The original German anti-war anthem by Nena was published in 1983 during The Cold War.
The balloons flying into the sky were the idea of Carlo Karges, Nena’s guitarist. The inspiration is taken from the European tour of the Rolling Stones for their album Tattoo You. Among other locations, balloons...
[Intro]
You and I in a little toy shop
Buy a bag of balloons with the money we've got
Set them free at the break of dawn
'Til one by one, they were gone
Back at base, bugs in the software
Flash the message, "Something's out there!"
Floating in the summer sky
Ninety-nine red balloons go by
[Instrumental Interlude]
[Verse 1]
Ninety-nine red balloons
Floating in the summer sky
Panic bells, it's red alert!
There's something here from somewhere else!
The war machine springs to life
Opens up one eager eye
Focusing it on the sky
When ninety-nine red balloons go by
[Verse 2]
99 Decision Street
Ninety-nine ministers meet
To worry, worry, super-scurry
Call the troops out in a hurry
This is what we've waited for
This is it, boys, this is war
The president is on the line
As ninety-nine red balloons go by
[Verse 3]
Ninety-nine knights of the air
Ride super high-tech jet fighters
Everyone's a superhero
Everyone's a "Captain Kirk"
With orders to identify
To clarify and classify
Scramble in the summer sky
Ninety-nine red balloons go by
As ninety-nine red balloons go by
[Outro]
Ninety-nine dreams I have had
In every one, a red balloon
It's all over and I'm standin' pretty
In this dust that was a city
If I could find a souvenir
Just to prove the world was here
And here is a red balloon
I think of you, and let it go...
99 Red Balloons was written by Jörn-Uwe Fahrenkrog-Petersen & Carlo Karges & Kevin McAlea.
99 Red Balloons was produced by Manfred Praeker & Reinhold Heil.