Ever since I’ve gone back to my Friday night radio broadcasts on WHCL, I haven’t really had time to produce a K-Chuck Radio blog post that wouldn’t also work well as its own Nightowl Radio Show episode. But with all the drama about the Chinese spy balloon that was intercepted and shot down yesterday … I figured a quick K-Chuck Radio blog post about balloons would be just perfect.
And let’s start with the obvious one.
THE 5TH DIMENSION
Up-Up and Away
You really have to love the harmonies of the 5th Dimension. And this is just such a cool Jimmy Webb-penned track.
And then there’s the obvious …
THE YELLOW BALLOON
Yellow Balloon
A little Los Angeles sunshine pop from the 1960’s works wonders. I should note that at one point in time, The Yellow Balloon counted My Three Sons actor Don Grady as a member.
But we’re talking about a military balloon that flew over America. You know … if there were about 98 other balloons floating over America … you could go with this track …
NENA
99 Luftballons
Damn, this song got a LOT of airplay on WHCL back in the early 1980’s … and there was the usual debate about whether it was more appropriately to play the German version of the song or the American version of the song.
THE CIVIL WARS
Girl With the Red Balloon
God, I wish The Civil Wars had lasted longer than they did. Such great songs. Shame that they had to break up. Ugh.
BING CROSBY
Around The World in 80 Days
Using the music from the Academy Award-winning motion picture of the same name, Bing Crosby added some lyrics to the melody, while keeping that hot-air balloon motif from the film. Besides … this may be the first time in 14 blogging years that I’ve had a Bing Crosby track on here that WASN’T a Christmas song. Milestones, I tells yah. Milestones.
LILY ALLEN
Air Balloon
Sure, let’s make a lyric video with balloon fonts, it’ll be perfect. ๐
PRINCE
200 Balloons
I wonder how many people remember that Prince put together one killer soundtrack to the 1988 Batman movie. This track comes from that soundtrack, and it ties to a key scene in the movie where the Joker releases poisonous balloons over Gotham City, and … oh wait, I’d better put a spoiler alert in there, because there might be someone who hasn’t seen that Batman movie yet.
Oh, yeah, and one more …
PINK FLOYD
Animals
Here, have a whole album of balloon pigs flying over London. You’re welcome.
There you go. I shot down a few balloon-based songs in honor of this week’s news.
Chuck The Writer 
That Batman movie Prince contributed to was in ’89, not ’88.
MTV played both the English & German versions of 99 Luftballoons. Seen them both.
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