It's about what?! Vocal Coach analyses and reacts to Nena

It's about what?! Vocal Coach analyses and reacts to Nena - 99 Luftballons

Рет қаралды 74,665

2 ай бұрын

🎵 Book a Lesson with Beth email beth@bethroars.com
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Vocal Coach reacts to reaction to analyses analyzes analysis of breaks down Nena - 99 Luftballons (99 Red Balloons)
Original Video without interruption: • NENA | 99 Luftballons ...
Check out NENA here: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nena_(band)
NENA, the iconic West German band, skyrocketed to international fame in the 1980s with their catchy hit "99 Luftballons", a song that became a global anthem against the Cold War tensions. Fronted by the charismatic lead singer Nena Kerner, the band's unique blend of new wave and synth-pop elements captivated audiences worldwide, making them a staple in the music scene of the era. Known for their electrifying performances and distinctive sound, NENA's music continues to resonate with fans old and new. Their influence extends beyond just one hit; the band's extensive discography showcases a range of songs that encapsulate the spirit of the 80s while remaining timeless. Whether you're a long-time fan or discovering NENA for the first time, their music offers a nostalgic journey through a pivotal period in music history.
"99 Luftballons" by NENA is an iconic anthem that transcended its West German origins to become a worldwide phenomenon in the 1980s. With its infectious melody and poignant anti-war message, the song captures the zeitgeist of the Cold War era, symbolizing the tension and the fragile peace of the time. Sung in German, its universal appeal broke language barriers, making it a staple on international charts and solidifying NENA's place in music history. The track's distinctive synth-pop sound, coupled with Nena Kerner's captivating vocals, continues to resonate with audiences across generations, making "99 Luftballons" not just a hit song, but a cultural milestone. Its enduring popularity is a testament to the song's ability to convey powerful messages through catchy, engaging music, making it a must-listen for fans of classic hits and music historians alike.
Songwriter: Uwe Fahrenkrog-Petersen
Lyricist: Carlo Karges, Kevin McAlea
Producers: Reinhold Heil, Manfred Praeker
Genre: Rock, new wave, synth pop, Neue deutsche well,
Origin: West Berlin, West Germany
Performed by NENA
* Gabriele Susanne Kerner (Nena) - lead vocals
* Carlo Karges (died 2002) - guitar, backing vocals
* Jürgen Dehmel - bass, Chapman Stick, keyboards, synthesizer
* Rolf Brendel - drums, percussion
* Uwe Fahrenkrog-Petersen - keyboards, synthesizers, keytar, backing and lead vocals
Date and Location
1984 West Berlin
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#vocalcoach #nena #99luftballons #vocalanalysis #99redballoons #brianjohnson #germanmusic #berlinwall #musichistory #musicproduction #VocalMastery

Пікірлер: 585

@BethRoars 2 ай бұрын

🎵 Book a Lesson with Beth email beth@bethroars.com 📖 Get your signed copy of my album Fable here: www.bethroars.com/shop ☀ Find me on Spotify: open.spotify.com/artist/1W0He1MTuQoG0Yt2ccmhyL?si=b5qm82DmSRip8L4abe2-nw 🥁 Become a Patreon Supporter: www.patreon.com/bethroars

@PaulBudge 2 ай бұрын

I was stationed in West Germany from '83 to '85. You couldn't turn on a radio, govt. run or AFN without hearing this every hour. The balloon reference struck a chord with service men and women because at the time, a common euphemism for the initiation of any hostilities was, "When the balloon goes up."

@davidmacey5422 2 ай бұрын

I was at Wildenwrath in 84 and I know exactly what you mean (Not in forces, was touring playing Rugby)

@eatsmylifeYT 2 ай бұрын

Oh, wow, that's interesting!

@Thisandthat8908 2 ай бұрын

a sort of Lili Marleen. Which has a fascinating story.

@FollowerofChrist11 19 күн бұрын

I was at Ray Barracks in Fridberg West Germany. Jan. 1983-June 1984.

@izzsy 2 ай бұрын

I´m german and this song is still very popular in germany. I love your videos :) Your knowledge about this song/the time which it is about is great!

@willieboy3011 2 ай бұрын

@@bantharider5879 I agree. So glad the wall fell in 89, and the East Germans could be free again and reunited with the West Germans.

@erik5374 2 ай бұрын

I’m Dutch and this song is also still popular in die Niederlände: kzfaq.info/get/bejne/d7WZnK2cmd-0aGQ.htmlsi=bZhZbu3TEqYBppm3 There was quite a lot of great songs from Germany back then. And some of those songs (including this one) are very up to date. No matter how happy it sounds, it’s about a devistating war, caused by a misinterpretation because of 99 balloons. Could happen now in Ukraine or Israel, for real. This video was recorded in the Netherlands in the town where I work.

