In our everyday life on earth, we are not so much aware of the fact or somehow cannot really imagine that our solar system with our sun and the eight planets is located in a galaxy, namely the Milky Way.
But that is a fascinating thought. Because in our Milky Way alone, our galaxy, there are more than 100 billion stars, i.e. suns. Unimaginable! There are an estimated 100 billion galaxies in the universe.
This fascinating part of cosmology deserves a song list with the best songs about galaxies. No good playlist without good songs. But there are so good galaxy songs, you'll realise that when you've listened to these songs.
1. Galaxies - Laura Veirs
The 2005 song Galaxies by American folk singer Laura Veirs is about the indescribable feelings of being in love. When your beloved partner sings, the feeling of happiness is so great that it takes on the dimensions of galaxies. The lyrics describe how galaxies are poured over the singer's cheeks, how galaxies flood the street. And there are galaxies when the couple dances.
2. Intergalactic - Beastie Boys
The Beastie Boys song Intergalactic from 1998 made it to number 5 on The Official UK Singles Chart and was their biggest chart success for the hip hop band in the UK. One verse in the lyrics reads "Another dimension, new galaxy" and is followed by the chorus "intergalactic, planetary, planetary, intergalactic". The following year, 1999, the Beastie Boys won the Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group for Intergalactic.
3. Galaxies - Alice Phoebe Lou
Galaxies is the third track on South African singer-songwriter Alice Phoebe Lou's second studio album Paper Castles (released in 2019).
Right at the beginning of the song, Alice Phoebe Lou sings about her mind being full of galaxies. Later, in the lyrics, the chorus says, "just a speck of dust in the Milky Way".
4. Under The Milky Way - The Church
When The Church singer Steve Kilbey talks about the meaning of the song title and the lyrics in interviews, he doesn't commit himself, saying that the song Under The Milky Way isn't about anything. Kilbey prefers to leave the interpretation of the song to the listeners: "Somewhere, a small voice inside me would say, ‘That isn’t what I had in mind when I was writing it,’ but songs are supposed to be open-ended invitations for you to create your own adventure."[1]
5. Galaxy - War
The American band War released their tenth album Galaxy in November 1977, on which the first track you can hear is the eponymous song Galaxy.
The lyrics are possibly about a spaceship that goes out of sight and disappears in a galaxy.
6. Into the Galaxy - Midnight Juggernauts
For the chronological classification of this song:
The first iPhone model was launched in the USA on June 29, 2007. Just over a month later, on August 4, 2007, the Australian band Midnight Juggernauts released their debut studio album Dystopia.
Into the Galaxy is the third track on the album. In 2008, the song was released as a single, including a remix by the band Metronomy. There are two different music videos for the song on YouTube.
7. Galaxies - Jenn Grant
Galaxies is the second track on the sixth studio album Paradise (released in 2017) by Canadian singer-songwriter Jenn Grant. The accompanying official music video for the song shows a science fiction plot, a brightly colored glowing object in a forest that attracts the attention of a few elderly people.
8. Galaxies - Owl City
On the third album All Things Bright and Beautiful by Adam Young's music project Owl City you will find the song Galaxies as the eighth track, which was released as the second album single on April 19, 2011.
There is an official lyric video for the single on Owl City's YouTube channel, which was released on July 26, 2011.
9. Galaxy Song - Monty Python
The Galaxy Song was written for the 1983 film The Meaning of Life by the British comedy group Monty Python, in which the song was featured. At the end of 1989, a good six years later, the song appeared on their compilation album Monty Python Sings.
Galaxy Song Cover by Stephen Hawking
British physicist Stephen Hawking is known for his sense of humor. He recorded a cover version of Monty Python's Galaxy Song, which was released in 2015. The accompanying music video features Stephen Hawking, Monty Python and British physicist Brian Cox, among others.
10. Men In Black - Will Smith
In the movie The Men In Black, special agents dressed in black suits are supposed to defend humanity to protect it from aliens.
The lyrics of the 1997 song with the same name, Men in Black by Will Smith, say that the Men In Black are coming as the "galaxy defenders".
11. Andromeda (Bonobo Remix) - Gorillaz
12. Galaxy Paradise - Stevie Wonder
13. Andromeda - Chicane
14. Galaxy Of Emptiness - Beth Orton
15. Black-Dove (January) - Tori Amos
16. Galaxy - Dannii Minogue
17. Galaxies - Kronos Quartet & Laurie Anderson
18. Milky Way - Neil Young & Crazy Horse
19. Andromeda (Lost Tapes) - Röyksopp
20. Andromeda - Paul Weller
21. Galaxy Bounce - The Chemical Brothers
22. Jason Mraz - Galaxy (Live)
References
[1] Gibson, C. (2022, November 10). Friday essay: Under the Milky Way – how a ‘beautiful accident’ of a song was born and became an anthem. The Conversation. https://theconversation.com/friday-essay-under-the-milky-way-how-a-beautiful-accident-of-a-song-was-born-and-became-an-anthem-193095