Space Jam: Astronauts Hear Tunes Each Morning

HOUSTON, July 16, 2006 — -- In music, there's going platinum, and then there's going cosmic.

Abba, the super-group from the '70s, recently got the honor of being played 210 miles above the Earth on the shuttle Discovery.

It is an extra long distance dedication -- going out to Discovery pilot Mike Kelly from his daughters back home on Earth.

"Well I was okay with it, but I think it annoyed some of my crew-mates," Kelly said.

The space tunes are a 41-year tradition. NASA astronauts receive special wake-up calls chosen by mission control and the astronauts' families.

The first was "Hello Dolly," for the Gemini 6 crew in 1965.

One of the most frequently played songs is "I Got You Babe," by Sonny and Cher.

School fight songs are also popular. Spacewalker Mike Fossum is an Aggie from Texas A&M, and had the Aggie fight song piped in this week -- much to his crewmates' dismay. He apparently tried to show his school colors by singing along.

"I was sleeping, and I heard something coming from where mike was, but it wasn't singing," Kelly said.

On the current shuttle mission, astronauts have also heard from Elton John and Coldplay. They listened to the Beatles classic, "Good Day Sunshine." Last year, former Beatle Paul McCartney played the song live for the Space Station crew.

The biggest controversy might have come in 1999, when one astronaut's wife wanted to play Barry Manilow, but NASA's flight director initially refused. The wife won out and Manilow later got his day in space.