@willieboy3011 2 ай бұрын

@@erik5374 That is very interesting. Good information. I liked the German Band Out of Focus.

@erik5374 2 ай бұрын

@@willieboy3011 Focus is Dutch. The singer is from very near the place the place where the video was shot.

@willieboy3011 2 ай бұрын

@@erik5374 That is a different band. Out of Focus is a German band. They are on KZfaq some.

@zzekezzypt 2 ай бұрын

She did a duet with Kim Wilde later on, "anyplace, anywhere, anytime" - in german, "irgendwie, irgendwo, irgendwann", well worth listening to. Nena sings in german and Kim in english.

@eisikater1584 2 ай бұрын

Will be looking for that. I like them both. Thanks for the information, didn't know about that.

@BlondLanfear Ай бұрын

What a lovely knowledgeable analysis - as a German I'd like to say thank you, this song means a lot to me

@xxJOKeR75xx 2 ай бұрын

99 in german and english are close enough actually. It was balloons vs luft-ballons (air-balloons) that didn't fit, so they made them red.

@darkjudge8786 2 ай бұрын

Sorry this is bullshit. Ninety Nine is 3 syllables. neunundneunzig is 4 syllables. Balloon is 2 syllables. Luftballon is 3 syllables. Even adding red doesn't get it even its only because the zig is swallowed and not really a syllable that it works. Why do losers like you lie? How sad is your life?

@ebrowne72 2 ай бұрын

The last line in English starts with "I think of you." In the original German version the lyrics are "Denk' an dich" where "dich" is the singular "you". When Nena performs the song she changes it to "euch", which is the plural "you".

@ldmax 2 ай бұрын

That's beautiful. I think of you - as in all of you.

@shanehebert396 2 ай бұрын

I (in USA) was a kid when this was released. It brings back tons of nostalgia. The song is great all around but for me, specifically, one of the main things I remember is that it was the first (that I can remember, at least) song in the 80s genres that I heard that was in German. Pretty much everything I had heard up until then had been in English (USA, UK, or other places but the songs lyrics I heard were in the English language) so I was pretty much oblivious that 80s music was literally 'happening' all over the world even in non-English speaking countries. It made me look for more German 80s music, in particular, which was fantastic.

@jimwiater2867 2 ай бұрын

Der Kommissar by Falco came out 3 years before in 1981. English version came out in 1983.

@caligo7918 2 ай бұрын

@@jimwiater2867 there was so much music translated and rewritten between German and English to reach a wider audience.

@svjaz 2 ай бұрын

In 1960, a song in German with the Austrian singer Lolita made it to number 5 in the US Billboard Hot 100: Seemann (deine Heimat ist das Meer) English: Sailor (Your Home is the Sea). See also English Wikipedia: Seemann (Lolita song).

@jelle_smid 2 ай бұрын

This clip is actually shot on an army practice range in The Netherlands. There was no clip for this song so when they came to The Netherlands for the TV show Toppop the program director desided they needed some b-roll to acompany the live performance in the show. They set-up on this gunrange, added some smoke and the rest is history. Fits great with the story of the song.

@ralfklonowski3740 2 ай бұрын

59yo German here. Thanks a lot for this reaction and analysis. This song is one of the best pop pieces ever to come out of Germany and was certainly a part of my youth. Peace marches and the like were very much a thing in early 1980s West Germany, so this struck a chord with many of us. The YT channel "Professor of Rock" has an in-depth episode on this song. It is the best comparison between the German and the English version that I know of. Before Gabriele Kern AKA Nena became a pro musician and moved to West-Berlin, she was an aprentice goldsmith for a short while and as such attended classes at the same vocational college in Dortmund where I am now teaching plumbers and pipe fitters. Keep up the good work! Greetings from Germany!

@erik5374 2 ай бұрын

This was a great era in German music. I liked Völlig losgelöst and skandal im sperrbezirk even better.

@ralfklonowski3740 2 ай бұрын

@@erik5374 Yep. Lots of creativity and deliberate goofyness.

@maireweber 2 ай бұрын

I was born in 83 and still remember joining peace marches, that song was my childhood anthem!

@hh-kv6fh 2 ай бұрын

@@erik5374 "Völlig losgelöst" is "Major Tom" from Peter Schilling

@thierryf67 2 ай бұрын

i'm french, and same age. in the 80's, i loved this song and its message.

@FollowerofChrist11 19 күн бұрын

I was stationed in Germany with the U.S. Army in 1983 when this song came out. I still listen to this all the time.

@antivanti 2 ай бұрын

There's technically one more syllable in neunundneunzig than in ninety-nine but she sings those words over the same notes. Red is there to fill the space of luft in luftballons which is one syllable more than balloons 😊

@huawafabe 2 ай бұрын

Didn't she just explain that? 😅

@antivanti 2 ай бұрын

@@huawafabe She said it was because 99 was longer in German and I said that it's actually because luftballons is longer. Pay attention

@davidwoolbright3675 2 ай бұрын

She said the word balloons in German is longer than in English so they added the word Red. Pay attention.

@0okamino 2 ай бұрын

Yeah, I was just thinking that doesn’t actually even up the syllables, since it’s 7 syllables in German, and 6 syllables in English. Rather than just an extra word, it’s also maintained with a drawn out syllable, in the English version.

@aphextwin5712 2 ай бұрын

@@davidwoolbright3675 She literally says at 2:52: “Well, it’s because the German word for 99 has one more syllable than the word ninety-nine. So adding that word red in adds that extra syllable, so it makes it fit the song better." She even shows in a box on the left: 99 German: Neunundneunzig English: Ninety-nine

@o.b.7217 2 ай бұрын

_A (rough) translation of the lyrics:_ "Do you have some time for me - then I'll sing a song for you Of 99 balloons - on their way to the horizon Do you per chance think of me right now - then I'll sing a song for you Of 99 balloons - and how small things can make bigger things happen 99 balloons on their way to the horizon - were thought of as UFOs from outer space For that reason a General sent - a fighter squadron after them To raise the alarm if it were so - yet all there was at the horizon Were 99 balloons floating 99 fighter jet pilots - each single one a great warrior Thought of themselves as Capt'n Kirk - which lead to a huge firework The neighbors hadn't gotten the news - and felt they were under attack Though the only shots fired at the horizon Were aimed at 99 balloons 99 war ministers - matches and petrol canisters Thought of themselves as clever people - smelling lots of prey already Shouted: WAR! and wanted power - man, who would have ever thought That once it would come down to this Just because of 99 balloons 99 years of war - left no room for any victors War ministers are no more - and also no fighter jet pilots Today, alone, I'm doing my rounds - see the world, laying in rubble Found a balloon - think of you...and let it fly..."

@BIGLON-cf1ul 2 ай бұрын

I love her voice so much! It's like no other! Very unique and distinct! It's awesome!

@chrishagemeier3029 Ай бұрын

"It's so funky yet it has a dark feeling" This is very common on 80's german "Neue deutsche Welle"-Music. The musicians often had "dark-themed" songs but wrapped it up in rather happy music.

@Crafterchen2 Ай бұрын

always get goosebumps at the end. I think it is one of the most important songs of that time.

@bradyblackburn7877 2 ай бұрын

This is why absolutely nothing scares us aging GenXers. Even our pop songs were about nuclear Armageddon.

@MrJest2 2 ай бұрын

Heck - I was _part_ of it; in the USAF on a nuclear bomber base. Random weekly drills... when the alarms went off if we weren't otherwise engaged, we'd all turn and look to the alert pad full of armed and ready aircraft, and wait to see what they did. If they ever rolled off the pad and towards the runway, we would know that we had mere minutes left before the sub-launched cruise missiles came howling in over the Eastern horizon. We had a plan for that, too - it involved bottles of champaign, plastic cups and cheap sunglasses. We would lift a toast to the incoming missiles, because we wouldn't have time for anything else...

@bradyblackburn7877 2 ай бұрын

@@MrJest2 Respect.

@martinwillfor1416 2 ай бұрын

Yep, another good one is "Forever Young" by Alphaville.

@eatsmylifeYT 2 ай бұрын

"Dancing With Tears in My Eyes" is also a good one. While it's not about nuclear war, it's about a nuclear disaster.

@robertfitzjohn4755 2 ай бұрын

Yup. Enola Gay (by ELO), Russians (by Sting) and so on. OK, youngsters - so global warming is bad, but since I was born there have been several incidents (especially the Cuban missile crisis) that almost led to nuclear war. Even my first Dungeons & Dragons campaign was set in a post-Armageddon world, near a monster-infested wilderness that had once been London.

@MartinMcMartin 2 ай бұрын

That thumbnail is pure gold.

