Lys Assia
The winner of the inaugural Eurovision Song Contest in 1956, Swiss-born vocalist Lys Assia was born March 3, 1926, in Rupperswil, Aargau, Switzerland. She originally worked as a dancer but, at a show in 1940, she was asked to stand in for a missing singer. She agreed and performed so well that she promptly abandoned her first love for a career in front of the microphone. Establishing herself as a star throughout Central Europe, she also moved into movies, starring in such efforts as Palace Hotel in 1952 and Ein Mann Vergißt die Liebe in 1955. Hit singles during this period included "Moulin Rouge (Ein Lied aus Paris)" in 1953, "O Mein Papa" and "Schwedenmädel" in 1954, and "Jolie Jacqueline" in 1955. In 1956, Assia was invited to represent two different nations, Germany and Switzerland, at the first Eurovision event. Her German entry, "Ein Kleiner Goldner Ring," unfortunately never made it past the country's own qualifying competition. "Refrain," however, was successful at both the Swiss qualifiers (where she also performed "Das Alte Karrussel"), and at the final event itself.
Assia returned to the Eurovision stage in both succeeding years, finishing eighth in 1957 with "L'Enfant Que J'Etais" and second in 1958 with "Giorgio." Both were also major European hits, alongside further smashes "Arrivederci Roma" (1956), "Was Kann Schöner Sein" (1957), "Come Prima" (1958), and "Wenn die Glocken Hell Erklingen" (1959). Assia's other hits included a version of "Moon River," "Für Immer" in 1961, "Schwarze Perlen" in 1962, and 1964's "Fühl' Dich Bei Mir Wie Zuhause." Although she appeared to drop out of sight on a regular basis in subsequent years, Assia continued performing, while remaining in demand at various Eurovision-themed events. In 2007, at age 83, she appeared at the annual German-language television song contest Grand Prix der Volksmusic, performing "Sag Mir Wo Wohnen die Engel" (Tell Me Where the Angels Live) with her 18-year-old duet partner, Beatrice Egli. That same year, she also posed nude for the Swiss magazine Annabelle, for a feature titled "Beauty with Age." Lys Assia died on March 24, 2018, in Zollikerberg, Zürich, Switzerland, at the age of 94.
© Dave Thompson /TiVo
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Schwarze Perlen
Pop - Released by Universal Digital Enterprises on 17 Dec 1953
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
My Best (Remastered)
World - Released by Universal Digital Enterprises on 8 Feb 2019
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Vintage Vocal Jazz / Swing No. 195 - EP: Wenndu Fortgehst Von Mir
Pop - Released by Vintage Music on 27 Apr 2011
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Was kann schöner Sein
World - Released by Rooster Records on 10 Sep 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
MASTERPIECES presents Lys Assia: Hits & Raritäten
World - Released by MASTERPIECES - Schlager on 27 Mar 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
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Ein kleins Haus, an Ende der Welt
Jazz - Released by Putlabel on 8 Nov 2011
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
All the best
Jazz - Released by Don't stop the music on 19 Mar 2021
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Träume aus Musik
Pop - Released by The Music Dome on 20 Mar 2020
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Schlager-Roulette (Mono Version)
Lys Assia, Vico Torriani, Bela Sanders and his orchestra
Pop - Released by BNF Collection on 1 Jan 1958
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Vintage French Song No. 138 - EP: Oh! Mon Papa
Pop - Released by Vintage Music on 12 Apr 1955
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
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Piccolissima Serenata
World - Released by Carinco Neue Medien AG on 19 Oct 2009
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
The Best of Lys Assia
World - Released by Viking Records on 15 Sep 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Grand prix de l'Eurovision, 1958 (feat. Hugo Strasser & Rudi Bohn) (Mono Version)
Pop - Released by BNF Collection on 1 Jan 1958
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Lys Assia, Will Glahe, Vico Torriani (Mono Version)
Will Glahe und Sein Orchester, Lys Assia, Vico Torriani
Germany - Released by BNF Collection on 1 Jan 1953
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Ihre Lieder (feat. Béla Sanders und sein Orchester) (Mono Version)
Pop - Released by BNF Collection on 1 Jan 1955
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
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Lys Assia - Vintage Selection
Jazz - Released by Vintage Jukebox on 2 Nov 2020
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo