Take On Me by A-Ha
Released in 1984........and again in 1985, this song reached #1 in ten countries but not as originally recorded. In fact....I'm going to post the original version of this song so you can hear why it wasn't a hit when it was first released.
Now, after that version escaped (because, seriously, it couldn't have been intentionally released), the record company, specifically their American label, Warner Bros., wanted the song re-recorded with a new producer. Who ever insisted on that is the smartest person in the music industry. The new producer was able to see how powerful the synth lick was and featured it as the center of the song. The rest is 80's pop history.....
Well, you also have to include the instantly recognizable music video. Nearly the entire video is presented in a cartoon form by use of a technique called Rotoscoping, each frame of the video is redrawn by hand. It took sixteen weeks to produce the video. As a bit of fun trivia, the girl in the video was the lead singer's real life girlfriend at the time (I have no idea if she's still his girlfriend or not, for all I know she's married to him right now). Also, it would be criminal of me to not mention the singer, Morten Harket, and his incredible vocal range. He sings this song over two and a half octaves. Trust me, that's not an easy task but he appears to have more than enough talent. (BTW, he still sings this song and hits every note like he's not even trying, he's truly skilled)
The record company released the video to MTV and to dance clubs a month before the single was available for sale so when it was finally released, the song shot up the charts immediately. Again, who ever thought up that plan was a genius. And we thank them for that.
Please enjoy....
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