Time-Warp Tuesday: Here today, gone Morocco
Contest: 1980 (25th) –The Hague,Netherlands
Song: Bitakat Hob
Artist: Samira Bensaid
Representing: Morocco
Result: 18th, 7 points
This week, let’s look at a Eurovision one-off. It’s not a one-off because the singer chose to wear her dressing-gown on stage – you could say that happened both before 1980 and after, depending on your definition of a dressing-gown (Malta in Helsinki was a bit that way inclined). No, it’s a one-off because the country responsible is Morocco, in their only appearance at the contest. Not doing well on their first attempt, they evidently decided to not bother trying again; similarly to San Marino in 2008 (only San Marino had a change of heart eventually). Bitakat Hob reminds me of Spain’s 1983 nul-pointer, Quién Maneja Mi Barca? only this is considerably easier to listen to, with Samira’s vocals more caressing than abrasive. I wouldn’t mind Morocco making a comeback to the ESC family, if they took this, twisted it into 2012 with a bit of English and ethnicity and some shirtless backup dancers!
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