@Isa_barchetta 2 ай бұрын

😂 indeed

@Lightkie 2 ай бұрын

It looks like "The What / Rug Doctor Woman Ad" on Know Your Meme.

@davidgrubbs4480 2 ай бұрын

This song played an important role in my life as if came out just before I decided to take German (and may have played a role in that decision). I went on to become a German major and study in Germany and even got to see Nena in concert. Thanks to Beth for doing such a great analysis. I'm proud to say this one was requested by me and then voted in by the other Patrons.

@tomwalters3772 2 ай бұрын

👍👍

@mikeg2306 2 ай бұрын

I also learned German because of this song.

@BuckingFitchCA Ай бұрын

I was in high school when this came out. I love her voice. The NENA live album is amazing!

@kunzworld2309 2 ай бұрын

Every boy in my generation was in love with Nena

@mikesullivan3420 2 ай бұрын

Gabriella, not Nena. That was the bands name. Also her hairy pits put most boys of the generation off

@eatsmylifeYT 2 ай бұрын

And her hairy armpits?

@pigpen5305 2 ай бұрын

@@eatsmylifeYT You might not be able to imagine, but there was a time when this was looked upon as incredibly sexy. After all, it meant she was a fully grown sexual being. Same with pubic hair. I’ve never understood what is sexy about looking like a child.

@eatsmylifeYT 2 ай бұрын

@@pigpen5305 I've never understood why people like you have to shove their preferences down other people's throats.

@eatsmylifeYT 2 ай бұрын

@@pigpen5305 You might not be able to imagine, but I don't give a rat's ass what you think. I've never understood why snowflakes like you have to cram their preferences down other people's throats.

@renaissanceman8687 2 ай бұрын

One of the few singers who when singing almost accapella (like the beginning and the end where it’s just her voice and single long keyboard notes) gives me goosebumps/chills. Even though she is singing in a different language to my own, I still get the emotional connection through her voice. I was lucky enough to see her live last year and she has just as an amazing voice live as she does on record.

@blue-fj9ky 2 ай бұрын

The story of the song had a happy ending. A few years later the wall came down, peacefully, and millions of people were liberated! May that happen again in troubled parts of our world.

@3DJapan 2 ай бұрын

I remember seeing it on TV and how happy it was.

@olli1068 2 ай бұрын

Yes, those were times of hope that things were turning to the better. May those come back! 🙏

@anna-ranja4573 2 ай бұрын

And without use of weapons. The tanks waited around the demonstrating people. I was in front of my TV in these days and prayed that all would go well.

@Paul-ph7zb 2 ай бұрын

the people in east Germany liberated themselfes, details matter.

@KevinPatrick-ov3ot 2 ай бұрын

Fast forward 30 years and people are wanting USSR back in power

@firedoc5 2 ай бұрын

Here in the US, the German version seemed more popular than the English, or at least for me. It just sounded catchier in German. Same with Falco's "Rock Me Amadeus", which I humbly ask you react to.

@lhpl 2 ай бұрын

"Alles klar, Herr Kommissar!" Falco was so captivating with his Austrian accent and almost "staccato" singing. And then of course the classic _Major Tom_ by Peter Schilling. Trio, DÔF,...

@michaelmcfarland1716 2 ай бұрын

Loved them and Peter Schilling, who had Major Tom around that same time

@firedoc5 2 ай бұрын

@@michaelmcfarland1716 Me too.

@johnafirth 2 ай бұрын

@@lhplgenuinely pretty sure Falco was the first white rapper.

@nopeman036 Ай бұрын

@@lhplspecial vienna accent, decadent with cynical humor ! In Austria every region has his own accent or dialect. It is possible that two villages which are next to each other but separated by a mountain speak different dialects.

@pyenygren2299 Ай бұрын

Oh! This is a song from my early teens, and _I still love it_ so, so much.

@sjduges67 8 күн бұрын

I was in high school when Nena and Falco came on the scene. I remember translating this and Falco's Der Kommissar and loving every minute of it. Thanks, Beth for showing and reacting to the video!

@MyBohemianDreams 2 ай бұрын

There is a great live version of this song on the Nena channel from a few years ago. She still has a beautiful voice and looks amazing.

@SteveSmith-os5bs 2 ай бұрын

85 to 87 I was stationed in northern Germany and I saw this music video for the first time and it instantly became one of my favorite songs, the song was very much a possibility reality for me because It was during the middle of Cold War, I was in a combat unit and if the balloon went up all of Germany would have become one big battle field. I used to spend most of my weekends with Germans so when I heard the song, I understood enough German to understand the lyrics.

