Released: June 12, 2009

Songwriter: Pål Waaktaar-Savoy Magne Furuholmen

Producer: Mark Saunders ​a-ha Erik Ljunggren Steve Osborne

You search your mind
That’s what it’s there for
Check all the whys
And all the wherefores
In your mind
You’re tall and brave
Riding the crest
Of a high and beautiful wave

You make your movements known
And where you want to be
And everybody knows
That’s how it’s got to be
In the sheltered morning sun
In the sheltered morning sun

Internally
You make your own rules
You’ll have excuses
The ones that you choose
In the end
You deem unsafe
Riding the crest
Of a high and beautiful wave

You make your movements known
And where you want to be
And everybody knows
That’s how it’s got to be
In the sheltered morning sun
In the sheltered morning sun

There comes a time
You don’t even know what’s missing
Some sugar to make the pill go down
You need a line
A push in the right direction
Some sugar to make the pill go down

True
True to form
True to pre-
Existing norms
Truly wasted
At a rave
Riding the crest
Of a high and beautiful wave
Riding the crest
Of a high and beautiful wave

You make your movements known
And where you want to be
And everybody knows
That’s how it’s got to be
In the sheltered morning sun
In the sheltered morning sun
In the sheltered morning sun
In the sheltered morning sun
In the sheltered morning sun

​a-ha

A-ha is a Norweigian synth pop group formed in 1982. All ten of their studio albums have either reached #1 or #2 in Norway – the first three also reaching the top 10 in several countries across Europe – with a total of over 35 million sold worldwide. They became a ‘teen pin-up band’ and were followed by screaming, enthusiastic fans. In 2012, all three members were appointed to knighthood in Norway for their contributions to music.

Frontman Morten Harket was lured away from the blues/soul group Soldier Blue in 1982 by keyboardist Magne Furuholmen to join his band with guitarist Paul Waaktaar. When Harket saw a song in Waaktaar’s notebook that was going to be titled either “a-ha” or “A-hem”, he suggested naming the band “a-ha”.

A year later, the band released their debut single “Take On Me” in 1984 to huge success in Norway. However, when the song was re-recorded and re-released alongside their debut album Hunting High And Low in the summer of 1985 it achieved massive international success, reaching #1 in eleven countries. Its success was definitely aided by its groundbreaking, award-winning music video of pencil-sketch animation combined with live-action shots.