Country Austria Language German Conductor Christian Kolonovits | As Schmetterlinge Lyricist(s) Lukas Resetarits | |
Composer(s) Schurli Hernstadt, Willi Resetarits, Herbert Zöchling-Tampier | ||
"Boom Boom Boomerang" was the Austrian representative in the Eurovision Song Contest 1977, performed in German (with some lyrics in English) by Schmetterlinge. (A different song with that title was a 1955 U.S. hit for the DeCastro Sisters.)
The song was performed fourth on the night, following the Netherlands' Heddy Lester with "De mallemolen" and preceding Norway's Anita Skorgan with "Casanova". At the close of voting, it had received 11 points, placing 17th in a field of 18.
The song is one of the more controversial entries in Contest history, as it is the first to send the entire event up. The chorus, for example, features the nonsense lyrics of:
Boom boom boomerang, snadderydang
Kangaroo, boogaloo, didgeridoo
Ding dong, sing the song, hear the guitar twang
Kojak, hijack, me and you
The performance is also memorable, as the band featured four male singers wearing cream suits and red shirts. During the performance, the men would turn their backs to the audience at various points, revealing a costume which looked like the front of a tuxedo, complete with a fake face. A performance like this had not previously been seen at the Contest, although it would not be the last time that Austria would be represented so irreverently, with Alf Poier doing similar at the 2003 Contest with "Weil der Mensch zählt".
The song was succeeded as Austrian representative at the 1978 Contest by Springtime, performing "Mrs. Caroline Robinson".