Nena "? (Fragezeichen)"

? (Fragezeichen) (German for "Question mark") is the second album by German pop rock band Nena and the third studio album to feature its lead singer, Gabriele "Nena" Kerner. It was released on 27 January 1984, just a few months before the band's first international album 99 Luftballons, which contains songs from their debut album Nena (1983) and this album, some of them re-recorded with English lyrics.

Like its self-titled predecessor, this album was produced by Reinhold Heil and Manne Praeker of Spliff.

The album's title track was co-written by Nena and the band's keyboard player Jörn-Uwe Fahrenkrog-Petersen and is so called since, having written the song, Nena was unable to settle on a title and so indicated its spot in the band's live set list with a question mark. It reached No. 3 in the German charts in 1983. The lyrics – written by Nena – comprise the thoughts of someone racked by indecisiveness ("Today I'm coming, today I'm also going... Perhaps I'll stay, yesterday that wasn't for me, today I need endless love") but still adamant that they know what's best for them ("No-one can tell me what is best... and who is best... because I know exactly"). The song is a mainstay of Nena's live concerts and seems to be particularly popular with female fans although it is not uncommon for Nena to interrupt her performance of the song, apparently to laugh at the absurdity of the lyrics. In the middle of the version recorded for the 2004 album Nena Live Nena she says, "I felt so small when I wrote this".

Like most of the band's greatest hits, "? (Fragezeichen)" was anglicised for the international album 99 Luftballons and then updated for the Nena feat. Nena album, which reignited Nena's solo career in 2002.

Track listing

Side A contains tracks 1 to 6 and Side B contains tracks 7 to 12.

1. "Rette mich" (Rescue Me) 3:17
2. "? (Fragezeichen)" (Question Mark) 4:28
3. "Das Land der Elefanten" (The Land of the Elephants) 3:42
4. "Unerkannt durchs Märchenland" (Unrecognized Through Fairyland) 3:21
5. "Küss mich wach" (Kiss Me Awake) 2:43
6. "Lass mich dein Pirat sein" (Let Me Be Your Pirate) 4:51
7. "Ich häng' an dir" (I'm Hangin' on You) 4:13
8. "Sois bienvenu" (French: Welcome) 3:22
9. "Keine Antwort" (No Answer) Karges 3:18
10. "Der Bus is' schon weg" (The Bus Has Already Left) 0:15
11. "Es regnet" (It's Raining) 4:45
12. "Der Anfang vom Ende" (The Beginning of the End) 3:53

Total length: 42:16