I had just turned 20 when this song hit, I had missed it when it was first released because I was stationed in Okinawa, and came back to the US to find the music video on MTV, and was amazed at the concept of the video. And the motorcycle race at the beginning really had me interested off the bat.
If I remember right I heard the song for the first time on Friday Night Videos one night. I though the song was not only great, but the video was awesome..
It certainly was! I was in college in the first half of the 80s and this half of the decade was transformational in so many ways. Some not so good, but others just glorious.
Saw A-ha in the 80s. My mom took my best friend and I to a show in Michigan (we couldnt drive yet) During the show, Pal threw out his broken guitar pick. People scrambled around to grab it and the show went on. After it was over the 3 of us were walking out when my mom pulled out the broken pink pick that said A-ha on it. I couldn't believe it. How many teens did my mom take out to get that thing? lol. I was SO happy. That's a great mom for ya! Still love A-ha to this day.
I got the knit shawl that Holly Johnson of Frankie Goes to Hollywood threw into the audience at their show in Seattle in 1984. Solid memories are better than our remembrances, because they are REAL. Love.
I had Morten Harket's mother as a teacher in junior high. Morten lives 10 mins down the street :D About twice a year he would stop by the school to say hi to mom and the class. It was awesome.
As a Norwegian, I hate that these get called a one-hit-wonder, they've released a ton of great music after Take on me! So worth checking out. :) (And give a listen to some of Morten Harket's solo stuff while you're at it: Spanish Steps, Brother and Stay)
Totally agree. I live in Texas and never stopped listening to a-ha. I've even traveled to Norway multiple times over the years to see both a-ha and Morten Harket concerts. It's just frustrating the record company stopped promoting and selling their albums in the US.
Morten holds a world record for holding a same pitch note for 20.2 seconds for Summer Moved On. So many amazing songs this band has... and the more you learn about them, the more you appreciate their incredible talent!
Thank you for covering A-ha. America has been missing out. They have so many great, hit songs that America has missed out on. One of the greatest bands that don't get the respect they deserve.
THIS is why I always look beyond the popular songs in the US and look at UK, Canada, Australia charts. You never know what you’ve missed out on until you expand your horizons.
Morten Harket was on British Masked Singer, he was the viking, and actually trolled the judges by singing this huge billion viewed video song. The judges never guessed. Mortens voice still has a beautiful voice at 62 years old.!!🎉❤ I love him and the band.
a-ha are extremely talented! 37 years and still putting out GREAT music. They are in my top 5 list and I love hearing them! Take On Me was only the beginning.
a-ha is one of the most musically talented group of individuals ever. not only are they hugely successful as a group, but they are also *massively* successful as individuals! award-winning songwriters, composers, artists... world record holders.... stamp artists? knights? these guys are literally ABBA+Beatles+Rolling Stones+Elvis... but they still keep cranking out hits! Together, they create such wonderful pieces, and yet... separate, they are all still just so talented musically as well! Mags is awesome, Morten is awesome, Paul(/Savoy) is awesome. God, I love these guys. When I was deployed in '08, I listened to a-ha, Mags, Morten, Savoy literally 25/8 for 12 months straight... It helped get me through Iraq//Afghanistan. Just so much emotion and beauty and pain and understanding all at once. it was therapy in a 4-minute capsule that I could take one after the other... love these guys. always will. - Phalkon
Your right, this is a great song. You had me tearing up when you shared the story about you and your dad. My dad is 89 and not doing very well, and had me thinking about times we spent together in the past. Thanks for the great job you do on these videos as I really enjoy them as I'm sure many other do.
I opened for A-Ha's homecoming tour in Norway with my band IC Eyes. We played with them in Drammenshallen and Trondheim, where we were given the key to the city by the mayor. It was like opening for the Beatles! Thanks, David, Espen, Ole Tom, and Remy for the memories.
Jeg er norsk og var ung da a-ha slo gjennom, og var stor fan den gang. Dessverre falt jeg fra etter kort tid, og jeg må si at det har vært fantastisk å gjenoppdage dem. Norsk musikkpresse var ikke greie med bandet på slutten av 80- og begynnelsen av 90-tallet, musikk var dyrt å kjøpe og de fleste jeg kjente var hekta på rock, så jeg mista dessverre muligheten til å følge dem tett. Jeg hadde selvfølgelig hørt en del av musikken, men da jeg begynte å dykke ned i albumene ble jeg blåst av banen om og om igjen. De er fantastiske, og det er en skam at ikke flere nordmenn gir dem den respekten de fortjener.
@@ahkkariq7406 Jeg er ikke norsk men jeg har allid fulgt med a-ha fordi min norske venner oppdag mig om dem og selv om man hadde ikke hørt veldig mye om a-ha i canada visste jeg at a-ha var bestemmt ikke en one-hit wonder.
@@kotto2001 Absolutely not. They have many hits. But they also have many songs that could have been hits, but were never released as singles. Living a boy's adventure tale, Scoundrel Days and Sycamore leaves are three examples of songs that are hit material, but for various reasons other songs were chosen. Some of the albums are packed with amazing music and all the albums can be played without skipping songs. It's an amazing band.
Im Irish, and A-Ha were massive throughout the 80s, into the 90s. The Sun always shines on TV, Stay on these Roads, Manhattan Skyline- classic classic songs that easily take over Take on Me as their best song. To this day if playing live, A-Ha can fill arenas across outside the US, all over Europe, without necessary having to rely on Take on Me to fall back on as the only crowd pleaser. Far far from it. Great video here, thanks.
Man A-Ha is by no means a one hit wonder and thanks for recognizing that! They're STILL releasing beautiful, well composed & arranged music! True North came out a few months ago and while it isn't new wave, it's still wonderful. I think Analogue is one of their best albums, but still - their repertoire is so accomplished over such a long period of time.
Whoever says that a-ha are a one-hit wonder, has no clue. They had so many successful songs: The Sun Always Shines on TV. Hunting High and Low. Stay on these Roads. Crying in the Rain. Summer Moved on. Foot of the Mountain. And of course The Living Daylights, the title song of the James Bond movie of the same name. Just to name some of them.
Monster tune that just goes to show the difference a producer can make to a song. A great video doesn’t hurt either. Both still sound and look fresh today. A stroke of genius all around! Thanks, Adam!
Not only is Morten Harket a world class singer, along with Mags and Pal; who are simply dynamite! They are also some of the nicest, most humble people one can ever meet. Long Live A-Ha!!!!
WOW. This is my favorite song of all time. A friend used to sing in on karaoke night and he could hit the high notes, but when you told the story about your dad helping to buy the cassette hit me hard, it actually made this 65 year old man cry.
As an American, I started to develop an interest in aha's other songs because of, believe it or not, "The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson". During his tweets and email segments, Craig would sometimes belt out the opening line of "The Sun Always Shines on T.V." whenever Norway was mentioned. After taking part of a karaoke-style event with an online community singing "Take On Me", I looked up some of their other videos on TH-cam. I stumbled upon "Lifelines" and fell in love with it. To paraphrase one of their later songs, I wanted more... For the past decade, I've collected import CDs of their albums. I have "True North" in my car as I type this! Although he's never going to see this, I want to thank Craig Ferguson for sparking my interest in this band!
Happy to see you discovered it. But as a German I have to admit, that I wonder how they can be called a one hit wonder. It's for me like Madonna is called a one hit wonder. I heard that Neil Diamonds Beautiful noise is not very famous either. Really strange.
A huge fan of a-ha. I'm sad that Hunting High and Low (the song) was never released as a single in the states. One of the strongest songs on the album that so many have never heard.
