Under stjernerne på himlen

"Under stjernerne på himlen" (Danish pronunciation: [ˈɔnˀɐ ˈstjɛɐ̯nɐnə pʰɔ ˈhe̝mln̩]; "Under the stars of the sky") was the Danish entry in the Eurovision Song Contest 1993, performed in Danish by the Tommy Seebach Band.

Denmark "Under stjernerne på himlen"
Eurovision Song Contest 1993 entry
Country
Artist(s)
Language
Composer(s)
Tommy Seebach
Lyricist(s)
Conductor
George Keller
Finals performance
Final result
22nd
Final points
9
Entry chronology
◄ "Alt det som ingen ser" (1992)
"Fra Mols til Skagen" (1995) ►

Seebach wrote the song as a lullaby to his daughter, and his family encouraged him to suggest it as a finalist for the Danish final in 1993, where it won. At the Eurovision Song Contest, the song was performed fifth on the night, following Switzerland's Annie Cotton with "Moi, tout simplement" and preceding Greece's Katerina Garbi with "Ellada, chora tou fotos". At the close of voting, it had received 9 points, placing 22nd in a field of 25.

The disappointing result at this contest, coupled with the expansion of the contest following the breakup of Yugoslavia and the Soviet Union, meant that Denmark was relegated from competing in the 1994 contest, causing them to miss a finale for the first time since 1977. The media reacted poorly to this, putting the blame on Seebach personally, which his son later revealed was one of the main reasons for his father's descent into alcoholism and depression,[1] which led to his divorce and ultimately his early death ten years later. Although Seebach had overcome his alcoholism by this time, there was already permanent damage to his heart, which led to the deadly heart attack in 2003. "Under stjernerne på himlen" was played at Seebach's funeral, as the coffin was carried out of the church.[2]

It was succeeded as Danish representative at the 1995 contest (to which Denmark had been invited) by Aud Wilken with "Fra Mols til Skagen".

Rasmus Seebach version

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"Under stjernerne på himlen"
Single by Rasmus Seebach
from the album Mer' end kærlighed
ReleasedOctober 2011
Recorded2011
GenrePop
Length2:53 (Album Version)
LabelArtPeople
Songwriter(s)
Rasmus Seebach singles chronology
"I mine øjne"
(2011)
"Under stjernerne på himlen"
(2011)
"Mer' end kærlighed"
(2011)

Rasmus Seebach recorded a cover of his father's song. The track is included in Rasmus' second album Mer' end kærlighed and was released in October 2011 as a single reaching #3 in the Hitlisten, the Danish Singles Chart.[3] It was certified 3× Platinum for the track and an additional Platinum for streaming.[4][5]

Certifications for "Under stjernerne på himlen"
Region Certification Certified units/sales
Denmark (IFPI Danmark)[4] 3× Platinum 270,000
Denmark (IFPI Danmark)[5] Platinum 900,000

Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.
Streaming-only figures based on certification alone.

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References

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  1. ^ Radio interview with Rasmus Seebach, DR Radio, October 11, 2012
  2. ^ "Sådan var Tommy Seebachs sidste timer". 17 November 2010.
  3. ^ danishcharts.dk: "Under stjernerne på himlen" song page
  4. ^ a b "Danish single certifications – Rasmus Seebach – Under stjernerne på himlen". IFPI Danmark. Retrieved 6 September 2021.
  5. ^ a b "Danish single certifications – Rasmus Seebach – Under stjernerne på himlen". IFPI Danmark. Retrieved 6 September 2021.