Full song: Nichelle Nichols sings Beyond Antares

There is no denying that Nichelle Nichols, who portrayed Lt. Uhura on Star Trek: The Original Series,  has a beautiful voice. Unfortunately, she didn’t get to showcase it that often on the show. She was given two opportunities to sing Beyond Antares, a song written by Wilbur Hatch with lyrics by Gene L. Coon. She sang it once on The Conscience of the King, and the other on The Changeling which wasn’t a very long version of the ethereal song.

Fortunately, not only was a full-length version released by GNP Crescendo Records in 1991, a full album of Nichols’ songs was made available. But this song in particular is so hauntingly beautiful that it’s easy to close your eyes and imagine you’re aboard the Enterprise or at least somewhere in the galaxy.

Also included on the 1991 album, which you can still buy from Amazon, is Hauntingly and a wonderful tribute to Gene Roddenberry entitled “Gene.”  Nichols also sings the Star Trek Theme with her gorgeous voice. Unfortunately, this was the last album Nichols released.

In 1967, while Star Trek was still airing, Nichols released Down to Earth, which included such songs as  Feelin’ Good; Tenderly; Sunday Kind of Love; One Life to Live; and The Lady Is a Tramp. You can find this one on Amazon, too.

Though there might not have been a lot of reasons to use music aboard the Enterprise in Star Trek: The Original Series, it’s a shame that more opportunities weren’t made available for Trekkies to hear Nichelle Nichols’ astonishing voice. Everything about it fits with the “out of this world” theme, and is something that could have made an even more powerful addition to Star Trek.