As we wind down our 2023 Halloween song journey, let’s take a last-minute detour to a magical place far away in a distant galaxy. It’s another profile from the BHT vault, with a few edits.
Back in 1979, there had never been a group like The B-52’s before. They were regarded as part of the punk movement but used a toy piano, fire alarm, and a walkie talkie, along with standard rock instruments on their self-titled debut album. And their lyrics were consistently nonsensical.
Opening with a mostly instrumental passage that features eerie keyboards along with high-pitched vocalizing, “Planet Claire” introduces us to an unnamed alien who came from the title planet via a Plymouth Satellite she drives faster than the speed of light. Like all Clairelings, she doesn’t have a head, so it’s hard to imagine how she could see where she was going. Then again, you could say the same thing about Earthlings who text while driving.
Vocalist Fred Schneider, who composed the song with drummer Keith Strickland, affects an appropriately silly tone throughout the song. Especially when he screams, “WELL, SHE ISN’T!” in response to speculation that the alien is “from Mars or one of the seven stars that shine after 3:30 in the morning.” Unlike most outer space invaders, this visitor from “Planet Claire” doesn’t appear to have any evil plans. She’s been partying here on Earth for decades, and probably uploads mind-blowing videos on TikTok.
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