I remember being 14 and I bought the Hunting High & Low cassette from Toys r Us in Anaheim,Ca. With my paper route money. It was my second cassette tape I owned Depeche Mode’s some great reward being my first! We moved to Arizona and I had the cassette on repeat in my Sony Walkman on the Drive out to there! It is a memory I will never forget! I’m 52 now and I still love their music still today! Thank You “P.O.R” for all your amazing videos!
I can't believe you didn't cover this song before. I love this song so very much. This song is so quintessentially 80's. Without this song, the 80's wouldn't have been as totally awesome as it was. Thank you Professor of Rock so much for sharing your personal memory with your father. I've been a massive A-Ha fan since the early 80's. Thankfully I had this album on cassette tape and listened to it incessantly on my Sony walkman. I used to lip sync to this song in my room, and pretend I was Morten Harket. I also liked "Stay on these Roads", and "The Sun always Shines on TV", from the same album. I'm surprised that A-ha didn't have more big hits. Listening to this brings back memories. Thank you.
I'm from Mexico and by the time the song was released I couldn't understand the lyrics, but the synth, the drums, the bridge, the vocals, as you mention, they were magical.😢 I didn't know what I was singing or shouting but I enjoyed it. It was played over and over in radio stations to the point that some people hated it, but how could you? Hearing it and singing to the highest note we can has became a guilty pleasure for many of us 😅
Professor of Rock- you are an awesome story teller!! Youre enthusiasm and appreciation for such a broad range of music, captures my attention in every video you make. You deserve your own TV show somewhere!!!
Funny! I loved this album back then. I played it so much that I wore out the tape and had to buy it a second, and even a third time. The album was amazing. So much that I actually got sick of hearing Take on Me on the radio. Only because they wouldn’t play much of anything else. The album’s other songs were just amazing. I ended up buying the CD and I still have that CD today. But who listens to CD’s anymore? Anyways, thanks for doing this video.
As an ESL teacher in Asia, I get asked to introduce English language music to folks I'm teaching quite a bit, and this is one I always break out. Have yet to have ANYONE hate it. That speaks volumes of how universal the appeal is.
@@xxlilly_playsxxkiz9980 It definitely helps. The more English you can get them listening to on a daily basis the better. Be it music, books, movies, tv, TH-cam etc. The more they're using it the better they get.
In the UK Morten WAS the pin up of the 80s. The one hit wonder thing is infuriating because here they were huge and still have a massive fan base. Scoundrel Days is one of, if not the finest follow up album ever released, and the most recent release, True North is incredible. such raw talent. I was lucky enough to see them live last year and Take On Me at the final encore was just perfection.
Nobody calls a-ha a 1-hit wonder. Because they aren't. They made a dozen of successful songs: The Sun Always Shines on TV. Hunting High and Low. Stay on these Roads. Crying in the Rain. Summer Moved on. Foot of the Mountain. And of course The Living Daylights, the title song of the James Bond movie of the same name. Just to name some of them.
Scoundrel Days was a fantastic album. The melancholy soul of "Losing You" and the top-notch Europop of "Looking for the Whales." Love that CD. Better than "Hunting High and Low," IMO.
My sister had a Morten Harket poster in her room in the 80s. Very surprised to see them called a one-hit wonder band. They were extremely popular in South Africa as well. No one-hit band gets to do a 007 movie
Some of those covers are Horrid. They blew most of today's music away... That's coming from a thrasher into DHG and Isahn, and am supposed to hate modern dimmu....!!! Lol
I had a friend who always put this on the jukebox in the pub around 2000. It was 15 years old and sounded brand new. Now it's 35+ years old and still sounds brand new. The video is really basically a 4 minute feature film.
The 80s is a unique moment in history that hasn't been duplicated and i don't think it can be. The 90s was R&B moving into pop in 2000s. Nothing released since has matched the greatness of these periods in history
The slow version of this from the unplugged album is genuinely beautiful. Lyrics like ‘slowly learning that life is ok’ sung slowly elevates the song even more
You called it Adam....#1 of the 80's. That is saying a lot for a decade that is SOOOO full of AWESOME! My fondest memories come grom the 2010's singing it with my daughter in the car. I, of course, was never able to follow her into that HIGH note! The Sun Always Shines on TV is incredible too. Gives me chills to this day
The sad irony is that the success of "Take on Me" obscured everything else the band ever tried to do. "Scoundrel Days" is a superb album with a fantastic title song. If you didn't give it a chance back then, do yourself a favour and listen to it now.
...Me Best Bud LOVES "Scoundrel Days"!! ....He almost THROTTLED me when I told him I didn't own it! ...he gave me TWO of his '1st pressing' CD's, 'cause he bought those EXPENSIVE re-issues!
This will forever be my favorite band, even if Take on Me is pretty low on the list of songs I call my favorites. I may like Stay on these Roads more, but it can't be denied that many of their songs, even the experimental ones, can be absolute bangers. For me some of the underrated songs are "Locust", "The Sun Never Shone That Day" and "October". Otherwise unforgettable songs are "Summer Moved On", "The Sun Always Shines on TV" and "Hunting High and Low" and the band will forever go down in music history.
Great video, and Yes "Take On Me" is one of those great songs, that you hear it and instantly takes you back the 80s. I think the first time i saw the music video I was hypnotized, and me being a graphic artist, i was beyond amazed. Loved the version in the deadpool movie as well, its such a great rendition of that song. Great video and keep it up.
In the late nineties l drove a taxi in Australia and l had a passenger who recognized that l was playing Aha music in the car radio. He began to tell me how he met the band in the eighties while working in a hotel in Ireland while the band were on tour for a few days , he worked as room service and he continued on saying how much of a nice guy Morten was. Anyhow about ten or so years later while holidaying in the French Pacific islands with his wife he noticed a man by the pool with their partner who looked a splitting image of Morten. So he told his wife that he looks like a man from a band whom he served when working in Ireland many years ago, after convincing from his wife he approached Morten, introduced himself and continued that he wouldn't remember him but, Morten suddenly interrupted him had a good look at him and told him, you are the guy who worked at room service at the hotel in Ireland. He was so gobsmaked at how could Morten remember him after so many years. Amazing story when you think that every night they were in a different hotel.
Morten is such a gentle and humble man. I never met him, but I have seen all interviews and read all books about the band in both English and Norwegian. At home in Norway, he is unfortunately misunderstood because he is a deep thinker. Few people manage to follow him when he begins to philosophize - and he does so in Norway. Outside Norway, the management has ensured that Magne usually follows him during interviews because he is able to derail Morten if he starts philosophizing. I love watching the interaction between them - it's both touching and witty. The world needs more people like these two wonderful men - and let me include Pål too, the musical genius.
I briefly caught the group on MTV's Unplugged and was very impressed by Morten Harkett's voice. He clearly wasn't just a product of the studio. He's got the pipes.
Adam... The best and most beautiful part of this entire cast is when the song itself took you back to that moment with your Dad. It brought me to tears as I miss my Dad much the same way too!
I love how you honor your dad and his influence on you in your videos. My mom and dad directly influenced me in some of my musical loves, especially bands like The Beatles, CCR and Eagles. My sister helped influence my love of bands the Depeche Mode, The Smiths and Genesis. This all added to my own discoveries ranging from The Police and Huey Lewis and the News to Rush and AC/DC. The memories of my parents live on in the music I still listen to.