@BlacksmithTWD 2 ай бұрын

I think that because of the topic this became one of their most famous songs. Having listened to their other songs, several of them deserve an equal appreciation, alas hardly anyone has ever heard them.

@m.h.6470 2 ай бұрын

Calling her Gabriele is so weird, for me as a German. Everyone just knows her as Nena. I literally have never heard of her being referred to by her legal name.

@TheMetalGBG 2 ай бұрын

Great song! Reminds me so much of the 80's

@TommyVercetti0 27 күн бұрын

I love this NENA lady

@colettepot7350 Ай бұрын

Somehow the way Nena sings reminds me of the way Marlene Dietrich sings. Maybe it’s a combination of the airy voice and the way she delivers the words. Hearing Marlene Dietrich made me come to love the German language (when I was young Dutch people hated German, because WW II wasn’t long ago). I also really liked this song, because it gave me the same vibes, and Nena’s German is beautiful.

@ptrlxc 2 ай бұрын

As a new adult and newly on my own at the time when the song first came out, I caught the video on some music show (pre-MTV), I must say it was her looks that first attracted me, and her voicing that got me. As a Canadian I didn't know German at the time, and it did take some research to learn what the meaning was and that added to the allure of this band. Nena stayed true to their music and to German. At the time we were all still in deep cold war, it was there, it was in the movies (Bond and Bond-like movies), the us (west) vs them (east). Sadly now, we are back in the us vs them, but now we have leaders who never grew up in the cold war environment, never really educated themselves and are acting like children while lives and democracy are at stake. This song is again very relevant and I hope a reminder of the deadly seriousness of cold war. Thanks for the analysis of a favourite song of my young adult life.

@geoffreycat1763 2 ай бұрын

Chills then tears then heartache, massively powerful song indeed.

@jeffreypierce1440 2 ай бұрын

Don't overstate it. It's just a cute song by some scared and naïve kids.

@LiaF-pr3yx 2 ай бұрын

Carlo was an inspired songwriter who wrote intelligent and thought provoking songs and aged 31 when he wrote the lyrics was far from being a scared and naive kid.

@ninaclausen5467 2 ай бұрын

I love Nena. I’ve been a fan for more than 40 years and I still go to her concerts. Greetings from Denmark ☺️

@ninaclausen5467 2 ай бұрын

m.kzfaq.info/get/bejne/pa9_aM-Xr5_ImKc.html&pp=ygUTbmVuYSA5OSBsdWZ0YmFsbG9ucw%3D%3D

@music2seeconcertphotograph457 2 ай бұрын

Being born 1971 in Germany, this was one of the songs of my youth. Therefore I will always feel connected with it.

@Dragonesa07 2 ай бұрын

I like this song so much!!! I listened it on radio, when I was young. I miss that time... It was a time with a future plenty of possibilities!!! I'm from Brazil and I would love more Brazilian musics, also...!!!

@LeperMessiah2 2 ай бұрын

Examples please.

@Dragonesa07 2 ай бұрын

@@LeperMessiah2 Oswaldo Montenegro: "Lua e Flor"; Ney Matogrosso: "Bandolero"; Kleiton & Kledir: "Vira-Virou"; Alceu Valença, Geraldo Azevedo, Elba Ramalho & Zé Ramalho: "Disparada"; Boca Livre: "Toada"; Renato Teixeira: "Amora".

@berndalmstedt5060 2 ай бұрын

Thanks for a great job! It's not just about the singing, you reminded me that I have all the old vinyl records and several CDs of this band. It took years to understand that their music is multi-layered in so many ways, almost like a kaleidoscope... - and much better and deeper than the joyful and easy surface is presenting. Now I'm off to dig out some of the old records, refreshing my memory.... :-)

@perrycleese5987 2 ай бұрын

Oh this takes me back … I was 17 and working in Austria (scorching summer that year) this song always transports me back to that place (Grobming) and time … now listening to you from the West coast of Scotland ❤

@kristenmgr 2 ай бұрын

I didn't know that name of the artist nor the song. Thank you so much ! Excellent video !

@javier1w Ай бұрын

I always liked that song, I knew it in english when I was a child, hey! "Everyone is a Captain Kirk" like in Star Trek 😃

@thedutchhuman 2 ай бұрын

(the group) Nena has made beautiful songs, for myself I think the song ''Leuchtturm'' is great.

@matthewrandom4523 Ай бұрын

Over 40 years old, this German NDW's title or topic is more contemporary than ever! What a world are we living in these days .....

