My Number One

"My Number One" is a song recorded by Greek-Swedish singer Helena Paparizou, written by Manos Psaltakis, Christos Dantis, Natalia Germanou and produced by Christos Dantis. It was the Greek winning entry at the Eurovision Song Contest 2005, held in Kyiv, awarding the country its first victory in the Eurovision Song Contest.

For the song by Luv', see My Number One (Luv' song).
"My Number One"
Single by Helena Paparizou
from the album Protereotita: Euro Edition and My Number One
B-side
  • "I Don't Want You Here Anymore" (Anapandites Kliseis)
  • "Ok"
Released24 March 2005
Recorded2005
Genre
Length2:58
LabelSony BMG Greece/Columbia
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)Christos Dantis
Helena Paparizou singles chronology
"Anapandites Kliseis"
(2003)		 "My Number One"
(2005)		 "The Light in Our Soul"
(2005)
Alternative cover
US cover for My Number One
Eurovision Song Contest 2005 entry
Country
Artist(s)
Language
English
Composer(s)
  • Manolis Psaltakis
  • Christos Dantis
Lyricist(s)
  • Christos Dantis
  • Natalia Germanou
Finals performance
Final result
1st
Final points
230
Entry chronology
◄ "Shake It" (2004)
"Everything" (2006) ►
Official performance video
"My Number One (Final) on YouTube

The song is notable for casting elements of traditional Greek music in a contemporary dance music setting: its arrangement includes bouzoukis and a solo featuring a Cretan lyra.[1][2] The song's lyrics describe the singer's appreciation for her lover who is lauded as her "number one" and "the only treasure [she]'ll ever have".

In 2022, newspaper The Independent named it 29th best Eurovision-winning song of all time.[3]

Background and composition

"My Number One" was written by Manos Psaltakis, Christos Dantis and Natalia Germanou, and produced by Dantis. The composition had initially been credited to Dantis, however, a 2013 lawsuit by musician Manos Psaltakis resulted in the credit being assigned to Psaltakis.[4]

After the release of "My Number One", a Swedish album followed which contained "My Number One" and in Greece Paparizou re-released her first album Protereotita featuring "My Number One" and the other songs in the running for Eurovision pre-selection. It has sold over 90,000 copies in Greece and was certified double platinum.

In early 2006, it was announced that "My Number One" and "Mambo!" would be remixed and released in the United States by Moda Records. On August 22, a maxi CD single was released to record stores, featuring 10 remixes, and the original song;[5] the mixes were also released as digital downloads on June 4.[6]

Reception

After the Eurovision victory, the video for the song was released in several countries throughout Europe. It went to #1 in both Greece and Paparizou's native Sweden for 4 weeks and was certified gold in both countries. The song was played constantly in Greece all through the summer. The success of the single is credited to the popular remix from Chris "The Greek" Panaghi which Sony (Greece) commissioned for the remix.

The song peaked on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart at number 8 and number 25 on the Billboard Hot Dance Singles Sales. In September 2006, the Georgie’s #1 Radio Anthem Mix was added to popular American retailer Abercrombie & Fitch's store playlist nationwide.[7]

Music video and promotion

The music video of "My Number One" premiered in the US in 2006. There were two separate videos. One is the original video, that was also shown in Europe. The second is a re-edited version of the same video, to the beat of the Josh Harris Remix from the CD Single.

Eurovision Song Contest
Main article: Greece in the Eurovision Song Contest 2005

Song selection

Before Eurovision, Greek national broadcaster ERT used an internal selection method to choose Paparizou. They then had composers submit songs for her to perform, among which four were picked ("My Number One", "OK", "Let's Get Wild" and "The Light in Our Soul").

At the Greek national selection, the public would see Paparizou perform each of the songs and vote their favourite via televoting to a special jury, which would determine what song to send to Eurovision. Shortly before the Greek national selection, it was revealed that "The Light in Our Soul" had been released by the artist Big Alice in Germany, thus being disqualified for breaching the rules, leaving out only three songs. The chorus of the winning track had already become a chant for AEK Athens supporters.

