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Rock 'n' Roll Kids was the Irish entry at the Eurovision Song Contest 1994 in Dublin performed by Paul Harrington & Charlie McGettigan. A simple ballad, it told the story of two older men reflecting on their teenage days back in 1962 and thinking about how times have changed since then.

It was performed third on the night following Finland and preceding Cyprus. At the close of voting, it was declared the winner with 226 points, giving Ireland its third consecutive win and second consecutive title defense on home ground. The song peaked at #2 on the Irish chart, only being held off the top spot by the music from Riverdance.

Lyrics[]

I remember sixty-two
I was sixteen and so were you
And we lived next door on the avenue
 
Jerry Lee was big and Elvis too
Blue jeans and blue suede shoes
And we never knew what life held in store
We just wanted to rock 'n' roll forever more
 
We were the rock 'n' roll kids
Rock 'n' roll was all we did
And listenin' to those songs on the radio
I was yours and you were mine
That was once upon a time
Now we never seem to rock 'n' roll anymore
 
Now Johnny's in love with the girl next door
And Mary's down at the record store
They don't wanna be around us no more
 
Golden oldies, but we hardly speak
Too busy running to a different beat
Hard to understand we were once like them
How I wish we could find those rock 'n' roll days again
 
We were the rock 'n' roll kids
Rock 'n' roll was all we did
And listenin' to those songs on the radio
I was yours and you were mine
That was once upon a time
Now we never seem to rock 'n' roll anymore
 
I was yours and you were mine
That was once upon a time
Now we never seem to rock 'n' roll
We just never seem to rock 'n' roll anymore

