By Bruce McCandless III
Emily Carney and I wrote our book Star Bound: A Beginner’s Guide to the American Space Program, from Goddard’s Rockets to Goldilocks Planets and Everything In Between, with the aim of creating a space history for the rest of us. No complicated equations. No technospeak or rocket-talk. We focus instead on the human drama of the space race and all the challenges still to come, and we do it for one reason: Because it’s fun. Sure, there are scientific and technological benefits to space exploration, but we’re here for the adrenaline—the uplift—the blast-off, earth-shaking and imperative. We’re here to dance, dammit, and our songs are, too.
Public Service Broadcasting, “Go!”
Just one of a bunch of Public Service Broadcasting tunes that could be included on this list, Go! samples mission control colloquies to bring us a driverless car of a song that carries both real joy and palpable call-and-response tension. The staccato back and forth is actual NASA audio, proving once again that there’s music in every human endeavor, no matter how many pocket protectors it wears.
David Bowie, “Starman.”
Okay, we all fantasize about advanced races out there in the cosmos, just waiting either to enlighten us or, if you’re not so optimistic, enslave us. Bowie chooses life, even if it means a blown mind into the bargain.
Earth, Wind & Fire, “Shining Star.”
At this point we all know there’s a star almost as perfect and forgiving as our own beautiful sun out there somewhere, just waiting for us. Will we ever get there? The EWF gang doesn’t get into the particulars of matter/anti-matter drives, but they sure make the place seem cool.
Ash, “Girl From Mars.”
Everyone’s met someone so intoxicating and beautiful and weird that you just know they’re not from around here. Montreal, maybe? Or…somewhere farther? Mars? New Brunswick? This song is about an incomplete and aching romance with someone you’ll never see again—and also about thrashing so hard that the bouncers start watching you carefully. And why wouldn’t she just tell him her name?
Blondie, “Rapture.”
Blondie and Bowie have slightly different visions of what an alien visitation might look like. Bowie sees starmen coming down to aid and assist us as we try to make the transition from carbon-based water bags to creatures of pure rock ‘n’ roll. Another sees men from Mars who are eating cars…and later bars. When you get past Deborah Harry’s cotton candy keening, this one’s actually pretty creepy. So, let’s just dance.
The Smarties, “Rocket Boy.”
Girl power pop for sure, but, hey, girls like astronauts! And after all it was the Fourth of July. We say go with it.
Shocking Blue, “Venus.”
Bewitching and downright Dionysian, this is what the ancient Greeks danced to when they weren’t washing their togas. Or maybe while they were washing their togas. Venus is so close to Earth that you can actually feel her warm breath of the nape of your neck, inviting you to come over a little later this evening. As surface temps there hover around 867 degrees Fahrenheit, though, you’re going to want to pack light.
The B-52s, “Planet Claire.”
About as campy as it’s possible for anything not associated with the old Batman TV series to be, Planet Claire is danceable, Tang-flavored nonsense, deeply flawed astronomy for the fun of it. Incredibly, some people say Planet Claire is a real place. BUT IT ISN’T!
Nena, “99 Luftballons.”
Perhaps the single most danceable song in history about the fear of an alien civilization attacking Earth (at least in the original German lyrics), Nena’s 1983 mega-hit continues to appeal to peaceniks and Captain Kirks the world over. It’s also one of the saddest songs ever, but it’s hard to focus on grief when the groove is so damn tasty.
Dua Lipa featuring Da Baby, “Levitating.”
In a video produced for the song, the Anglo-Albanian chanteuse solicits the attentions of an unspecified sugar boo while embarking on what appears to be a space elevator, traveling upward to Roller World, where, amidst much dancing and festivity, zero gravity is either achieved or briefly simulated. OK, so it’s not really about rockets and the like per se, but if you can listen to this catchy space-themed jam without seeing a few stars, you don’t need to be reading about the Voyager probes. You need to be leaning into your accounting classes.
Star Bound
A Beginner’s Guide to the American Space Program, from Goddard’s Rockets to Goldilocks Planets and Everything in Between
by Emily Carney and Bruce McCandless III
Published by: Nebraska