The voting to pick the song consisted of televoting, and a jury. Televoting held a 60% outcome to the song, and the jury held a 40% outcome. In the end, "My Number One" gained a combined 66.47% from televoting and jury votes, and was chosen to represent Greece in 2005 Eurovision Song Contest. Shortly after the song was picked, the music video was shot in just 1 day at the Thessaloniki Science Center and Technology Museum in Thessaloniki.

After the song was picked, Paparizou went on a European promotional tour. Paparizou visited over 20 countries on her tour, and sang on various TV shows, as well as gave many interviews. This method proved popular, and was used by many countries in 2006, including by Greece again in 2006.

National Final - 2 March 2005
№SongComposer / LyricistPercentagePlace
1"My Number One"Manos Psaltakis / Christos Dantis & Natalia Germanou66.47%1st
2"OK"Christodoulos Siganos & Valentino24.55%2nd
3"Let's Get Wild"Douglas Carr8.98%3rd
3"The Light in Our Soul"Kostas BigalisDisqualifiedN/A

In Kyiv

As Greece had finished the Eurovision Song Contest 2004 in third place, the song was pre-qualified for the final in 2005. Thus, it was performed nineteenth on the night, following Croatia's Boris Novković and LADO with "Vukovi umiru sami" and preceding Russia's Natalia Podolskaya with "Nobody Hurt No One".

During the performance, Paparizou did a stage show of the song, choreographed by Fokas Evangelinos.[8] Some of the best remembered visuals from the show include her dancing a traditional Greek Pontian dance, the 4 dancers making the shape on the number 1 of the floor (showed from aerial camera) and her playing an imaginary lyra while her dancers pick her up. At the close of voting, it had received 230 points, finishing at the head of a 24-strong field.

"My Number One" held two other Eurovision records:

  • The first one is that it scored an average of only 6.05 points per jury, the lowest average for a winning song at the time. This record was previously held by Yugoslavia in 1989 with the song "Rock Me", and was later broken by Azerbaijan in 2011 with Running Scared, by Ell & Nikki.
  • The second is that it was the record for most sets of 12 points given out to one country. "My Number One" received 12 points 10 times, tying it with the United Kingdom's 1997 entry "Love Shine a Light" by Katrina and the Waves for the record (televoting was only in place for 5 countries at the time). This record was later broken by "Fairytale", the winning song in 2009, which scored 12 points from 16 countries, and is currently held by the 2012 winner, "Euphoria", which receive 18 sets of 12 points.

Back home

After Greece won Eurovision, a mass party started on the streets of Athens. People went out onto the streets with Greek flags, and started singing "My Number One", as well as honking car horns. This was similar to when Greece won Euro 2004, the 2005 Eurobasket title and when Greece won the silver medal in the 2006 FIBA World Championship. When Paparizou arrived back to Greece from Kyiv, mass crowds met her at the Athens International Airport, where she held up a Greek flag and the trophy.

Later performances

The Eurovision Song Contest 2006 semi-final opened with a medley of former Eurovision songs performed by different Greek gods, with all the cast finishing with "My Number One". The grand final opened with a ballet dance, after which Paparizou was introduced as the reigning winner and she performed the song. She also performed "Mambo!" at the interval act and presented the trophy to the winners.

Paparizou performed the song at the Congratulations: 50 Years of the Eurovision Song Contest special in late 2005, where it was named as one of the five greatest contest entries of all time, earning the 4th place in Eurovision history.[9]

She performed a revamped version of "My Number One" at the Eurovision Song Contest 2021 as part of the "Rock the Roof" interval act among other past Eurovison winners.[8]

Use in media
  • In 2009, "My Number One" made its way to the PlayStation 3 karaoke game Singstar as downloadable content. It was previously released in the Swedish version of the game, but it is the first time it has become accessible to players from all over Europe.
  • A part of this song was sampled for "Thara Thara Onthara" of Kannada-language film Bindaas.