54yr old here. Wittnessed Zeitgeist back in the day. The way you cover this song - how articulate! The respect for detail you’ve given to music, band and how it all developed. Kudos to your approach to all this. Was absorbing every word from you. 👏🏻 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻
Thank you so much for this! For me, Take On Me is one of the biggest songs of the 80s, but I must admit that the sequence before the drums kick in in „ The Sun Always Shines On TV“, where the piano climbs upwards, gives me even more chills and moves me to tears everytime I hear it. A-Ha were the first pop band I ever saw live in 1988 on their Stay On These Roads tour in my hometown of Hamburg, Germany. I managed to see them three more times since then, the last time last year when they did play the whole Hunting High And Low album live. But their follow-up album Scoundrell Days is probably my favorite album of the 1980s ever. Take 45 minutes to listen to the whole album front to back on a good stereo, and marvel at the beauty they created. Most notably Manhattan Skyline and The Soft rains Of April, along with the opening track Scoundrell Days, which was never a single. To this day, they play seven, sometimes eight songs from this album alone in each of their concert sets. Even last year when one part of the concert was Hunting High and Low, seven of the songs of the other concert part were from Scoundrell Days.
Professor, you’re the best. This is truly one of the best songs of the 80’s. And the video…hands down my favorite music video. I remember when it came on MTV and I was mesmerized! Thank you for bringing it all back ❤
This is probably my favourite segment you've ever done, POR. Thank you! One of my favourite musical memories from the 80s was watching A-ha perform on the 1986 Grammy awards. It's a great clip you can watch on TH-cam. I distinctly remember the camera zooming in on the white glove on the keyboard. Ah, the 80’s ❤
Excellent video!... don´t forget Hunting high a low and many other songs..... i´m 52 and i´ve been in love with A- HA since the 80´s... Salutes from Argentina!
Thank you for this!!! A-ha always make brilliant music! Their live performances are fantastic! And Morten has a magic voice! I have listened to them since I was a child... 😊❤🎵🇳🇴
I VIVIDLY REMEMBER hearing “Take On Me” for the very first time! I was in the 8th grade and it was a Friday night, early early Saturday morning, like 2AM. I had been asleep, with my double cassette boombox softly playing the radio 📻. I had been in a heavy sleep. I woke up to use the bathroom. After coming back, I laid back down, and just listened to the radio 📻 play tunes, until I fell back asleep. I was having trouble getting back to sleep, and was just laying there. Finally I fell into ‘Twilight sleep’, when I heard the synth riff. I woke up and turned the volume up I bit, and listened to Take On Me! Alone in the dark, save for a tiny little night light. I was blown away! I spent the whole next day listening to the radio 📻, ready to record it off the radio 📻! Finally it came on and they finally finally said the name of the band, “a-ha” I begged my mom to take me to Music+, the music store, and I bought the vinyl and the cassette! And that night a-ha became my 2nd favorite band to this very day. 2nd only to Fleetwood Mac! I have followed A-ha alll through their amazing career! I have every one of their albums, many of which I would record on a blank tape, so I wouldn’t have to worry about wearing out the bought cassette! I LUV LUV LUV A-ha! They are anything but a 'one hit wonder'. Their latest, "True North" is yet another masterpiece!!!
Excellent video! 👏 A-ha is such an incredible band. So underrated in the USA but loved and admired around the world... far far from being a one hit wonder. Superb explanation of the band and song. Nice research, you are on point. Their songs catalog is vast and superb, imho one of the best bands in the world. Also Morten is well respected on his solo albums. He is one of the best singers in the world. As they a-ha themselves said:" Take on me" has a life of its own.😊
Loved this song when it came out. Nearly 40 years later it's still iconic. Norway has a fabulous music scene and lots of amazing artists, whether the material is in English or Norwegian.
Thank you for showcasing this musical masterpiece from an often misunderstood and underrated band. You delivered a extremely entertaining and insightful video as always.
a-ha is my favorite band of all time! Thank you for recognizing not only their brilliance but that they are an enduring force musically and not just a one hit wonder. I finally got the chance to see them live at Radio City in April of 2022, and they were amazing. And Take on Me live was unimaginably good.
Thank you for sharing the story about your father. a-ha has been the soundtrack of my life. I appreciate the respect you gave to the band in explaining that they were not a one-hit wonder.
Take On Me is great, but their later work is what really speaks to me. Their albums in the late 90s and 2000s have such a rich composition and the lyrics are exceptional. Yes, most Americans will only know Take On Me, but they are really missing out on A-ha's evolution of greatness! Side note: I proposed to my wife while dancing to "Angel In The Snow" on a beach in Brazil.
A-ha has an INCREDIBLE catalog. If you haven't already, do yourself a huge favor and give them a deep dive ❤ I really love Dark is the Night from the 90s and Stay on these Roads live at the 2015 Nobel Peace concert. Just love these guys!
Probabl my #1 favorite song of the 80s. From the intro, to the end, Take On Me gives me a euphoric feeling! It still has the power to "possess" me and make my body involuntarily move to the beat. I consider Take On Me as the main soundtrack of my youth! Thank you A-HA!
I’m Brazilian, and in no way they are a one-hit wonder there. The first three albums are absolutely perfect and basically all of the songs were hits in Brazil.
Go out in the streets and ask random people your age to name other A-Ha song besides Take on Me. How many of you share that sentiment? not many, hence the label "One-Hit-Wonder"
@@FOOJFOOJIYAMA A-ha has been 14 times in Brazil for concerts. It’s biggest hit here was Hunting High and Low. It indeed was successful in Brazil. Sorry, the world is not the US alone and it’s not measured by it.
Thank you for recognizing a-ha. I have been a fan since the beginning and have at least 8 of their studio releases. I’m just glad you somewhat confirmed my sanity for being a fan of their music. Keep up your fantastic videos, you are quite the knowledgeable music fan. Thank you!
I’ve always had a soft spot for this song. I am a vocals person and I just love his voice. The video was great as well. Excited to hear details about the band. I had no idea. I always wondered why they weren’t more popular.
A-ha, my first love. Hunting High and Low was my first album I ever bought aged 7, and I still listen to it now. I was lucky enough to see them live in 2010 on their “Ending on a High Note” tour, and they were absolutely phenomenal. Pure class, even nearly 40 years later.
Remember listening to this song for the first time in college I was doing my normal run around campus this song just jilted me into full throttle run and dance I was absolutely instantly taken with it !!!! Fantastic and vivid memory !!!❤
_"How Morten Harket wasn't the biggest pin-up of the 80's is beyond me"_ - In many countries - like the UK - he was. For a few years at least, he was a George Michael / John Taylor level pin-up. I completely agree about Sun being a truly terrific follow-up. In the UK it was a bigger hit than Take On Me (Take got to #2 Sun got to #1).
He was certainly a pinup in our house (in country Australia). I still have the posters from Magazines like Smash Hits. Don’t tell my sisters I’m in possession of the favourite Aha poster!
Here in Brazil A-ha was huge. Many of their songs were a hit around here (Take On Me, Hunting High and Low, You Are The One, Touchy, Stay on These Roads). Morten was a huge sex symbol amongst women at the time (late 80s-early 90s).
Same can be said about Madness. Always seen as a 1 hit wonder in America with Our House but over in the UK they are one of the biggest selling 80s Artists.
This song "Take on me" is a huge " A-ha" moment! Lures you in, grabs your imagination and heart and just won't let go! It's a vocal and visual masterpiece! Just love it from start to finish! Thank you professor for this in depth and fascinating look into this 80's gem!! ❤
That song defined my youth. And, their discography lives on in my library. One of the 80´s top ten bands. America never understood a-ha like the rest of the world has. Scoundrel Days is a gem. One of the best follow-up albums to what is a pop masterpiece: Hunting High and Low.
I feel as though the music video has always been one of the best ever made. The song itself seems to get bigger as time goes on. This is one of my favorites from my childhood and I am happy to see multiple generations get a chance to experience it and enjoy it.
