A-ha

[caja-dglh]

I did used to wonder if "The Sun Only Shines on TV" was written specifically about the airplay the Take on Me video got on MTV, compared to, well, everything else they did. I wonder if Dire Straits are similarly remembered as 'one-hit wonders' over there for "Money for Nothing", for similar reasons?

Brothers in Arms was a number one US album for over two months and nominated for album of the year at the Grammy's.

Which is a long way of saying no (I thought it had won album of the year but it had not).

[Rogin the Armchair fan]

One of the "popular" kids at my school decided that he looked like Morten, due to a passing similarity in hairstyle, and started to adjust the rest of his look to maximise the comparison. Unlike Morten, he was an absolute tool.

I had a mate at school who fashioned himself after the tits out of Bros. All the denim, dyed blonde hair and everything. He was fighting the girls off every Friday at the football club disco. When he walked in it was like the dance scene in Saturday Night Fever. I met him in a pub in my home town a few years ago, and he now looks like Johnny Vegas. Happy though.

[Benjm]

We had a local Hank Williams too, for the older generation.

[sw2borshch]

That reminds me of the Bolo Zenden lad you used to see about Middlesbrough.

[Benjm]

One of the "popular" kids at my school decided that he looked like Morten, due to a passing similarity in hairstyle, and started to adjust the rest of his look to maximise the comparison. Unlike Morten, he was an absolute tool.

[Rogin the Armchair fan]

I did used to wonder if "The Sun Only Shines on TV" was written specifically about the airplay the Take on Me video got on MTV, compared to, well, everything else they did. I wonder if Dire Straits are similarly remembered as 'one-hit wonders' over there for "Money for Nothing", for similar reasons?

[sw2borshch]

It's the same phenomenon as 'the internet' basically ignoring Spectrum/C64 etc. games in the history of computer games. It's US pop history that counts, not British/European stuff.

[sw2borshch]

And as The Sun... was a US number 20 and Cry Wolf the only other charter at 50, you can see why that might be. I was never an active fan, but they were a massive pin-up band here for a couple of years that it was 'ok' for boys to like too. I mean, they even did a Bond.

[Benjm]

I've never heard A-ha referred to as a one hit wonder. Is that a widespread misapprehension? Is it just a stealthy way of making us feel old for knowing it to be cobblers?

Edit: due to slow typing, cross post with sw2borshch's very good point

[sw2borshch]

I am guessing it's from a USian perspective?

[diggedy derek]

There was an interesting thread on a former OTFer's Facebook the other day about stuff which is wrongly referred to as a one-hit wonder. "Take On Me" is somewhere right near the top of the pile of that wrongness. It's a really famous stand-out song which loads of people remember naturally, but they released a ton of good to great records. Hunting High And Low I think had five or six solid singles alone on it.

They were still doing just fine up to their third album, and in retrospect, they're one of the first bands I listened to albums track by track as proper, in depth listening experiences.

[jameswba]

Scoundrel Days has a magnificent 1-2-3 with the title track, I've Been Losing You and The Swing of Things. Manhatten Skyline is glorious too. I loved them at the time and still go back to them.

[diggedy derek]

Amazing!

[steveeeeeeeee]

I spent a couple of hours in Morten's presence at a festival in the 90s, he'd bought drugs off my sister's mate and then sat with us, he even got an acoustic guitar out and did a few songs, all cover versions. Quite surreal, but he had a really calm vibe that helped mellow out the acid I was tripping on at the time.

[diggedy derek]

The video to "Take On Me" still looks fantastic, and I find it hard to get to the end of it without almost tearing up. It's just brilliantly done. It's one of a fairly select bunch of old music videos to have accrued over a billion views on YouTube.

[Gerontophile]

You 'guys' are the fucking best. I am in a rabbit hole that I do not mind being enveloped by. I am literally in tears. Thank you.

*And I wasn't lying earlier. I go to a specific bar, because they have a fuck you sound system, and the bassline from "Train of Thought" is a joy to behold.

[Gerontophile]

That Unplugged thing is a wee slice of fucking joy. Thank you.

*I fucking KNEW that "Sun always shines" was sa duet.

[Gerontophile]

The MTV unplugged they did is brilliant. A great example of still owning the song in an entirely different way.

Jesus Christ C. Thank you.

Man, they were so good live. ARE so good live. I've seen them 4 times, and every single time they were almost faultless.

[Gerontophile]

Tnank you Rogin. My pants have never been more fulfilled. Jonathon Ross going "No it can't be", and the others going what the fuck is this song?

[Gerontophile]

Have we done Morten Harket going on the Masked Singer, dressed as a Viking, singing "Take on Me", and NO-ONE GUESSING IT WAS HIM?!!!

What?

Seriously? (GOOGLING THE FUCK OUT OF THAT... I can't make these caps any larger. It's a thing. I't an actual thing.)

[Gerontophile]

It's like Ken from Bros - must be horrible being the one no one fancies

I love you so much right now.

[Gerontophile]

People can never remember the third one's name.

Tragic.

That's funny, cos IT"S RIGHT OVER YOUR HEAD.

[sw2borshch]

https://youtu.be/pJqNM19ueMs
I really enjoy the chorus to Touchy!

[Toby Gymshorts]

I've Been Losing You is an absolute banger.

Came in to say exactly this. A-Ha are criminally underrated.

[Nocturnal Submission]

Manhattan Skyline is a gorgeous song.