- Ceol An Ghrá
Infobox ESC entry
song = flagicon|Ireland Ceol an Ghrá
caption =
year = 1972
country = Ireland
artist = Sandie Jones
as =
with =
language = Irish
languages =
composer = Joe Burkett
lyricist = Liam Mac Uistín
conductor = Colman Pearce
place = 15th
points = 72
lyrics = [http://www.diggiloo.net/?1972ie from Diggiloo Thrush]
clip =
prev = One Day Love
prev_link = One Day Love
next = Do I Dream
next_link = Do I DreamCeol an Ghrá (English: "The Music of Love") was Ireland's entry in the
Eurovision Song Contest 1972 , performed in Irish bySandie Jones . This was the first and only occasion in which the Irish entry was performed in Irish as opposed to English.The song was composed by
Joe Beckett and written byLiam Mac Uistín , who also provided the lyrics for the English-language version which was not performed at the Contest.Lyrically, the song is a ballad, with Jones singing about hearing "the music of love" wherever she is. She sings about being in "the land of the young", which may also refer to Ireland itself.
At the Contest, it was performed third on the night (following
France 'sBetty Mars withComé Comédie and precedingSpain 'sJaime Morey withAmanece ). At the close of voting, it had received 72 points, placing 15th in a field of 18. It should be remembered as well that the voting system in use at this Contest required every competing country to give at least one point to each other entrant, thus rendering "nul points" impossible.Interestingly, while this was the only occasion on which Ireland performed in its own language, the result would remain Ireland's worst Contest showing until the 1989 Contest, where they would place 18th. The performance was also the first of only two occasions so far on which a Celtic language has been heard at the Contest, with
France entering theEurovision Song Contest 1996 with the Breton-languageDiwanit Bugale .The following year the Irish entry at the 1973 Contest was
Do I Dream by Maxi.
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