The video is what truly hooked me, there was nothing like it all that mix of real & drawn. The vocals and the synthesizer are both incredible, for me its "bubble gum" pop at its finest ! Being 16 when it hit almost every girl in school was crazy for it and being girls crazy meant I heard it a lot ....lol My daughters were blown away at 4 & 5 when I first showed them the video, in fact was only a couple days ago I heard it blasting from my daughters room :)
I got their vinyl for Christmas 85 and literally played it continuously. I remember spending big on a ‘metal’ cassette, getting every bit of dust off it that I could see and taping it so I could listen on my Walkman as well. They are one of my all time favourite bands, every single album in regular random rotation. Great video Adam!
The algorithm gods finally brought your channel to me a couple of weeks ago, and I have been binge watching ever since. Thank you SO much for your incredible work. Your thoughtful reflections and impeccable presentation allow me to swim about in a warm pool of nostalgia, and leaving me with a smile every time. In the early 80’s I interned at a local radio station for a couple of years, where my love for the music of the day gleefully turned into a full blown obsession. I moved around a lot in those days, and I could leave behind any of my material possessions to make moving easier, apart my numerous milk crates full of hundreds and hundreds of albums. Every episode of your show brings me back to those milk crates, those album covers, and the decidedly wacky, neon-colored, adventurous years that made me who I am today. So, yeah, apologies for the ramble…just really, thank you for all you do. ✨
Great song. I'm just 3 weeks older than Morten. I wish I could sing as well as he still can at 63. I remember when it first came out, and how Morten just kept singing higher and higher. Just when you thought he couldn't go higher, he did. Amazing.
Thanks for covering A-Ha! "Hunting High and Low" is one of my favorite albums of all time. I love almost every song on it and I'll always remember it as the album that got me through some rough times in high school. It's sad that songs like "Living a Boy's Adventure Tale", "Here I Stand and Face the Rain" and "Hunting High and Low" didn't receive more attention in the USA. Maybe those songs weren't upbeat enough. I'll still always enjoy them no matter what.
It was a real mind-blower to hear this song the first time. It’s musically kinda sophisticated. A bit classical. Totally aesthetic. And Harkett does the impossible with his voice and that melody-and no auto tune.
No need to apologise for the authenticity and candour of your childhood memories. Those of us who're children in the 80's, it means a lot that you shared it and it felt emotional. RIP to your dad, it's amazing what seems like a little gesture can lead to lasting memories as we grow older. Memories that we cherish. Love your videos!
****YES!!!!! It was the most magical song of the 80's!!!! I was captivated by the song, the video and crushed on Morton soooo hard!! He was plastered all over my walls and I just adored everything about him. He was in my top 3 at the time - Simon LeBon and Michael Jackson were stiff competion....but Morton won out with his look for sure!! Thanks for this.....Iconic, Amazing, Timeless and Always ASTOUNDING!!!!!!***
I discovered A-ha in 1991 when they started broadcasting MTV in the USSR, then I found their album among of my friend's cassettes, that was "East of the Sun, West of the Moon", and I listened to it for hundreds of times. On the top of all, in 2004 I won a ticket for their concert in Novosibirsk with the radio "Europa Plus", and I feel extremely lucky to have attended that and seen them and listened to them live...
Poll:: What is your pick for the CATCHIEST song of all time?
Genius Of Love-Tom Tom Club ❤
Karma Camelion- Culture Club.
Funky Town- Lipps Inc.
We Will Rock You by Queen
“Got my mind set on you” George Harrison 🤘🔥
Don't Stop Believin'
I'm not sure about all time, but for the first synth "catchiest song" it has to be "Baba O'Riley."
What a privilege to grow up in this era. Every week was a new amazing song, we thought it was normal!
I had just turned 20 when this song hit, I had missed it when it was first released because I was stationed in Okinawa, and came back to the US to find the music video on MTV, and was amazed at the concept of the video. And the motorcycle race at the beginning really had me interested off the bat.
If I remember right I heard the song for the first time on Friday Night Videos one night. I though the song was not only great, but the video was awesome..
I miss the era. Back when I thought love actually existed in America.
It certainly was! I was in college in the first half of the 80s and this half of the decade was transformational in so many ways. Some not so good, but others just glorious.
Saw A-ha in the 80s. My mom took my best friend and I to a show in Michigan (we couldnt drive yet) During the show, Pal threw out his broken guitar pick. People scrambled around to grab it and the show went on. After it was over the 3 of us were walking out when my mom pulled out the broken pink pick that said A-ha on it. I couldn't believe it. How many teens did my mom take out to get that thing? lol. I was SO happy. That's a great mom for ya! Still love A-ha to this day.
I got the knit shawl that Holly Johnson of Frankie Goes to Hollywood
threw into the audience at their show in Seattle in 1984. Solid memories are better than our remembrances, because they are REAL. Love.
OMG! That was your mom?! Now, I finally know who punched me in the eye 40 years ago! 😂
“….my best friend and me”. 😊
You wouldn’t say “my mom took I “.
I had Morten Harket's mother as a teacher in junior high. Morten lives 10 mins down the street :D
About twice a year he would stop by the school to say hi to mom and the class. It was awesome.
Lucky!!❤
I had Magnes aunt as a teacher :D And Morten had his kid at my school so he was just some guy you ran into from time to time :D
Can I come visit?
@@weARallDEVO Sure, say a-hi
As a Norwegian, I hate that these get called a one-hit-wonder, they've released a ton of great music after Take on me! So worth checking out. :) (And give a listen to some of Morten Harket's solo stuff while you're at it: Spanish Steps, Brother and Stay)
Probably my all time favourite of A-Ha is I've been losing you. I'm a bass player, and really trip on that groovy bassline.
Totally agree. I live in Texas and never stopped listening to a-ha. I've even traveled to Norway multiple times over the years to see both a-ha and Morten Harket concerts. It's just frustrating the record company stopped promoting and selling their albums in the US.
Definitely not in the UK, they had quite a few hits. My favourite was the lesser known Manhattan Skyline
I love ABBA! Scandinavia rocks
The Sun Always Shines On TV hit the top 40 in the US. By that standard, they are not a one-hitter.
Now 55, and looking back had the privilege to be in my teens in those days. Music, art the first computers games games and more games !!!!
My favourite is The Living Daylights which was the theme song for James Bond: The Living Daylights.
Morten holds a world record for holding a same pitch note for 20.2 seconds for Summer Moved On. So many amazing songs this band has... and the more you learn about them, the more you appreciate their incredible talent!
Freddy Curci, "When I'm With You"...? Oh... Wow, that only went 18 seconds. Blow me down! 😅
Minor earth major sky is honestly one of their best releases. That long note in summer moved on is insane to this day
Very touching ending to this review. Every Dad has a moment with their son.
Yes, I spoke with them, as I was working in a restaurant in Oslo -85. very nice people. No egotripping at all.
To look and sing like Morten Harkett should be illegal. Looks and voice still going strong. God bless wonderful Dads!
Thank you for covering A-ha. America has been missing out. They have so many great, hit songs that America has missed out on. One of the greatest bands that don't get the respect they deserve.
Agreed. So many great hits
To me they are a two hit wonder. “The sun always shines on TV” was one of the best 80’s songs that can still be played at full blast anytime!
THIS is why I always look beyond the popular songs in the US and look at UK, Canada, Australia charts. You never know what you’ve missed out on until you expand your horizons.
@@eightiesmusic1984 I love the idea bands named after years!
America will keep on missing out, and left out.
Morten Harket’s voice is INCREDIBLE. This man can sing!!!!
He really is an underrated gem of a singer.
He is almost never ranked in the Top 10 male singers in commercial music. 🙄 He belongs there!
Underrated. His singing in Train 🚆 of Thought. 🤯
I bet you if you heard him sing it live it wouldn’t sound the same.
