Think about the ’80s and images of shoulder pads, John Hughes movies, and hairspray appear. But talk about ’80s music, and one sound immediately comes to mind. It’s that astonishing falsetto in a-ha’s era-defining hit single, “Take On Me.”
You’re likely side-stepping and singing that infectious synth melody right now. The song spent 27 weeks on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1985. Fueled by an iconic pencil-sketch music video, the upbeat single danced its way to No. 1 in 12 countries. “Take On Me” continues to conjure nostalgia and beget parody.
Any mere mention of the tune evokes the neon brightness of its time. We have the Roland JUNO-60 to thank for that. Still, as quick as its rise to prominence seemed, the tale of “Take On Me” goes deeper than you’d think.
The song’s first iteration dates back to a-ha keyboardist Magne Furuholmen’s teenage years. According to a 2014 interview, Furuholmen first plucked the perky synth riff when he was 15 years old. He hung on to it. When he started the band Bridges with future a-ha member Pål Waaktaar, the funky jingle nearly got the axe.
"The image of Morten Harket throwing himself against a wall, jumping between flesh and cartoon, is as memorable as the bumblebee synth."
“We thought it sounded a bit like ‘chewing gum,’” Furuholmen said. The group considered itself “more like a ’60s psychedelic band at the time.” To their ears, “the whole synth riff sounded like a ‘Juicy Fruit’ commercial.” As Furuholmen recalls, “It was a bit ‘outside’ of where we were, musically.”
Bridges took a bet and named the song “Miss Eerie.” Early recordings of the discarded draft exist on YouTube. The guitar-driven tune layers crashing cymbals over that familiar melody, yet the chorus is different. It’s a disorienting listen, and it would be three years until “Take On Me” took form.
After the Bridges’ psych-punk project eventually disbanded, Furuholmen and Waaktaar stayed together. The pair formed a new group called a-ha with singer Morten Harket. His fresh lyrics and three-octave vocal range unlocked the final piece of the puzzle.
Following an intermittent title of “Lesson One,” the “Take On Me” demo wowed Warner Brothers. As a result, they signed the band and invested as much into the single as possible. This was incredibly fortuitous. But it would take another year of recordings and three releases before it found success.
An initial session with producer Tony Mansfield disappointed both the band and label. The track felt too inorganic, and its release barely moved the needle. They went back for a redo with Alan Tarney, using a JUNO-60 in his studio to give the song a coda and its classic “charm.”
“Both Pål and Mags were very good instrumentalists,” Tarney said in a 2011 interview. “Mags was an excellent keyboard player. It was fantastic hearing them play at the same time. They were so energetic. A lot of the stuff that I needed to control came through the JUNO…it was a very atmospheric, live recording.”
With that, a fan-favorite was born. However, the legend was not yet sealed. The second release still flopped. The third time was the charm thanks to an innovative music video by director Steve Barron. With cutting-edge rotoscope technology, animators traced each frame, creating its signature sketchbook style.
"They went back for a redo with Alan Tarney, using a JUNO-60 in his studio to give the song a coda and its classic 'charm.'"
It took six months to complete, but no time at all for the single to take over MTV and top international charts. Fans loved the comic book story, and the love between the leads was real. Harket played opposite his then-girlfriend Bunty Bailey. The image of him throwing himself against a wall, jumping between flesh and cartoon, is as memorable as the bumblebee synth line.
The clip took home six MTV Video Music Awards and has 1.2 billion views on YouTube to date. Both Pitbull and Christina Aguilera have sampled “Take On Me.” Weezer and around 80 others covered the song. It’s the sound of a generation: a true classic. The tale of “Take On Me” is also a perfect example of the old saying: If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again.
