A-Ha: Classic or Dud?

From what I can gather, the plan is to do this album and tour and that's pretty much it, but you never know... the first time they broke up, it only lasted about 4 years before they got back together again, this time it's been 5...

It seems that anyone who is familiar with Scoundrel Days rates it quite highly, but I can't help but feel that the album is incredibly underrated in the big scheme of things. For me it's definitely up there with the best records of the '80s.

In the US, for the most part, they ceased to exist the last time "The Sun Always Shines on TV" was aired on MTV. People don't even remember they did a Bond theme, because people never think about the Timothy Dalton movies.

I imagine they have a slightly higher profile in Europe.

I don't know about a-ha's chart performance elsewhere in Europe, but Hunting High and Low, Scoundrel Days and Stay On These Roads all made it to #2 on the UK album chart. East Of The Sun, West Of The Moon made it to #12, which is a bit of a drop.

As far as I'm aware, all of their singles up until and including 'Stay On These Roads' went Top 10 here except for 'Manhattan Skyline', which made it to #13.

However, even though they had a great deal of success here in the '80s, 'Take On Me' and 'The Sun Always Shines On TV' seem to be the ones that most people are familiar with, with possibly 'Hunting High & Low' and 'The Living Daylights' after that. It often feels like a lot of their '80s work, for all its success, has been forgotten about in comparison to other bands/tracks of the time, which is a huge shame.

Oh man, I am all about this.

http://theseconddisc.com/2015/07/17/take-on-me-a-has-hunting-high-and-low-goes-super-deluxe-with-new-box-set/

CD 1: The Original Album (Warner Bros. 25300, 1985)

1. Take on Me
2. Train of Thought
3. Hunting High and Low
4. The Blue Sky
5. Living a Boy’s Adventure Tale
6. The Sun Always Shines on T.V.
7. And You Tell Me
8. Love is Reason
9. I Dream Myself Alive
10. Here I Stand and Face the Rain

CD 2: The Demos 1982-1984

1. Lesson One (Autumn 1982 “Take on Me” Demo)
2. Presenting Lily Mars (Naersnes Demo)
3. Na Blaser Det Pa Jorden (Naersnes Demo)
4. The Sphinx (Naersnes Demo)
5. Living a Boy’s Adventure Tale (Naersnes Demo)
6. Dot the I
7. The Love Goodbye
8. Nothing to It
9. Go to Sleep
10. Train of Thought (Demo)
11. Monday Mourning
12. All the Planes That Come In on the Quiet
13. The Blue Sky (Demo)
14. You Have Grown Thoughtful Again
15. What’s That You’re Doing to Yourself in the Pouring Rain
16. Take on Me (Demo)
17. I Dream Myself Alive (Demo)
18. Hunting High and Low (Demo)
19. And You Tell Me (Demo)
20. Here I Stand and Face the Rain (Demo)
21. Love is Reason (Demo)
22. The Blue Sky (Second Demo)
23. Never, Never
24. The Sun Always Shines on T.V. (Demo)
25. Presenting Lily Mars (Rendezvous Demo)

CD 3 – Singles, Extended Versions and B-Sides

1. Take on Me (Original 7-Inch Version, 1984)
2. Take on Me (12-Inch Mix, 1984)
3. Stop! And Make Your Mind Up
4. Take on Me (12-Inch Version, 1985)
5. Take on Me (Instrumental Mix)
6. The Sun Always Shines on T.V. (7-Inch Mix)
7. The Sun Always Shines on T.V. (Extended Version)
8. Driftwood
9. The Sun Always Shines on T.V. (Extended Version No. 2)
10. The Sun Always Shines on T.V. (Instrumental)
11. Train of Thought (7-Inch Mix)
12. Train of Thought (U.S. Remix)
13. Train of Thought (Dub Version)
14. Hunting High and Low (7-Inch Remix)
15. Hunting High and Low (Extended Remix)

CD 4: The Alternate Mixes (previously unreleased)

1. Take on Me (Video Version)
2. Train of Thought (Early Mix)
3. Hunting High and Low (Early Mix)
4. The Blue Sky (Alternate Long Mix)
5. Living a Boy’s Adventure Tale (Early Mix)
6. The Sun Always Shines on T.V. (Alternate Early Mix)
7. And You Tell Me (Early Mix)
8. Love is Reason (Early Mix)
9. Dream Myself Alive (Early “N.Y.C.” Mix)
10. Here I Stand and Face the Rain (Early Mix)

DVD: The Videos

1. Take on Me (1985 Version) – directed by Steve Barron
2. The Sun Always Shines on T.V. – directed by Steve Barron
3. Train of Thought – directed by Candace Reckinger and Michael Patterson
4. Hunting High and Low – directed by Steve Barron
5. Take on Me (1984 Version) – directed by Stevie Price
6. Take on Me (1985 Alternate Cut) – directed by Steve Barron

Take on Me (1985 Alternate Cut) – directed by Steve Barron

Having watched the commonly available version about, oh, a zillion times, I think an alternate cut might fuck up my whole world.

Here's hoping they do a similar thing with Scoundrel Days!

Morten Harket is 60 today.

"I Dream Myself Alive" by A-ha, performed by a student accordion trio of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea in Pyongyang 💙 pic.twitter.com/etiKiSHvEa

— Comrade Natalie 🇰🇵 (@NatalieRevolts) September 17, 2020

― xyzzzz__, donderdag 17 september 2020 21:48 bookmarkflaglink

would have never dreamt it possible I would be rinsing an a-ha song to start my day when there's a new Wizkid single waiting for me, but here we are. I only knew them from their 80s singles, many of which I loved, but never went further than that. who knew there was an Italo track sitting on their first album!

(reposted from the North Korea thread, minus any of the tankie intent that may have been involved in this)

Propaganda is...good again!

never look back (back, back)!

Was in on ILX that someone noted "Take On Me" and "Maria" from "West Side Story" feature the same unusual key change? Does anyone know what I'm talking about?

Goddamn YES PLEASE

https://tribecafilm.com/films/a-ha-the-movie-2021

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cOhiDxuOEuI

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rc6MumuychA

the first album is great then they went downhill quick!

Nah.

Watched the movie last week. It's a good look at the band's history, the members' perspectives, the depth of the catalog, etc. After the bruised egos and Magne's doubt there would be a new record, nice to read _True North_ is coming out later this year. Glad that unlike other long-term bands, they seem to be able to set aside issues and continue on.

Have been obsessed lately with this track, particularly its chorus.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nkn3Y7HMbkA

i am listening to scoundrel days for the first time

uhhhhh holy shit

Quite right, and very glad you now understand the greatness.