22 March – Don’t flatter yourself

We always look at the past in this feature. We find those songs that are popular, and some that you might not have ever heard before. After all there were contests in the 20th Century which were classics in their own right.

So looking back at the past, we’re really looking at the past today. As far back as we can go actually. To 1956. Today’s birthday girl Tonina is one of the last surviving singers from that contest. She sang the 14th and last song in that contest and, as you know, each country submitted two songs that year. No-one knows for sure how she did, so we can say she could have been runner-up. There’s also no video footage of her performance on the stage in Lugano, so here is footage from the Sanremo Music Festival from the same year.

Tonina is 90 today.

Buon compleanno, Tonina!