Source: Blabbermouth.net

“Lonely Planet”, a song co-written by BLACK SABBATH guitarist Tony Iommi which was recently chosen as Armenia’s entry into the Eurovision Song Contest, placed 18th in the competition’s final, which was held this past Saturday, May 18 in Malmö, Sweden.

Iommi wrote the music and Vardan Zadoyan penned the lyrics for the track, which was performed live by DORIANS. Each year member countries submit songs to be performed live on television and radio and then votes are cast to determine the most popular track in the competition.

Iommi recently told Birmingham Mail that he was surprised when the Armenians chose “Lonely Planet” — a song he wrote more than five years ago — as their Eurovision contender.

“I was as shocked as anybody when they came knocking,” he said. “They got in touch with me because of the charity work we’ve been doing out there, building a new music school to replace one wrecked by an earthquake. They asked if I’d got any spare songs. Well, I write loads of songs and they just get put away. They lie on a shelf because either they’re not suitable for SABBATH or for another project, and never see the light of day. I searched out ‘Lonely Planet’ — it’s a bit of a power ballad — and sent it off. I was surprised when it made the shortlist and gobsmacked when the people of Armenia voted for it. With a little luck, who knows, it might win.”

Iommi and DEEP PURPLE/ex-BLACK SABBATH singer Ian Gillan have spent a lot of time in Armenia, fallen in love with the country and the people and have dedicated a lot of work to a nation still shocked after the earthquake that struck Armenia on December 7, 1988.