@RealDiehl99 2 ай бұрын

I remember the radio stations in Philadelphia used to play the English version as well as a version that combined English and German verses. Cover bands at bars used to cover this song still in the 2000's. They would use more distorted guitars to give it a more punk type of feel. This song was always one of my favorites from the 80's!

@paulanderson9650 2 ай бұрын

Goldfinger did a kick ass cover of this. Matter of fact, that cover was the first time I had heard the song!

@kowalsolosolo 2 ай бұрын

I saw Nena live in 2019,when she began singing this song-the audience went WILD! She is still an active artist,still singing,still looking smoking hot! I had a big crush on her when I was a teen and although I have always been a metalhead ,I am still in love.

@vast001 2 ай бұрын

In the Netherlands we had a similar song in 1984 called 'Over de Muur' from 'Klein Orkest' about the wall in Berlin, the divide East and West. I always found and still do the German original version of 99 luftballoons much more powerfull then the English version.

@troyshilanski380 2 ай бұрын

I only grew up with the english version on mtv way back. Of course i get it decades later but your take on it is what matters here.

@JuanHughJorgan 2 ай бұрын

lmfao, the title and the facial reaction got me HAHAHA. Welcome back to the 80's!

@user-it2vz1xn4q 2 ай бұрын

1984, I was a junior high school student in Japan. I was crazy for her, Nena. What a cute girl she was!!! 99 Luftballons is germany national song for me.

@jasonlaviolette2964 2 ай бұрын

I'm a litter younger, but was an MTV kid. Just turned five years old a few days before watching the Buggles air for the first time. So, I was still in the middle of grade school when this was released. I haven't seen this video in a long time, and I forgot just how absolutely gorgeous she was. A good pair of tight jeans and a little black leather certainly didn't hurt the overall aesthetic, either. What a beautiful voice, as well. Not an easy feat to make German sound so pretty, and she does it with ease.

@katconley2995 2 ай бұрын

A cold front is coming from Flowers After Rainfall! Freeze the Fall is the group she wants you to react to. She also suggests more of The Warning. New song is Automatic Sun.

@billholder1330 2 ай бұрын

Hehe - I came here to say this too! But I've always loved this song, and a big Beth Roars fan too! So Beth please yeah Freeze the Fall, "Daughters of Witches", if you could?? :)

@thierryf67 2 ай бұрын

I'm French, and young when this song came out in the 80's... i loved it, in german.

@Ati-MarcusS 2 ай бұрын

Susanne Kerner aka Nena is a fantastic Singer i´m german i hear her my whole Life on TV+ Radio 40+ Years

@vectorifix3218 2 ай бұрын

Ah 80's, best time ever

@Nikioko 2 ай бұрын

OK, this is my earliest childhood.

@jasonstem9908 2 ай бұрын

Loved the German Version when it was originally released, and still my favorite version of this song.

@warrennott6792 2 ай бұрын

LOVE YOUR PASSION AND YOUR EMOTION love listening to your comments keep it up FROM DOWN UNDER

@stephanedaguet915 2 ай бұрын

Nostalgia... I am French and the year of this song I did my military service in the French Forces in Germany, discovering this country... It was still the Cold War and this song reminds me of this very particular atmosphere. So much memories 🤩

@roseblue-castle2734 2 ай бұрын

Kleine lustige Anekdote: als ich klein war (2000er) haben wir Kinder immer die Parodie von dem Lied gesungen, „99 Handgranaten fliegen übern Kindergarten…“ davon gab es dann viele verschiedene Möglichkeiten, wie es fortgesetzt wird 😂😂😂 das war der Hit überhaupt

@artursandwich1974 2 ай бұрын

You're proud of your album... And with good reasons. Beautiful singing, interesting lyrics, varied melodies and instrumentations, adult, mature music... And beautifully published, too. I'm really happy to own a copy. I like chapter 12 especially.

@gregpeacock5497 2 ай бұрын

I bought the album when it came out in the US in '84. Side 1 had English songs and side 2 German. What was so weird at the time is the German version of this song actually hit #2 on the US charts behind Van Halen's Jump.

@kirby1ist 2 ай бұрын

This song was released when I was 25. ( I do have the vinyl , German on one side, English on the other ) I too have heard the 2 versions you mention Beth. I have also found on KZfaq a 2018 Live version, Gabriele sang the song, yet the whole arena sang along, it was fantastic. Today we woke up alive and breathing , as my friend ( R.I.P.) used to say. Have a good day :) Thanks for all you do.

@anthonymiele4320 2 ай бұрын

I speak almost no German but I still have their self-titled album on the loop I listen to while sleeping (with like 6 other albums) because of her voice and the vibe.