Thanks for calling out some of their other songs. The Sun Always Shines on TV is very powerful.
Especially the intro!
yes, I like it better
Morten Harket was on British Masked Singer, he was the viking, and actually trolled the judges by singing this huge billion viewed video song. The judges never guessed. Mortens voice still has a beautiful voice at 62 years old.!!🎉❤ I love him and the band.
I'm honestly shocked that this hasn't happened on the American version yet.
@@kevwwong We'd love to see that happen here. A-Ha didn't get all the recognition they deserved with their follow up albums here in the US.
Songbird and The Scientist were great
I saw that! I love him too!
@@Joreel American music turned inward after the initial flood of European MTV bands dissipated...LA Glam and Pop/Rap kinda took over for a bit...
a-ha are extremely talented! 37 years and still putting out GREAT music. They are in my top 5 list and I love hearing them! Take On Me was only the beginning.
A perfect beginning it was for them!
a-ha is one of the most musically talented group of individuals ever. not only are they hugely successful as a group, but they are also *massively* successful as individuals! award-winning songwriters, composers, artists... world record holders.... stamp artists? knights?
these guys are literally ABBA+Beatles+Rolling Stones+Elvis... but they still keep cranking out hits!
Together, they create such wonderful pieces, and yet... separate, they are all still just so talented musically as well! Mags is awesome, Morten is awesome, Paul(/Savoy) is awesome. God, I love these guys.
When I was deployed in '08, I listened to a-ha, Mags, Morten, Savoy literally 25/8 for 12 months straight... It helped get me through Iraq//Afghanistan. Just so much emotion and beauty and pain and understanding all at once. it was therapy in a 4-minute capsule that I could take one after the other... love these guys. always will.
- Phalkon
What a staple, especially with how much play it is has gotten across the generations. A true classic indeed.
Indeed.
EVERYONE has to know Take on Me.
Timeless video... So clever, and with a unique story that actually makes sense... Such a feel good song to boot!
Feel good is exactly right! So fun.
That video definitely was creative.
I loved living in the 80's as a kid, best time in music and so much more
Amazing band. Saw them here in Australia live 3 years ago and they were brilliant. Mortens voice is still fantastic. So many great songs.
Wow, so glad to hear that.
Your right, this is a great song. You had me tearing up when you shared the story about you and your dad. My dad is 89 and not doing very well, and had me thinking about times we spent together in the past. Thanks for the great job you do on these videos as I really enjoy them as I'm sure many other do.
Thanks for listening
So sad to hear that. Hope he ends up in comfort.
long life & health to both of you
So many magical memories!!! One of the greatests band, the best lead singer, the most handsome too. Stay on these roads!!!!
I opened for A-Ha's homecoming tour in Norway with my band IC Eyes. We played with them in Drammenshallen and Trondheim, where we were given the key to the city by the mayor. It was like opening for the Beatles! Thanks, David, Espen, Ole Tom, and Remy for the memories.
Jeg er norsk og var ung da a-ha slo gjennom, og var stor fan den gang. Dessverre falt jeg fra etter kort tid, og jeg må si at det har vært fantastisk å gjenoppdage dem. Norsk musikkpresse var ikke greie med bandet på slutten av 80- og begynnelsen av 90-tallet, musikk var dyrt å kjøpe og de fleste jeg kjente var hekta på rock, så jeg mista dessverre muligheten til å følge dem tett. Jeg hadde selvfølgelig hørt en del av musikken, men da jeg begynte å dykke ned i albumene ble jeg blåst av banen om og om igjen. De er fantastiske, og det er en skam at ikke flere nordmenn gir dem den respekten de fortjener.
@@ahkkariq7406 Jeg er ikke norsk men jeg har allid fulgt med a-ha fordi min norske venner oppdag mig om dem og selv om man hadde ikke hørt veldig mye om a-ha i canada visste jeg at a-ha var bestemmt ikke en one-hit wonder.
@@kotto2001 Absolutely not. They have many hits. But they also have many songs that could have been hits, but were never released as singles. Living a boy's adventure tale, Scoundrel Days and Sycamore leaves are three examples of songs that are hit material, but for various reasons other songs were chosen. Some of the albums are packed with amazing music and all the albums can be played without skipping songs. It's an amazing band.
@@ahkkariq7406 you didnt understand the norwegian in my reply because i wrote that a-ha are "definitely not a one-hit wonder"
@@kotto2001 I did understand. I just wanted to add some information for other people reading.
Im Irish, and A-Ha were massive throughout the 80s, into the 90s. The Sun always shines on TV, Stay on these Roads, Manhattan Skyline- classic classic songs that easily take over Take on Me as their best song. To this day if playing live, A-Ha can fill arenas across outside the US, all over Europe, without necessary having to rely on Take on Me to fall back on as the only crowd pleaser. Far far from it. Great video here, thanks.
Man A-Ha is by no means a one hit wonder and thanks for recognizing that! They're STILL releasing beautiful, well composed & arranged music! True North came out a few months ago and while it isn't new wave, it's still wonderful. I think Analogue is one of their best albums, but still - their repertoire is so accomplished over such a long period of time.
Whoever says that a-ha are a one-hit wonder, has no clue. They had so many successful songs: The Sun Always Shines on TV. Hunting High and Low. Stay on these Roads. Crying in the Rain. Summer Moved on. Foot of the Mountain. And of course The Living Daylights, the title song of the James Bond movie of the same name.
Just to name some of them.
"Take On Me" is a certifiable classic-It's a shame that their follow up hit "The Sun Always Shines On TV" doesn't receive recurrent airplay.
It's one of the few songs from the 1980s to have over one billion hits.
Number one in the UK early 1986.
Both are great songs. Give the latter song a chance!
the sun always shines is a much better song, and hunting high and low is an absolute classic
@@anfieldlegend Their greatest hits is worth a listen- lots of songs on it that were hits in the UK but not America.
Monster tune that just goes to show the difference a producer can make to a song. A great video doesn’t hurt either. Both still sound and look fresh today. A stroke of genius all around! Thanks, Adam!
ROBSTER!!! Welcome back!
@@ProfessorofRock Thanks, Adam. Japan was a blast!
It’s aged pretty well.
The story about your dad made me tear up. What a beautiful memory.
The video for Take On Me is one of my all time favorites. It was originally a very unique video and now it's timeless and exquisite.
There is a second song that extends the story of that video: "The Sun Always Shines On TV". Another great song.
It truly is a marvel. Like Gabriel's Sledgehammer, it still stands up.
Not only is Morten Harket a world class singer, along with Mags and Pal; who are simply dynamite! They are also some of the nicest, most humble people one can ever meet. Long Live A-Ha!!!!
You met them? So cool you said they are nice and humble. That makes me like them more. Please tell me about it. Thanks
WOW. This is my favorite song of all time. A friend used to sing in on karaoke night and he could hit the high notes, but when you told the story about your dad helping to buy the cassette hit me hard, it actually made this 65 year old man cry.
As an American, I started to develop an interest in aha's other songs because of, believe it or not, "The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson". During his tweets and email segments, Craig would sometimes belt out the opening line of "The Sun Always Shines on T.V." whenever Norway was mentioned. After taking part of a karaoke-style event with an online community singing "Take On Me", I looked up some of their other videos on TH-cam. I stumbled upon "Lifelines" and fell in love with it. To paraphrase one of their later songs, I wanted more...
For the past decade, I've collected import CDs of their albums. I have "True North" in my car as I type this! Although he's never going to see this, I want to thank Craig Ferguson for sparking my interest in this band!
Imports are always a cool gift.
Happy to see you discovered it.
But as a German I have to admit, that I wonder how they can be called a one hit wonder. It's for me like Madonna is called a one hit wonder.
