“Take on Me” by A-ha, Friday, April 6, 2022

The music, the legend, the meme. Today we take on A-ha’s 1985 summer classic, “Take on Me.”A-ha is a Norwegian band. Their dream was to get famous in the UK before sweeping the world. To do this, like other European bands and musicians, the band decided to record all of their songs in English. Getting a massive hit like “Take on Me,” though took persistent marketing. The song went to #3 in Norway before the band re-recorded it and released the single internationally. But the band’s iconic music video is the reason the song topped the Billboard Hot 100 and went to #1 in 12 other countries.

TODAY’S ANOTHER DAY TO FIND YOU. The guitar riff on “Everybody Wants to Rule the World” is perhaps a close second to the synth and drum opening of “Take on Me” for emerging the listener in the ‘80s. What I didn’t realize today when I was enjoying this song is how young the band was. I often think of bands that existed before my time as being forever old. And with today’s song’s heyday a whole two years before my birth, I had some idea that the boys in A-ha were just a bunch of proper Europeans who played music to be enjoyed in the grocery store and who influenced The Weeknd. “Take on Me,” though was the band’s first hit, whereas I had assumed that the band had tried to make it years before in Norway. The original hit lacks the production that producer Alan Tarney brought to the single that would become the international hit. The original music video could be described as a typical cheesy ‘80s video, the band giving off a youthful, subtle sexuality with lead singer Morten Harket in ripped jeans and a ripped shirt. So many of the ‘80s classics have a “so bad, it’s good” music video. However, the band’s re-shot music video, directed by Steve Barron, sets A-ha apart from the cringy days of MTV and puts them on the same level s Michael Jackson.

I’LL BE STUMBLING AWAY. Years ago, I was surprised to find out that A-ha had a large discography. On an episode of Hit Parade, host Chris Molanphy explained the debate as to whether or not A-ha can be classified as a one-hit wonder. The band had other singles released in the US, but few remember them and they don’t receive much radio play on Classic Rock or Oldies stations. But in the their large discography, besides the first track on their debut record Hunting High and Low, was their 2005 record Analogue. I was impressed with how the band could continue to reinvent themselves and make music that sounded modern and relevant without being gimmicky. Back in 1985, though, I realized today that “Take on Me” is practically teen pop. The synth-wave in 1985 was cool when everyone was doing it, whether New Wave-post punkers to Wham! Even Bruce Springsteen’s music started to incorporated synths. But A-ha certainly fits in with teen pop. A-ha certainly had their 15 minutes of fame, and the trio seems to appreciate that their music got as far as it did. There’s a three-part video series I watched on YouTube to get much of the information for this post. I was impressed by how young the band still looks considering that this song was released thirty eight years ago. Maybe because the band wasn’t huge for a long time preserved the members from a prolonged rock ‘n’ roll lifestyle. Maybe it’s those good Norwegian genes. But either way, don’t let “Take on Me” be the only A-ha song stuck in your head. It’s an excellent song, but they have others!

Read “Take on Me” on Genius.