@thunderspike1892 2 ай бұрын

My favorite from that album are Nur Geträumt. Keyboard player Jörn-Uwe Fahrenkrog-Petersen went on to record with Jean Beauvoir from Plasmatics in the band Voodoo X.

@jamesmcclain5005 2 ай бұрын

I didn't hear this song until recently, and it smashes!

@oscararzate7956 2 ай бұрын

Carita de sol me gusta tus reacciones cuando nos transportas a diferentes épocas y estilos de música 🎵 gracias mi H Prrj ❤ bien Beth 👏👏🍀🍀

@alexanderhaas3030 2 ай бұрын

I was in elementary school when this song was released. It was the first song I could sing by heart. Greetings from Munich

@WestCoastChicano 2 ай бұрын

I was living in Germany when this song blew up. Loved it. I never cared for the English version. Gr8 analysis as usual. 🎶 🎸 🎶 🎹 🇩🇪

@rhphotocdn 2 ай бұрын

Wow... High School circa 1980's all relived. Thank You!

@Jim_the_Hermit 2 ай бұрын

I love her voice! It's so sweet, feminine and mesmerizing.

@nathcascen473 Ай бұрын

jesus only now after months i am realizing beth made movie arrival!

@BubonicCure 2 ай бұрын

Thank you for educating people about this era. I was in 8th grade when the Berlin wall came down.

@paulmartin2348 2 ай бұрын

I remember when this song came out. (the German version even in the US) One thing that no matter what language she is singing in her voice is just so beautiful in it's own way. (I love her sound)

@PainInTheS 2 ай бұрын

Loved it when it came out and still do! After the first 3 albums Nena disappeared from my radar....and most people's I guess, maybe except for Germany of course. But in recent years I bought quite a few of her later work and also the band's 4th album. Then in the 00's she did the duet with Kim Wilde.....omfg now that was pure fire!!! I still bang my head for not going to a concert of them 2 back then....my 2 earliest female singer favorites....and both hot AF!!!

@gulliverthegullible6667 2 ай бұрын

after 3 Albums, I think Nena disappeared from anyone's radar but her hardcore fans. Still, she was the most successful of all the NDW people. I think no one else even caught the mainstream attention with three albums.

@andrewharris4268 2 ай бұрын

The German lyric has a rhythm and metre that is completely missing from the English version. I’m proud to say that in Australia it was the German version that was the hit!

@derekwilkinson6920 2 ай бұрын

I really prefer this version over 99 Red Balloons. Even though I don't understand the lyrics I love the song because of Nena's voice and the music.

@Wombatmetal 2 ай бұрын

I was a young adult when this was released, and was a big fan of Nena. I would go to Newbury Comics in Boston and scour the imports to find any records they had of the band. Also got to see her in concert once and they were great. She had this big skull for a belt buckle. Now she performs with 2 or 3 of her children in her band. Good times.

@CabinFever52 2 ай бұрын

I was so excited when this came out. I was studying German in college. Nena (I always thought that was HER name) and Falco (Austrian) made studying German even more exciting. There really is a lot of amazing German/Austrian music. Thanks for giving us the origin of the song, too.

@sebas0816 2 ай бұрын

I remember Nena was the nickname her parents used when she was young.

@SausageFingers73 2 ай бұрын

I had the English version on 45 inch single, and had a mega crush on Nena. Also loved it as a keys player, the Goldfinger versions is very good too

@gorrarz5760 2 ай бұрын

okay it took me 35 years, as a german, and watching a foreigner reacting to it, that i realized the singer is not called nena but gabriele...

@hiroakiureshino5938 2 ай бұрын

This song was very popular in Japan then. I love it.

@zlionsfan 2 ай бұрын

I was in high school when this song came out, and I was taking German class that year. I was thrilled that we got to dissect the lyrics to an actual Popular Song instead of to something that clueless teenage me thought was a bore (although I also still remember bits of Erlkönig). At the time, I thought it was amazing that they managed to get pretty decent English lyrics to the same tune! With no internet (obviously) and not a lot of sources in the US for info about European music, I had no idea what the band thought of the translation. Today, I still like the original! And the English translation. (And covers!) Ja, ich habe etwas Zeit für dich.

@Sammy_The_Umbreon 2 ай бұрын

oh my goodness, Erlkönig.

