Sweet Dreams (1980s band)
British trio that represented the UK at Eurovision 1983.
Sweet Dreams were a British vocal trio made up of Carrie Gray (who later changed her name to Carrie Grant), Helen Kray, and Bobby McVay. The group was formed specifically to perform the song "I'm Never Giving Up" in A Song for Europe 1983, the UK's national selection for that year's Eurovision Song Contest. They won the competition and went on to represent the United Kingdom at Eurovision 1983, where they placed sixth.
The band was often compared to Bucks Fizz, another mixed-gender UK group that had won Eurovision in 1981. Bucks Fizz served as a clear model for several acts in the 1982 UK selection, including the song "Lovin' Feeling," an all-female quartet that finished fourth with "Different Worlds, Different People."
In the A Song for Europe 1983 broadcast on 24 March 1983, Sweet Dreams performed first among eight contestants. They won with 109 points from eight regional juries, beating second-place finisher Mirror (another two-female, one-male trio) who scored 91 points with "We've got all the Time in the World."
At Eurovision 1983, held in Munich's Rudi-Sedlmayer-Halle, Sweet Dreams performed third in a field of twenty. They finished in sixth place. In 2008, Carrie Grant recalled that coming sixth "was really shameful" at the time, but noted that "these days that would be a serious result." The song's chart performance was modest: despite a Top of the Pops appearance, "I'm Never Giving Up" peaked at number 21 in the UK, a weaker showing than the previous year's Eurovision entry "One Step Further" by Bardo, which had reached number 2. In Ireland, the single reached number 25.
Sweet Dreams released a follow-up single, "17 Electric (Look Out!)," in August 1983. To distance themselves from their Eurovision image, it was credited simply to "Dreams." The single failed to chart, and the trio disbanded by the end of 1983. Carrie Grant later attributed the lack of lasting success to a shift in public opinion, saying, "Eurovision was so popular when I was growing up. It started to go off the boil [in 1983 when] there was a backlash for the first time."
After the group split, Grant became a television personality, working as a vocal coach and judge on *Fame Academy* and appearing on various entertainment shows. McVay moved into radio presenting and later returned to singing when he joined The Fizz in 2015.
Quick Facts
- Alias
- Dreams
- Background
- group_or_band
- Origin
- London, England
- Genre
- Pop
- Years Active
- 1983
- Label
- Ariola
- Current Members
- Bobby McVay / Carrie Gray / Helen Kray
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
Sweet Dreams were often compared to the band Bucks Fizz, because they were both mixed-gender bands. Bucks Fizz was a band from the UK, which won the Eurovision Song Contest 1981 with the song "Making Your Mind Up." Bucks Fizz was the evident prototype for several acts entered in the 1982 UK edition of A Song for Europe—including "Lovin' Feeling," an A Song for Europe 1982 entrant. In 1982, "Lovin' Feeling" was performed by an all-female quartet and finished fourth with the song "Different Worlds, Different People."
Reader's Guide
Sweet Dreams are significant as the UK's entry in the 1983 Eurovision Song Contest, a period when the contest was beginning to face a backlash in the UK. Their sixth-place finish, while modest, was comparable to the UK's seventh-place finish in 1982. However, their song "I'm Never Giving Up" failed to become a major hit, peaking at only #21 in the UK despite a Top of the Pops appearance, whereas the previous year's entry had reached #2. This lack of commercial success, along with the failure of their follow-up single "17 Electric (Look Out!)" (released under the name "Dreams" to downplay the Eurovision association), led to the group's dissolution by the end of 1983. Their legacy is partly carried on by the later careers of members: Carrie Grant became a TV personality and vocal coach on Fame Academy, and Bobby McVay became a radio presenter and later joined The Fizz in 2015. The group also achieved a Top 30 hit in Ireland, reaching #25.
Did You Know?
- Sweet Dreams was put together specifically to perform "I'm Never Giving Up" in A Song for Europe 1983.
- Bobby McVay had previously been part of the act "Lovin' Feeling," which finished fourth in A Song for Europe 1982.
- The follow-up single "17 Electric (Look Out!)" was credited to "Dreams" to downplay the group's Eurovision association.
- Carrie Grant later said that coming sixth in Eurovision 1983 was 'really shameful' at the time, but would be 'a serious result' in later years.
More in British mixed-gender vocal pop groups 1-21
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