I heard that Neil Diamonds Beautiful noise is not very famous either.
Really strange.
A huge fan of a-ha. I'm sad that Hunting High and Low (the song) was never released as a single in the states. One of the strongest songs on the album that so many have never heard.
I remember being 14 and I bought the Hunting High & Low cassette from Toys r Us in Anaheim,Ca. With my paper route money. It was my second cassette tape I owned Depeche Mode’s some great reward being my first! We moved to Arizona and I had the cassette on repeat in my Sony Walkman on the Drive out to there! It is a memory I will never forget! I’m 52 now and I still love their music still today! Thank You “P.O.R” for all your amazing videos!
I can't believe you didn't cover this song before. I love this song so very much. This song is so quintessentially 80's. Without this song, the 80's wouldn't have been as totally awesome as it was. Thank you Professor of Rock so much for sharing your personal memory with your father. I've been a massive A-Ha fan since the early 80's. Thankfully I had this album on cassette tape and listened to it incessantly on my Sony walkman. I used to lip sync to this song in my room, and pretend I was Morten Harket. I also liked "Stay on these Roads", and "The Sun always Shines on TV", from the same album. I'm surprised that A-ha didn't have more big hits. Listening to this brings back memories. Thank you.
He has covered it before in a different discussion.
It’s what made the 80s cool, I know that much 😊
I'm from Mexico and by the time the song was released I couldn't understand the lyrics, but the synth, the drums, the bridge, the vocals, as you mention, they were magical.😢 I didn't know what I was singing or shouting but I enjoyed it. It was played over and over in radio stations to the point that some people hated it, but how could you? Hearing it and singing to the highest note we can has became a guilty pleasure for many of us 😅
It was the same for me with Laura Posini in the 90's.
_"What may be the catchiest song in all of pop music"_
That's a bold claim, Professor.
*And 100% accurate!*
Sure. If the Beatles had never existed
And ABBA
Professor of Rock- you are an awesome story teller!! Youre enthusiasm and appreciation for such a broad range of music, captures my attention in every video you make. You deserve your own TV show somewhere!!!
He captured such an iconic song beautifully! He transported me back to the 80's with his master class and emotion storytelling. Bravo!
Funny! I loved this album back then. I played it so much that I wore out the tape and had to buy it a second, and even a third time. The album was amazing. So much that I actually got sick of hearing Take on Me on the radio. Only because they wouldn’t play much of anything else. The album’s other songs were just amazing. I ended up buying the CD and I still have that CD today. But who listens to CD’s anymore? Anyways, thanks for doing this video.
As an ESL teacher in Asia, I get asked to introduce English language music to folks I'm teaching quite a bit, and this is one I always break out.
Have yet to have ANYONE hate it.
That speaks volumes of how universal the appeal is.
Very cool!
A-ha were huge in Japan, a country that usually (according to Norwegian media) didn't make room for anyone but its own artists at the time.
I have now gained an idea for the ESL teachers at my school!
@@xxlilly_playsxxkiz9980 It definitely helps.
The more English you can get them listening to on a daily basis the better. Be it music, books, movies, tv, TH-cam etc. The more they're using it the better they get.
@@unnaturalselection8330 Especially coming from Norwegians, who just use simple English.
In the UK Morten WAS the pin up of the 80s. The one hit wonder thing is infuriating because here they were huge and still have a massive fan base. Scoundrel Days is one of, if not the finest follow up album ever released, and the most recent release, True North is incredible. such raw talent. I was lucky enough to see them live last year and Take On Me at the final encore was just perfection.
They had more than one hit. Just to get to number 20, u had to sell hundreds of thousands. Many many more sales than most number ones today.
Nobody calls a-ha a 1-hit wonder. Because they aren't. They made a dozen of successful songs: The Sun Always Shines on TV. Hunting High and Low. Stay on these Roads. Crying in the Rain. Summer Moved on. Foot of the Mountain. And of course The Living Daylights, the title song of the James Bond movie of the same name.
Just to name some of them.
Scoundrel Days was a fantastic album. The melancholy soul of "Losing You" and the top-notch Europop of "Looking for the Whales." Love that CD. Better than "Hunting High and Low," IMO.
My sister had a Morten Harket poster in her room in the 80s. Very surprised to see them called a one-hit wonder band. They were extremely popular in South Africa as well. No one-hit band gets to do a 007 movie
Some of those covers are Horrid. They blew most of today's music away...
That's coming from a thrasher into DHG and Isahn, and am supposed to hate modern dimmu....!!! Lol
I had a friend who always put this on the jukebox in the pub around 2000. It was 15 years old and sounded brand new. Now it's 35+ years old and still sounds brand new.
The video is really basically a 4 minute feature film.
yes, it still does sound fresh.
The keyboard part, the instrumental part in the middle of the song and the voice of Morten are pure MAGIC!
The 80s is a unique moment in history that hasn't been duplicated and i don't think it can be. The 90s was R&B moving into pop in 2000s. Nothing released since has matched the greatness of these periods in history
The slow version of this from the unplugged album is genuinely beautiful. Lyrics like ‘slowly learning that life is ok’ sung slowly elevates the song even more
Agreed.
Yes!
It’s on TH-cam. Gorgeous.
It's absolutely beautiful.
Deadpool 2 agrees
This song will never be forgotten.
Love this video. Been a huge fan for what seems forever. Still surprised they were never bigger here in the US.
You called it Adam....#1 of the 80's. That is saying a lot for a decade that is SOOOO full of AWESOME! My fondest memories come grom the 2010's singing it with my daughter in the car. I, of course, was never able to follow her into that HIGH note! The Sun Always Shines on TV is incredible too. Gives me chills to this day
The acoustic version of this song is amazing also. It changes the song and amazes me everytime.
The sad irony is that the success of "Take on Me" obscured everything else the band ever tried to do. "Scoundrel Days" is a superb album with a fantastic title song. If you didn't give it a chance back then, do yourself a favour and listen to it now.
I love that record!
...Me Best Bud LOVES "Scoundrel Days"!! ....He almost THROTTLED me when I told him I didn't own it! ...he gave me TWO of his '1st pressing' CD's, 'cause he bought those EXPENSIVE re-issues!
I definitely will see if it’s on Spotify!
Scoundrel days take on me and the sun always shines is the best
Amazing ALBUM that
I've been addicted to this band since the 80s. I'll never get tired of their music. I have a long list of their amazing songs,
This is a lovely tribute to a fantastic song. One of your best.
This will forever be my favorite band, even if Take on Me is pretty low on the list of songs I call my favorites. I may like Stay on these Roads more, but it can't be denied that many of their songs, even the experimental ones, can be absolute bangers. For me some of the underrated songs are "Locust", "The Sun Never Shone That Day" and "October".
Otherwise unforgettable songs are "Summer Moved On", "The Sun Always Shines on TV" and "Hunting High and Low" and the band will forever go down in music history.
A-ha has so much great music. "Velvet" is stunning.
Hunting High And Low is an otherworldly classic. ⭐️✨
I have to admit I haven’t really listened to a lot of their music, and I really should now.
Stay on These Roads is my favorite by them. Amazing song.👍
@@djigor My favorite, too. The "sister song" True North is amazing, as well.
Great video, and Yes "Take On Me" is one of those great songs, that you hear it and instantly takes you back the 80s. I think the first time i saw the music video I was hypnotized, and me being a graphic artist, i was beyond amazed. Loved the version in the deadpool movie as well, its such a great rendition of that song. Great video and keep it up.