Cover versions

Track listings

Credits and personnel

Credits adapted from liner notes.[10]

Locations
  • Recorded at Vox Studios (Athens, Greece)
Personnel

Charts and certifications

Release history
Country Date Label Format
Greece 24 March 2005 Sony BMG
Sweden 4 May 2005[27] Bonnier Amigo CD single, digital download
Finland
Denmark 30 May 2005[27]
Norway
Germany Sony BMG
Austria
Netherlands 6 June 2005[27] CD single
Belgium
Portugal 7 June 2005[27]
Italy 1 July 2005[27] CD Single, digital download
United States 4 June 2006[6] Moda Digital download
22 August 2006[5] CD single

References
  1. "My number one - Helena Paparizou".
  2. Ivan Raykoff, Robert Deam Tobin A song for Europe: popular music and politics in the Eurovision song contest Ashgate Publishing Ltd Aldershot UK (2007) p.143
  3. Kelly, Ben (2022-05-10). "All 68 winning Eurovision songs ranked from worst to best". The Independent. Retrieved 2022-05-11.
  4. Vatmanidis, Theo (13 September 2013). "Greek court judgement against credited composer of 'My Number One'". EuroVisionary. Retrieved 27 December 2020.
  5. Staff (2006-08-22). "My Number One [SINGLE]". Amazon. Retrieved 2009-09-07.
  6. Staff (2006-06-04). "My Number One (Dance Mixes)". iTunes. Retrieved 2009-09-07.
  7. "Abercrombie & Fitch Store Music: 2006 Playlist By Month: September". EverythingAmbercrombie. 2008-08-04. Archived from the original on 2011-07-10. Retrieved 2009-01-14.
  8. Edwards, Pollyanna (26 March 2021). "Helena Paparizou to perform revamped version of 'My Number One' in Rotterdam". eurovoxx.tv. Retrieved 19 May 2023.
  9. Adam, Karla (24 October 2005). "Abba's 'Waterloo' is voted best song of 50 Eurovision years". The Independent. Retrieved 20 May 2023.
  10. "My Number One" (liner notes). Helena Paparizou. Athens, Greece: Sony Music Entertainment (Greece). 2005. COL 675891 1, Barcode 5 099767 589212.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  11. "Helena Paparizou – My Number One" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved 2011-08-01.
  12. "Helena Paparizou – My Number One" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 2011-08-01.
  13. "Helena Paparizou – My Number One" (in French). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 2011-08-01.
  14. Helena Paparizou — My Number One. TopHit. Retrieved 2021-10-06.
  15. "Helena Paparizou – My Number One" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved 2011-08-01.
  16. "Top 50 Singles Chart". IFPI Greece. 2005-07-30. Archived from the original on August 26, 2005. Retrieved 2011-08-01.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  17. "Archívum – Slágerlisták – MAHASZ" (in Hungarian). Single (track) Top 40 lista. Magyar Hanglemezkiadók Szövetsége. Retrieved 2021-05-19.
  18. "Helena Paparizou – My Number One" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 2011-08-01.
  19. "Helena Paparizou – My Number One". Singles Top 100. Retrieved 2011-08-01.
  20. "Helena Paparizou – My Number One". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved 2011-08-01.
  21. "Digital Singles Charts - Turkey". Number One Top 20. Archived from the original on 3 June 2011. Retrieved 22 May 2005.
  22. "Helena Paparizou Chart History (Dance Club Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved 2011-08-01.
  23. "Jaaroverzichten 2005". Ultratop. Retrieved 2020-05-16.
  24. "Лучшие песни и музыка за 2005 год" (in Russian). Tophit. Archived from the original on 2021-10-06. Retrieved 2021-10-06.
  25. "Årslista Singlar – År 2005" (in Swedish). Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved 2020-05-16.
  26. "Guld- och Platinacertifikat − År 2005" (PDF) (in Swedish). IFPI Sweden. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-05-17.
  27. ""My Number One" all over Europe!". Archived from the original on 2011-09-29.(in Greek) MAD TV. Retrieved on July 25, 2005.
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