@40hup 2 ай бұрын

A lot of 80s Hits were, mostly unbeknown to the listeners, about the nuclear apocalypse: E.g. 99 Luftballons (Nena), Vamos a la playa (Righeira), Red Skies Over Paradise (Fisher-Z), Forever Young (Alphaville), The final countdown (Europe / to some extend), ... and all had pretty dancable soundtracks, while no one really listened to the dystopic lyris - or even sang along the chorus without realizing what they were singing...

@iiwdpn 2 ай бұрын

remember seeing this on the video jukeboxes at the hard rock cafe in Aschaffenburg 84-86

@Nezzeraj 2 ай бұрын

If you ever want to do a cover version, the band Goldfinger does an excellent version that combines the English and German lyrics.

@nfreye8828 Ай бұрын

Amazing reaction. Thanks! For me as a German, the political message actually made the song even stronger and I always felt it fit very well with the German new wave and punk styles that were all about challenging the status quo and protesting the "old ways", often by being sarcastic or making fun of them. So, the contrast of the funky music vs the lyrics being somewhat ridiculous fits with the message that wars are somewhat senseless and ridiculous as well. A bit difficult to explain my thoughts here but I hope you get what I mean.

@michaelherrera3548 2 ай бұрын

❄️A COLD FRONT IS COMING❄️

@viewer8888 2 ай бұрын

Thanks for the video and analysis. This song has been important to me for a long time as I've been a Nena fan since the 1980s. I took German in High School and this song and the other Neue Deutsche Welle songs that became popular were the only way to hear and practice German outside of class. In 1984, I traveled to Germany on a school trip and one of the areas we visited was the fenced/wired/mined Inter-German Border where we got to see US and East German observation posts watching each other. The last night of the trip was the start of the annual NATO REFORGER exercise and I remember US Army armored vehicle convoys going through the village I was staying in. That feeling of being on the edge of war was still very strong then. The end of the song strongly resonates with the German experience and memory of the end of WWII. "Ich seh' die Welt in Trümmern liegen" translates to "I see the world lying in ruins." Although also representing the destruction of Germany from the expected NATO-Soviet Third World War, "Trümmern" returns the image back to the ruins of German cities after WWII and the mythologized Trümmerfrauen (Rubble Women) who worked to clear the rubble after the war and during the rebuilding of Germany.

@warrennott6792 2 ай бұрын

Thanks!

@LeperMessiah2 2 ай бұрын

I probably hasn't heard this since release 😂 Nice throwback and im glad I haven't seen the music video before😂

@petercofrancesco9812 2 ай бұрын

I have fond memories of the song when I was a teen. Didn't know the meaning until many years later. She does a great job varying her vocals from an otherwise repetitive song. Of course back in the 80's most songs were meant to dance to at the club so makes sense the upbeat music and repetitive nature.

@iallso1 2 ай бұрын

I was familiar with the English version of this song from its time in the UK charts in 1984, it was only while on holiday in Europe in 1987 that I heard the German version for the first time.

@bernhardkrickl3567 2 ай бұрын

I think the "red" in the English title stands for the "Luft" in the German one. "Balloon" in German ist "Luftballon", literally meaning "air balloon". So the missing "air" had to be replaced.

@willieboy3011 2 ай бұрын

Good song from a beautiful country. I remember this one. Glad that you did this one in German.

@das_murks 2 ай бұрын

Ninety-nine and Neunundneundzig are pretty the same length wenn sung or spoken, but the German word for balloon is Ballon and like you know from the title specially Luftballons (Balloon filled with air) so there is the word they put in to fill which became "red".

@Shawn-mo6dh 2 ай бұрын

Growing up MTV had a habit of showing both versions. But the radio only played the English version. And this is the first time I've heard the German version in around 20 years

@Zajuts149 2 ай бұрын

The synth sounds are so early '80s😊. It reminds me of the Swedish band Gyllende Tider, where Per Gessle was the lead singer before he started Roxette.

@iankearns774 2 ай бұрын

None of us back then cared much about the lyrics, if it was a good song so we bought the single and maybe the album. It was a very different time, I never paid much attentions to lyrics until the last 20 years or so.

@coollakshman 2 ай бұрын

This song tickles a spot in my brain I didn’t know was there. Btw Nick Thurl Mavromatis has done it again! His new song is a masterpiece. React to it now!

@Dumbledork_Prime 2 ай бұрын

I've loved this song ever since it first came out... and I also love the many parodies that have been produced. Some are really hilarious. Here are some: "99 Dead Baboons" by Tim Cavanagh, "99 Death Eaters" by Draco and the Malfoys, "99 Words for Boob" by Robert Lund, "99 Words for Vagine" by Dan the Engineer, "99 Words for Peen" by JDI-310 Productions.