In the late nineties l drove a taxi in Australia and l had a passenger who recognized that l was playing Aha music in the car radio. He began to tell me how he met the band in the eighties while working in a hotel in Ireland while the band were on tour for a few days , he worked as room service and he continued on saying how much of a nice guy Morten was. Anyhow about ten or so years later while holidaying in the French Pacific islands with his wife he noticed a man by the pool with their partner who looked a splitting image of Morten. So he told his wife that he looks like a man from a band whom he served when working in Ireland many years ago, after convincing from his wife he approached Morten, introduced himself and continued that he wouldn't remember him but, Morten suddenly interrupted him had a good look at him and told him, you are the guy who worked at room service at the hotel in Ireland. He was so gobsmaked at how could Morten remember him after so many years. Amazing story when you think that every night they were in a different hotel.
Morten is such a gentle and humble man. I never met him, but I have seen all interviews and read all books about the band in both English and Norwegian. At home in Norway, he is unfortunately misunderstood because he is a deep thinker. Few people manage to follow him when he begins to philosophize - and he does so in Norway. Outside Norway, the management has ensured that Magne usually follows him during interviews because he is able to derail Morten if he starts philosophizing. I love watching the interaction between them - it's both touching and witty. The world needs more people like these two wonderful men - and let me include Pål too, the musical genius.
I briefly caught the group on MTV's Unplugged and was very impressed by Morten Harkett's voice. He clearly wasn't just a product of the studio. He's got the pipes.
Adam... The best and most beautiful part of this entire cast is when the song itself took you back to that moment with your Dad. It brought me to tears as I miss my Dad much the same way too!
I love how you honor your dad and his influence on you in your videos. My mom and dad directly influenced me in some of my musical loves, especially bands like The Beatles, CCR and Eagles. My sister helped influence my love of bands the Depeche Mode, The Smiths and Genesis. This all added to my own discoveries ranging from The Police and Huey Lewis and the News to Rush and AC/DC. The memories of my parents live on in the music I still listen to.
Amazing! I taught most of this stuff to myself.
Happy to hear that you appreciate CCR. Good stuff.
54yr old here. Wittnessed Zeitgeist back in the day. The way you cover this song - how articulate! The respect for detail you’ve given to music, band and how it all developed. Kudos to your approach to all this. Was absorbing every word from you. 👏🏻 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻
Thank you so much for this! For me, Take On Me is one of the biggest songs of the 80s, but I must admit that the sequence before the drums kick in in „ The Sun Always Shines On TV“, where the piano climbs upwards, gives me even more chills and moves me to tears everytime I hear it. A-Ha were the first pop band I ever saw live in 1988 on their Stay On These Roads tour in my hometown of Hamburg, Germany. I managed to see them three more times since then, the last time last year when they did play the whole Hunting High And Low album live. But their follow-up album Scoundrell Days is probably my favorite album of the 1980s ever. Take 45 minutes to listen to the whole album front to back on a good stereo, and marvel at the beauty they created. Most notably Manhattan Skyline and The Soft rains Of April, along with the opening track Scoundrell Days, which was never a single. To this day, they play seven, sometimes eight songs from this album alone in each of their concert sets. Even last year when one part of the concert was Hunting High and Low, seven of the songs of the other concert part were from Scoundrell Days.
Professor, you’re the best. This is truly one of the best songs of the 80’s. And the video…hands down my favorite music video. I remember when it came on MTV and I was mesmerized! Thank you for bringing it all back ❤
This is probably my favourite segment you've ever done, POR. Thank you!
One of my favourite musical memories from the 80s was watching A-ha perform on the 1986 Grammy awards. It's a great clip you can watch on TH-cam. I distinctly remember the camera zooming in on the white glove on the keyboard. Ah, the 80’s ❤
I remember seeing A-ha play this on Solid Gold…WOW was 1985 the most incredible year!
@@LeeHawkinsPhoto a fantastic year! And we were too young to truly appreciate it 🙂
The Grammy awards performance was the first time Morten sang live for a-ha. The music was playback.
Excellent video!... don´t forget Hunting high a low and many other songs..... i´m 52 and i´ve been in love with A- HA since the 80´s... Salutes from Argentina!
Thank you for this!!! A-ha always make brilliant music! Their live performances are fantastic! And Morten has a magic voice! I have listened to them since I was a child...
😊❤🎵🇳🇴
Truly one of the greatest music videos of all time without a doubt. The song is iconic for sure and signaling the end of evolving era of music.
I VIVIDLY REMEMBER hearing “Take On Me” for the very first time! I was in the 8th grade and it was a Friday night, early early Saturday morning, like 2AM. I had been asleep, with my double cassette boombox softly playing the radio 📻. I had been in a heavy sleep. I woke up to use the bathroom. After coming back, I laid back down, and just listened to the radio 📻 play tunes, until I fell back asleep. I was having trouble getting back to sleep, and was just laying there. Finally I fell into ‘Twilight sleep’, when I heard the synth riff. I woke up and turned the volume up I bit, and listened to Take On Me! Alone in the dark, save for a tiny little night light. I was blown away! I spent the whole next day listening to the radio 📻, ready to record it off the radio 📻! Finally it came on and they finally finally said the name of the band, “a-ha” I begged my mom to take me to Music+, the music store, and I bought the vinyl and the cassette! And that night a-ha became my 2nd favorite band to this very day. 2nd only to Fleetwood Mac! I have followed A-ha alll through their amazing career! I have every one of their albums, many of which I would record on a blank tape, so I wouldn’t have to worry about wearing out the bought cassette! I LUV LUV LUV A-ha! They are anything but a 'one hit wonder'. Their latest, "True North" is yet another masterpiece!!!
Excellent video! 👏 A-ha is such an incredible band. So underrated in the USA but loved and admired around the world... far far from being a one hit wonder. Superb explanation of the band and song. Nice research, you are on point. Their songs catalog is vast and superb, imho one of the best bands in the world. Also Morten is well respected on his solo albums. He is one of the best singers in the world. As they a-ha themselves said:" Take on me" has a life of its own.😊
Loved this song when it came out. Nearly 40 years later it's still iconic. Norway has a fabulous music scene and lots of amazing artists, whether the material is in English or Norwegian.
One of the most unique, most memorable, and best music videos of ALL time!! Top five, without a doubt. :-)
Thank you for showcasing this musical masterpiece from an often misunderstood and underrated band. You delivered a extremely entertaining and insightful video as always.
a-ha is my favorite band of all time! Thank you for recognizing not only their brilliance but that they are an enduring force musically and not just a one hit wonder. I finally got the chance to see them live at Radio City in April of 2022, and they were amazing. And Take on Me live was unimaginably good.
Thank you for sharing the story about your father. a-ha has been the soundtrack of my life. I appreciate the respect you gave to the band in explaining that they were not a one-hit wonder.
Take On Me is great, but their later work is what really speaks to me. Their albums in the late 90s and 2000s have such a rich composition and the lyrics are exceptional. Yes, most Americans will only know Take On Me, but they are really missing out on A-ha's evolution of greatness! Side note: I proposed to my wife while dancing to "Angel In The Snow" on a beach in Brazil.
❤
A-ha has an INCREDIBLE catalog. If you haven't already, do yourself a huge favor and give them a deep dive ❤
I really love Dark is the Night from the 90s and Stay on these Roads live at the 2015 Nobel Peace concert. Just love these guys!
That's right!
Their performance after the terrible atrocity in Norway was very moving.
I need to hone my 10,000 hours with them.
100% agree as I have most of their albums.
Probabl my #1 favorite song of the 80s. From the intro, to the end, Take On Me gives me a euphoric feeling! It still has the power to "possess" me and make my body involuntarily move to the beat. I consider Take On Me as the main soundtrack of my youth! Thank you A-HA!
I’m Brazilian, and in no way they are a one-hit wonder there. The first three albums are absolutely perfect and basically all of the songs were hits in Brazil.
