Tomorrow (Tuesday, 10/4 ) I'll be in NYC, to see Nena at the Playstation Theater. I know everyone considers Nena a one-hit wonder, but in honor of the show, I'm posting a few videos, so come here, listen with an open mind, you may hear something you like. We'll start with the song everyone knows the group for, "
99 Luftballons".
Nena had already had a Top 10 hit in German with their song, "
Just Dreamed", when the label decided to follow it up with "
99 Luftballons". The song went to #1 in Germany, and Top 10 in various other European countries. An American DJ from Los Angeles was in Germany at this time and was hearing "
99 Luftballons" everywhere. He got a copy of the single, and took it home and played it on his station in LA. "
99 Luftballons" became a hit, and the group recorded an English version (
99 Red Balloons), but radio stations focused on the original German version, which went to #2 on the Billboard Hot 100.
- 99 Luftballons
Nena's second single in America was "
Just a Dream", the English version of Nena's first German hit, "
Nur Getraeumt" (
Just Dreamed). While some video outlets played the video, radio pretty much ignored the song, and it didn't chart in America.
https://vimeo.com/107804945 - Just A Dream
The last release from Nena's CD was "
Kino/At The Movies", much like "
Just A Dream", the single failed to chart.
Nena went back to the studio, and released their second American CD, "
It's All In the Game". The first single was the title track. While the original German versions were hits in Europe, Nena wasn't able to crack into the American market with these songs.
https://vimeo.com/108001930 - It's All In The Game
The second (and last) single that Nena released in America was "
Anyplace, Anywhere, Anytime".
- "Anyplace, Anywhere, Anytime"
After two American CDs (
99 Luftballons &
It's All In The Game) and 5 European CDs ("
Nena", "
? (Fragezeichen)", "
Feuer und Flamme", "
Eisbrecher", and "
Nena Die Band.", Nena broke up, and lead singer Nena Kerner continued on as a solo act.
In 2002, she celebrated her 20 years in the music business by releasing the CD "
Nena ft. Nena". The CD was cover versions of all of Nena's songs. When it was released, the single "
Anyplace, Anywhere, Anytime", now recorded as a German/English duet between Nena & Kim Wilde (
Kids of America,
You Keep Me Hanging On) got Nena back onto the European pop charts.
- Anyplace, Anywhere, Anytime ft. Kim Wilde.
Nena's most recent CD was released the end of last year, and is called "
Oldschool". Her current single, "
Genau Jetzt" took Nena back to the charts, putting her into the Top 30 in various countries.
- Genau Jetzt