Why Do I Always Get It Wrong

1989 single

  • Ray Caruana
  • John Beeby
  • Brian Hodgson
  • Maggie Jay
  • Mike Bell
  • Peter May
As
Live Report
Language
English
Composer(s)
  • Brian Hodgson
  • John Beeby
Conductor
Ronnie Hazlehurst
Finals performanceFinal result
2nd
Final points
130
Entry chronology◄ "Go" (1988)"Give a Little Love Back to the World" (1990) ►

"Why Do I Always Get it Wrong?", written and composed by Brian Hodgson and John Beeby, was the United Kingdom's entry at the Eurovision Song Contest 1989, performed by the sextet Live Report, led by Ray Caruana.

Composition

For the second year in a row, the UK entered a ballad at the Eurovision final. This song revolved around a man who took off running "where [his lover] won't find [him]", as they cause him to hurt, and leaving their presence for good is the only way to stop the pain. Crying out against his illogical love for the person who has treated him so badly, Caruana asks, "why do I always get it wrong?".

Selection process

Live Report won the right to perform at the contest, held in Lausanne, by winning the UK national final, A Song for Europe, where they were the sixth act to perform. For the second of four consecutive years, Live Report was picked via a nationwide telephone vote, receiving more than twice as many votes as the second-place finisher.

At Eurovision

At Lausanne, the song was performed seventh on the night, after Belgium's Ingeborg Sergeant with "Door de wind", and before Norway's Britt Synnøve with "Venners nærhet". At the end of judging that evening, "Why Do I Always Get it Wrong?" took the second-place slot with 130 points. Norway, Portugal, Luxembourg, France and Germany all gave their 12-point designations to the UK that evening. Despite losing the contest by seven points to Yugoslavia's Riva with "Rock Me," the UK actually received the most sets of 12 point designations for the evening (Yugoslavia received the 12 points from four countries).

Charts

After Eurovision, the song placed at No. 73 on the UK Singles Chart, the lowest chart placing for a British runner-up Eurovision entry.

Chart (1989) Peak
position
UK Singles Official Charts Company[1] 73

References

  1. ^ "The UK's highest charting Eurovision stars revealed!". Official Charts. Retrieved 10 May 2015.

External links

  • Lyrics from Diggiloo Thrush
Preceded by
"Go"
by Scott Fitzgerald
 United Kingdom in the Eurovision Song Contest
1989 		Succeeded by
  • v
  • t
  • e
ParticipationArtistsSongs
  • Note: Entries scored out signify where the United Kingdom did not compete
  • v
  • t
  • e
Countries
Artists
Songs
  • "Apopse as vrethoume"
  • "Avrei voluto"
  • "Bana Bana"
  • "Blijf zoals je bent"
  • "Conquistador"
  • "Derekh Hamelekh"
  • "La dolce vita"
  • "Door de wind"
  • "En dag"
  • "Flieger"
  • "J'ai volé la vie"
  • "Monsieur"
  • "Nacida para amar"
  • "Nur ein Lied"
  • "The Real Me"
  • "Rock Me"
  • "Það sem enginn sér"
  • "To diko sou asteri"
  • "Venners nærhet"
  • "Vi maler byen rød"
  • "Viver senza tei"
  • "Why Do I Always Get It Wrong"