Comentei isso também! Americano é muito _self centric_ 😂
Same in Perú.
Isso mesmo.
Primeiro videoclipe que eu vi na vida foi Touchy, no saudoso Clip Trip da Gazeta.
Go out in the streets and ask random people your age to name other A-Ha song besides Take on Me. How many of you share that sentiment? not many, hence the label "One-Hit-Wonder"
@@FOOJFOOJIYAMA A-ha has been 14 times in Brazil for concerts. It’s biggest hit here was Hunting High and Low. It indeed was successful in Brazil. Sorry, the world is not the US alone and it’s not measured by it.
Thank you for recognizing a-ha. I have been a fan since the beginning and have at least 8 of their studio releases. I’m just glad you somewhat confirmed my sanity for being a fan of their music. Keep up your fantastic videos, you are quite the knowledgeable music fan. Thank you!
Many tears shed while listening to “take on me”. A total 80’s heart break / love song
I'm brazilian and i must say it surprises me that people call them One-hit-wonder, so many great hits.
É nois! Canto hunting high and low até hj aos 42 anos de idade
Including a James Bond title song...
I’ve always had a soft spot for this song. I am a vocals person and I just love his voice. The video was great as well. Excited to hear details about the band. I had no idea. I always wondered why they weren’t more popular.
They WERE more popular...
A-ha, my first love.
Hunting High and Low was my first album I ever bought aged 7, and I still listen to it now. I was lucky enough to see them live in 2010 on their “Ending on a High Note” tour, and they were absolutely phenomenal.
Pure class, even nearly 40 years later.
Remember listening to this song for the first time in college I was doing my normal run around campus this song just jilted me into full throttle run and dance I was absolutely instantly taken with it !!!! Fantastic and vivid memory !!!❤
_"How Morten Harket wasn't the biggest pin-up of the 80's is beyond me"_ - In many countries - like the UK - he was. For a few years at least, he was a George Michael / John Taylor level pin-up. I completely agree about Sun being a truly terrific follow-up. In the UK it was a bigger hit than Take On Me (Take got to #2 Sun got to #1).
He was certainly a pinup in our house (in country Australia). I still have the posters from Magazines like Smash Hits. Don’t tell my sisters I’m in possession of the favourite Aha poster!
@@helenmcdonald2737 lol, that made me chuckle
Here in Brazil A-ha was huge. Many of their songs were a hit around here (Take On Me, Hunting High and Low, You Are The One, Touchy, Stay on These Roads). Morten was a huge sex symbol amongst women at the time (late 80s-early 90s).
Oh hell yeah - US, here. One of my friends had an A-ha poster on her ceiling... Though personally, I loved Mags.🥰
I kinda still prefer "Crying in the Rain"
I enjoyed your story about disappointment, the cassette, and your Dad. Thanks, Prof.♥️
Same can be said about Madness. Always seen as a 1 hit wonder in America with Our House but over in the UK they are one of the biggest selling 80s Artists.
This song "Take on me" is a huge " A-ha" moment! Lures you in, grabs your imagination and heart and just won't let go! It's a vocal and visual masterpiece! Just love it from start to finish! Thank you professor for this in depth and fascinating look into this 80's gem!! ❤
This was beautiful. Thank you, Professor!
That song defined my youth. And, their discography lives on in my library. One of the 80´s top ten bands. America never understood a-ha like the rest of the world has. Scoundrel Days is a gem. One of the best follow-up albums to what is a pop masterpiece: Hunting High and Low.
A-ha is my favorite band of all time! I finally saw them live last year and met Magne and Päl, they where amazing! A dream come true!
I feel as though the music video has always been one of the best ever made. The song itself seems to get bigger as time goes on. This is one of my favorites from my childhood and I am happy to see multiple generations get a chance to experience it and enjoy it.
My family calls this song Pipe Wrench Fight after watching a video with the lyrics changed to reflect the action in the video.
You are absolutely right.
I agree. The video was groundbreaking at the time. The song was so catchy that it was unforgettable.
The video is what truly hooked me, there was nothing like it all that mix of real & drawn. The vocals and the synthesizer are both incredible, for me its "bubble gum" pop at its finest ! Being 16 when it hit almost every girl in school was crazy for it and being girls crazy meant I heard it a lot ....lol My daughters were blown away at 4 & 5 when I first showed them the video, in fact was only a couple days ago I heard it blasting from my daughters room :)
It’s almost like a cartoon coming to life.
That’s so awesome! ❤
I got their vinyl for Christmas 85 and literally played it continuously. I remember spending big on a ‘metal’ cassette, getting every bit of dust off it that I could see and taping it so I could listen on my Walkman as well. They are one of my all time favourite bands, every single album in regular random rotation. Great video Adam!
The algorithm gods finally brought your channel to me a couple of weeks ago, and I have been binge watching ever since. Thank you SO much for your incredible work. Your thoughtful reflections and impeccable presentation allow me to swim about in a warm pool of nostalgia, and leaving me with a smile every time. In the early 80’s I interned at a local radio station for a couple of years, where my love for the music of the day gleefully turned into a full blown obsession. I moved around a lot in those days, and I could leave behind any of my material possessions to make moving easier, apart my numerous milk crates full of hundreds and hundreds of albums. Every episode of your show brings me back to those milk crates, those album covers, and the decidedly wacky, neon-colored, adventurous years that made me who I am today. So, yeah, apologies for the ramble…just really, thank you for all you do. ✨
Great song. I'm just 3 weeks older than Morten. I wish I could sing as well as he still can at 63. I remember when it first came out, and how Morten just kept singing higher and higher. Just when you thought he couldn't go higher, he did. Amazing.
Thanks for covering A-Ha! "Hunting High and Low" is one of my favorite albums of all time. I love almost every song on it and I'll always remember it as the album that got me through some rough times in high school. It's sad that songs like "Living a Boy's Adventure Tale", "Here I Stand and Face the Rain" and "Hunting High and Low" didn't receive more attention in the USA. Maybe those songs weren't upbeat enough. I'll still always enjoy them no matter what.
I just found your channel, and you're making me fall back in love with some of childhood favorites again. And I want every t-shirt you own, too.
welcome aboard. The ride is amazing for sure.
It was a real mind-blower to hear this song the first time. It’s musically kinda sophisticated. A bit classical. Totally aesthetic. And Harkett does the impossible with his voice and that melody-and no auto tune.
No need to apologise for the authenticity and candour of your childhood memories. Those of us who're children in the 80's, it means a lot that you shared it and it felt emotional. RIP to your dad, it's amazing what seems like a little gesture can lead to lasting memories as we grow older. Memories that we cherish. Love your videos!
It seems like literally *everyone* knows this song within like two seconds of the opening percussion. It is truly iconic.
****YES!!!!! It was the most magical song of the 80's!!!! I was captivated by the song, the video and crushed on Morton soooo hard!! He was plastered all over my walls and I just adored everything about him. He was in my top 3 at the time - Simon LeBon and Michael Jackson were stiff competion....but Morton won out with his look for sure!! Thanks for this.....Iconic, Amazing, Timeless and Always ASTOUNDING!!!!!!***
I discovered A-ha in 1991 when they started broadcasting MTV in the USSR, then I found their album among of my friend's cassettes, that was "East of the Sun, West of the Moon", and I listened to it for hundreds of times. On the top of all, in 2004 I won a ticket for their concert in Novosibirsk with the radio "Europa Plus", and I feel extremely lucky to have attended that and seen them and listened to them live...
Fuck Russia.
A-ha is me of the greatest bands in the world! Morten has the voice of an angel. He can sing anything. Paul and Magne’s songwriting is unparalleled.