44 R2: Sci-Fi References in Music List
Description
This article is from the SF references in music List FAQ, by Rich Kulawiec rsk@gsp.org with numerous contributions by others.
44 R2: Sci-Fi References in Music List
Ramatam:
"In April Came the Dawning of the Red Suns" contains
"Downrange Party". Band featured April Lawton, the female Jimi Hendrix.
Rapp, Tom:
The lead singer of Pearls before Swine broke out with two solo
albums which included these songs: "The Rocket Man", based on the
Bradbury short story of the same name; "Stardancer", based on the
Bradbury story, Kaleidoscope; and "For the Dead in Space" an
original (and equally depressing) song.
Raven:
More new wave of British Heavy Metal - Architect of fear's title track is sort
of a horror thing. The LP "Wiped Out" contains "Faster than the speed of light"
and "Star war". One track (faster than...?) has an voice over into, a voice
through all kinds of effects saying "Listen here mission control, Einstein was wrong".
Reed, Lou:
"Red Joystick" and "Down at the Arcade". Also "Satellite of Love".
Residents:
"The Mole Trilogy", a conflict between two alien cultures. Other
SF-ish songs and albums, included "God in Three Persons", which is
about a pair of Siamese twins with healing powers.
The Rheostatics:
A Canadian band; on their album "Melville", the song "Aliens(Christmas 1988)"
is about a woman getting kidnapped by UFO-style aliens, one of whom falls in
love with her.
Rhodes, Happy:
Has a song called "Wrong Century", about a woman who somehow leaves the
past for the present, but can't cope with this century and would like
to return to her own time. On "Equipoise", there is a song called
'Save our Souls' questioning the reasoning behind humans trying to
contact aliens, when we can hardly cope with our problems here on earth.
Also on "Ecto", there is a song called 'Look for the Child' from which the
following line is taken: 'When the ships come down from the sky'. It is
about first contact, and how are we going to choose a representative,
given the conflicts and prejudices that exist among us.
Richman, Jonathan & the Modern Lovers:
Their eponymous 1976 album includes "Here Come the Martian Martians",
a funny song about the Martians' inability to deal with earth and
the concept of capitalism, and "Abominable Snowman in the Supermarket",
which is similar in nature. The album "Rockin' and Romance'" includes
the song "UFO Man", about a visitor who flies around Jonathan's town
in his flying saucer doing stunts at high speed.
Ridgway, Stan:
Ex-vocalist from Wall of Voodoo. Quirky subject matter in general,
but sci-fi specifically on the album "Partyball". See the songs
"I Want to be a Boss", "Overlords", and "Beyond Tomorrow".
Riley, Billy Lee:
"Flying Saucer Rock 'n' Roll" An example of rockabilly, one of the
staples of the Memphis-based Sun record label. It's about a flying
saucer whose crew play rock'n'roll - nothing too profound.
Rinder & Lewis:
Early 80's new-wave group that produced some SF songs, including
"Apocalypse" and "New Malibu".
Robinson, Tom:
"Merrily Up on High", about a war that is yet to happen. (Co-written
Peter Gabriel)
Rolling Stones:
Wrote the ultimate road song for astronauts, "2000 Light Years From
Home", which is on "Their Satanic Majesties' Request". Also "2000
Man", about how child-parent relationships still don't work, even in
the 21st century.
Roth, Uli John:
"Electric Sun".
Roxy Music:
Eponymous 1st album, "Re-Make/Re-Model" concerns having a crush
on a female android "CTA9538" (or may be a put-down directed towards dating
supermodels). "Ladytron" is SF-related in name only. "Amazona' from
"Stranded" is about a journey to Utopia. "For Your Pleasure" contains "The
Bogus Man", a horror tale about a being who is not quite human and entirely
homicidal. From "Manifesto" we get "Still Falls the Rain", a 1st-person
retelling of Stevenson's *Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mister Hyde* (or is it
Jerry Lewis' *The Nutty Professor*?). Guitarist Phil Manzanera's solo album
"K-Scope" has "Hot Spot" [vocal and instrumental backup by Godley & Creme], a
ditty about partying during WWIII.
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