is a Belgian singer of Italian descent who won the Eurovision Song Contest 1986 held in Bergen, Norway, on 3 May 1986....
. Belgium had finished the
1985 ContestThe Eurovision Song Contest 1985 was the 30th Eurovision Song Contest and was held on 4 May 1985 in Gothenburg, Sweden. The presenter was Lill Lindfors, and Norwegian duo Bobbysocks! was the winner of this Eurovision with the song "La det swinge"....
in last place, and thus achieved the rare turnaround from last to first in the space of one year. The song also marks the only time to date that Belgium has won the Contest.
Performance
At Bergen, the song was performed thirteenth on the night (following
IrelandIreland , 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
Luv BugLuv Bug are an Irish pop band originating from Newry in Northern Ireland. They are most famous for representing Ireland in the Eurovision Song Contest in 1986 with the song "You Can Count On Me".- Career :...
with "
You Can Count On MeYou Can Count On Me was the Irish entry in the Eurovision Song Contest 1986, performed in English by Luv Bug. It was written by Kevin Sheerin.- Overview :The song is an up-tempo number, with the singer recounting a relationship she hopes might begin again...
" and preceding
GermanyGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
's
Ingrid PetersIngrid Peters is a German singer.She represented Germany in the Eurovision Song Contest 1986 held in Bergen. Her song, Über die Brücke geh'n was placed eight. Peters had made previous attempts to represent Germany. In 1979 she performed a song called Du bist nicht frei and in 1983 was runner-up in...
with "
Über Die Brücke Geh'nÜber Die Brücke Geh'n was the German entry in the Eurovision Song Contest 1986, performed in German by Ingrid Peters....
"). Its winning tally was 176 points, finishing first in a field of 20. The entry received points from every jury.
Performed in
FrenchFrench is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
, the song is a positive one, dealing with the pleasure to be had in life. During Preview Week, Kim sang the song with the common theme of "things she likes" intact throughout. In the video, she does many things which she finds enjoyable, which include partaking in
physical educationPhysical education or gymnastics is a course taken during primary and secondary education that encourages psychomotor learning in a play or movement exploration setting....
class, hanging out with friends, listening to her
WalkmanWalkman is a Sony brand tradename originally used for portable audio cassette, and now used to market Sony's portable audio and video players as well as a line of Sony Ericsson mobile phones...
, buying a big
ice cream coneAn ice cream cone, poke or cornet is a dry, cone-shaped pastry, usually made of a wafer similar in texture to a waffle, allowing ice cream to be eaten without a bowl or spoon...
, and performing a choreographed dance in an exercise studio.
In the lyrics, Kim describes herself as being "fifteen", although she was later proven to be only thirteen at the time of her performance. She thus remains the youngest ever Eurovision winner and one of the youngest-ever performers at the Contest. Her record is unlikely to be challenged, as the Contest rules were changed to specify that performers must turn at least 16 in the year that they perform. According to author and historian John Kennedy O'Connor in his book
The Eurovision Song Contest - The Official History, the Swiss (who had placed 2nd) petitioned to have the Belgian win nullified after Kim's age was revealed.
Kim, herself of
ItalianItaly , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
descent, also recorded her winning entry in Italian (with the same title as the original French, "J'aime la vie") and English ("Crazy of Life").
In a 2006 online interview with 12points.be, Kim was asked if she sings "J'aime la vie"
"with pleasure" at concerts and events now, to which she responded,
"Not always." She then said,
"It's a little girl's song, with little girl's lyrics, with a young adolescent's atmosphere. Nowadays, singing "J'aime la vie"...do you like life every day? Me neither." She does however continue to perform the song, and in 2007 one of the performances was televised live on Norwegian TV.
"J'aime la vie" was succeeded as
Belgian representativeBelgium is a founding member of the Eurovision Song Contest. Since 1956, the country has participated 52 times, only being absent three times in total: in 1994, 1997 and 2001, due to low scores in the previous contests that relegated Belgium from the contest.-History of Belgium in the Eurovision...
at the
1987 ContestThe Eurovision Song Contest 1986 was the 31st Eurovision Song Contest and was held on 3 May 1986 in the Grieg Hall in Bergen, Norway. It was the first occasion on which Norway played host to the contest...
, held in
BrusselsBrussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
, by
Liliane Saint-PierreLiliane Saint Pierre is a Belgian singer of Dutch language.Saint Pierre was born in Molenstede, Flemish Brabant. She started her career in the 1960s when she was 13 years old and her great hit was We gotta stop sung in Dutch. She has sung several songs in English and Dutch. At that time she sang...
performing "
Soldiers of Love"Soldiers of Love" was the Belgian entry in the Eurovision Song Contest 1987, performed in Dutch despite the English title by Liliane Saint-Pierre....
".
Personnel
"J'aime la vie"
- Written by R. Marino-Atria/J.F. Furnemont-A. Crisci
- Arranged by J.P. Lebens
- Produced by Marino
"On n'oublie pas"
- Written by R. Marino-Atria/J.F. Furnemont-A. Crisci-A. Bertrand
- Engineered L. Tylgat
Peak positions
| Chart (1986) |
Peak
position |
| Austrian Singles Chart |
6 |
| Dutch Mega Top 100 |
2 |
| French SNEP Singles Chart |
21 |
| German Singles Chart |
50 |
| Swedish Singles Chart |
15 |
| Swiss Singles Chart |
29 |
End of year charts
| End of year chart (1986) |
Position |
| Dutch Top 40 |
51 |
Sources and external links