Abba members Benny Andersson, Frida Lyngstad and Bjorn Ulvaeus.     Getty Images/Dave Hogan.

The 56th annual Eurovision Song Contest will be held tonight (Saturday 5/14/11) in Berlin, Germany, and it’s going to be awesome:

While open only to members of the European Broadcast Union, the competition has helped boost songs and stars.

Most famously, [lastfm link_type="artist_info"]ABBA[/lastfm], which rode “Waterloo” to the 1974 title before becoming their first global hit. I dug up the ultra-rare original performance for you:

Spanish group Mocedades [pr: moh-seh-DAH-dez] saw their “Eres Tu,” become an American smash — even in its original Spanish version.

Celine Dion represented Switzerland in 1988 with the song “Ne Partez Pas Sans Moi.”

And a different distinction came to Ukrainian singer Ruslana in 2004. Her title helped her win a seat in the country’s parliament.

This weekend, German singer Lena will defend her 2010 title.

For trivia buffs, no artist has ever won the contest in consecutive years. Ireland’s Johnny Logan is the only repeat winner (1980 and ’87). And Ireland has the most wins (seven) in the event’s history. ~JZ.