Eurovision Song Contest 1994
Participants
Flag of SwedenMarie Bergman & Roger PontareFlag of FinlandCatCatFlag of IrelandPaul Harrington & Charlie McGettiganFlag of CyprusEvridikiFlag of IcelandSiggaFlag of United KingdomFrances RuffelleFlag of CroatiaTony CetinskiFlag of PortugalSara TavaresFlag of SwitzerlandDuilioFlag of EstoniaSilvi VraitFlag of RomaniaDan BittmanFlag of MaltaChris & MoiraFlag of The NetherlandsWilleke AlbertiFlag of GermanyMekadoIconSlovakiaTublatankaFlag of LithuaniaOvidijus VyšniauskasFlag of NorwayElisabeth Andreassen & Jan Werner DanielsenFlag of Bosnia and HerzegovinaAlma Čardžić & Dejan LazarevićFlag of GreeceKostas Bigalis & The Sea LoversFlag of AustriaPetra FreyFlag of SpainAlejandro AbadFlag of HungaryFriderika BayerFlag of RussiaYouddiphFlag of PolandEdyta GórniakFlag of FranceNina Morato
Songs
Flag of SwedenStjärnornaFlag of FinlandBye Bye BabyFlag of IrelandRock 'n' Roll KidsFlag of CyprusIme Anthropos Ki EgoFlag of IcelandNæturFlag of United KingdomLonely Symphony (We Will Be Free)Flag of CroatiaNek' ti bude ljubav svaFlag of PortugalChamar a músicaFlag of SwitzerlandSto pregandoFlag of EstoniaNagu merelaineFlag of RomaniaDincolo de noriFlag of MaltaMore than LoveFlag of The NetherlandsWaar is de zon?Flag of GermanyWir geben 'ne PartyIconSlovakiaNekonečná pieseňFlag of LithuaniaLopšinė mylimaiFlag of NorwayDuettFlag of Bosnia and HerzegovinaOstani kraj meneFlag of GreeceTo trehandiriFlag of AustriaFür den Frieden der WeltFlag of SpainElla no es ellaFlag of HungaryKinek mondjam el vétkeimet?Flag of RussiaVechnyy strannikFlag of PolandTo nie jaFlag of FranceJe suis un vrai garçon
Eurovision Song Contest
Editions
195619571958195919601961196219631964196519661967196819691970197119721973197419751976197719781979198019811982198319841985198619871988198919901991199219931994199519961997199819992000200120022003200420052006200720082009201020112012201320142015201620172018201920202021202220232024
Countries
AlbaniaAndorraArmeniaAustraliaAustriaAzerbaijanBelarusBelgiumBosnia and HerzegovinaBulgariaCroatiaCyprusCzechiaDenmarkEstoniaFinlandFranceGeorgiaGermanyGreeceHungaryIcelandIrelandIsraelItalyLatviaLithuaniaLuxembourgMaltaMoldovaMonacoMontenegroMoroccoThe NetherlandsNorth MacedoniaNorwayPolandPortugalRomaniaRussiaSan MarinoSerbiaSerbia and MontenegroSlovakiaSloveniaSpainSwedenSwitzerlandTurkeyUnited KingdomUkraineYugoslavia
Winning Songs
RefrainNet Als ToenDors, mon amourEen beetjeTom PillibiNous les amoureuxUn premier amourDanseviseNon ho l'etàPoupée de Cire, Poupée de SonMerci, ChériePuppet on a StringLa, La, LaBoom Bang-a-BangVivo CantandoUn jour, un enfantDe TroubadourAll Kinds of EverythingUn banc, un arbre, une rueAprès ToiTu Te ReconnaîtrasWaterlooDing-a-DongSave Your Kisses For MeL'Oiseau et l'enfantA-Ba-Ni-BiHallelujahWhat's Another YearMaking Your Mind UpEin bißchen FriedenSi la vie est cadeauDiggiloo DiggileyLa Det SwingeJ'aime La VieHold Me NowNe Partez Pas Sans MoiRock MeInsieme: 1992Fångad av en stormvindWhy Me?In Your EyesRock 'n' Roll KidsNocturneThe VoiceLove Shine a LightDivaTake Me To Your HeavenFly on the Wings of LoveEverybodyI WannaEveryway That I CanWild DancesMy Number OneHard Rock HallelujahMolitvaBelieveFairytaleSatelliteRunning ScaredEuphoriaOnly TeardropsRise Like a PhoenixHeroes1944Amar pelos doisToyArcadeZitti e buoniStefaniaTattoo
Specials
Congratulations: 50 Years of the Eurovision Song ContestEurovision's Greatest HitsEurope Shine a Light
Aspects of Eurovision
CommentatorEuroClubEurovision VillageExecutive SupervisorFlag ParadeGrand PrixGreen RoomHead of DelegationInterval ActNational FinalNational JuryOfficial RulesOpening CeremonyPre-PartiesPre-Song PostcardsReference GroupRest of the World VoteRunning Order DrawSemi-FinalsScoreboardSpokespersonTelevotingVoting Systems
Miscellaneous
Big FiveCurse of 43Curse of Number TwoCurse of GreenDouze Points!ESCRadio AwardsESC Top 250Eurovision AgainEurovision National BroadcastersEurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire SagaFounding SevenLGBT visibilityLynda WoodruffMarcel Bezençon AwardsNul PointsOGAERecordsStand-insThe Reorder BoardTie SituationTop Scoring SongsVoting DiasporaWinner's CurseWithdrawn SongsYou're a Vision Award

Trivia[]

  • Jerry Lee Lewis (1935—) - American rock and roll pioneer piano player and singer.
  • Elvis Presley (1935–1977) - American singer, the King of Rock and Roll.
  • This song was the first to win with over 200 points.
  • The song was the first winner not to use the orchestra.
  • There is a belief among many Eurovision fans that the song was deliberately chosen not to win, as it was performed by a male duo (no male duos had ever won before) and in a very static manner. The pair were also much older than any other winners had been. As the Contest rules require the previous year's winner to host the next edition of the Contest, the argument runs that the Irish broadcaster was not prepared to do this, hence the selection.
  • It was also the first song to win out of the third position of the running order since Séverine won for Monaco back in 1971.

Videos[]

Eurovision_1994_-_Paul_Harrington_&_Charlie_McGettigan_-_Rock_'n'_roll_kids

Eurovision 1994 - Paul Harrington & Charlie McGettigan - Rock 'n' roll kids

EUROVISION_Winner_1994_-_Rock_'n_Roll_Kids_-_Paul_Harrington_&_Charlie_McGettigan

EUROVISION Winner 1994 - Rock 'n Roll Kids - Paul Harrington & Charlie McGettigan

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