Lyric discussion by neurotic_chick 

Cover art for 99 Red Balloons lyrics by Nena

actually i believe its for people who know the version of this song that is english. just because people don't speak german doesnt mean they are stupid. why should people know every language? and why do people have to critisise other people? and did Nena not sing an english version herself? yes i believe she did. so whos the stupid person now, ignorant C U Next Thursday

@neurotic_chick: Well, Nena and her band had to be convinced to record the English version, over their objections. They never performed it live, and she still won't perform it live on her solo tours.

But that doesn't mean the English version is a bad song; it's just a different song that doesn't fit the band as well as the original one (which they wrote, so of course it has meaning to them). Their main problem with it was that the English version comes across as a blatant protest song, and they're the wrong band for that.

And, while they...