Star Trek in Popular Music
The latest Star Trek film, Star Trek Into Darkness, opens in theaters this weekend, and with that, it’s worth noting the many references to the franchise that have appeared in popular music. In the late 1980s, the band Information Society incorporated lines of dialogue from the original series in their Top 10 hits “What’s On Your Mind (Pure Energy)” and “Walking Away.” Earlier in the 1980s, Nena made reference to Captain Kirk in their classic hit “99 Red Balloons.” In the last couple of decades, artists such as the Red Hot Chili Peppers, the Beastie Boys, the Refreshments, Pink, and more have made references to Star Trek or various elements of the franchise. For some lists of Star Trek references in popular music, check out here and here.
Perhaps my favorite Star Trek reference in popular music, as seen above, is the band T’Pau, who scored a Top 5 hit in 1987 with “Heart and Soul” and whose name comes from a Vulcan character who appeared in the original series.
