99 Luftballons Nena

'99 Luftballons' - 'Neunundneunzig Luftballons' in the original song, and '99 Red Balloons' in its English version - from West German band Nena's 1983 eponymous debut album, remains one of the most exhilarating paradoxes in pop history: a song born of Cold War anxiety that somehow radiates pure joy.

From its opening synth riff, the track bursts into colour like, well, balloons against a grey sky, transforming a bleak landscape into something buoyant and playful.

The German lyrics sketch a scenario of misunderstanding and militaristic overreaction: 99 balloons are mistaken for UFOs, causing a military general to send pilots to investigate, with matters ending in a cataclysmic war, and '99 Jahre Krieg ließen keinen Platz fur Sieger' (99 years of war left no room for victors). How many cautionary tales can you dance to?


This anti-war anthem's delivery is bright and urgent, and demands you to perk up. Its pop hook and chorus, with its soaring melody, are infectious. '99...' is a reminder that joy can be subversively pacifist - as if frontwoman Nena is saying: Yes, the world may be grey. But here is melody that refuses to bow to despair.