Group A-ha was created in Oslo (Norway) in the early 1980s of the last century.
For many young people, this musical group has become a symbol of romance, first kisses, first love thanks to melodic songs and romantic vocals.
History of A-ha
In general, the history of this group began with two teenagers who decided to play and cover songs that were popular in the early 1970s. They were Paul Voctor and his friend Magne Furuholmen.
Soon they had the idea to create their own group, they called it Briges, and they were joined by two more absolute newcomers in music - Viggo Bondy, as well as Questin Yevanord.
Soon the leader and lead singer of A-ha, Morten Harket, appeared.
From time to time he attended the concerts of the Briges group, talked with the guys on various life topics and questions of a philosophical nature, but there was no talk of cooperation.
The musicians released the album Fakkeltog, which never gained the cherished popularity, did not receive a continuation.
After the collapse of the team, Paul and Magne decided to try their luck and went to the capital of England, but this attempt was unsuccessful.
They also invited Morten Harket to go, but he then refused and remained in Norway. Two years later, the guys still persuaded Morten to become a vocalist in a new group that they wanted to create, and he agreed.
They came up with an interesting and memorable name for the A-ha group at the same time, and they held rehearsals and meetings in the house where Paul's family lived.
In 1983, having accumulated a certain amount of music and compositions, the guys started looking for a recording studio, and after a long ordeal they signed a contract with the Warner studio.
Musical exploits of the group
In cooperation with this label, the first single Take Me On appeared, which had to be finalized and re-recorded several times.
However, the result exceeded the wildest expectations - the composition immediately took the lead in the charts in more than 30 countries. It was a success.
The video clip for this song was filmed using animation, immediately became very popular, and even to this day remains one of the masterpieces of the video industry.
The next single of the musical group was also successful, and the first album Hunting High and Low, released two years later, was released with a circulation of more than 8 million copies.
This record firmly established the status of a mega-popular group for the group and was awarded the Grammy Award.
At the same time, the musical group went on tour, to the delight of many fans in Europe and America. After the return, the next disc, Scoundrel Days, was released.
This album, of course, did not gain the popularity of its predecessor, but was a model of alternative rock style.
Decline in A-Ha's popularity
After a while, the fourth East of the Sun album, West of the Moon, appeared. This record was recognized as the best in the history of the group, but the number of sales did not confirm this.
In this album, the style of music changed - romantic songs in the electropop style were replaced by harsh and gloomy rock compositions.
During this period, the group gave many concerts, went on tour to different countries. This period was the heyday of the team. In Rio de Janeiro, the A-ha group set a record for attendance - 194 thousand spectators arrived at the concert.
Album Memorial Beach, released in 1993, became the fifth in a row. However, there was almost no attention from fans. Critics reacted rather reservedly to the disc, this was largely due to the gloomy style of the songs.
In 1994, the single Shapes That Go Together was released, and the group decided to take a break from creativity, all members tried to realize themselves in solo projects.
New wave of popularity
The group received a new round of activity in 1998, and already in 2000 a new album, Minor Earth, Major Sky, was released. It was distinguished by the freshness of the presentation, and the fans recognized in it the style of the group at its best.
In 2002, the second album after the reunion, Lifelines, was released. This collection again turned out to be quite popular, several songs again took a leading position. It was a new take-off, it seemed that everything was already sung, but the guys were able to please their fans.
In the fall of 2005, Analogue's eighth album was released, which was less successful than the previous two. But is it really important for the army of millions of fans, the "fans" were happy that their favorite group continued to release singles.
No less successful was the next collection, Foot of the Mountain. The album became the leader in sales in many countries.
It was on this wave of success that the decision was made to end the career of A-ha. On December 4, 2010, the band's farewell concert took place in Oslo.
However, many subsequent events in the life of the former members of the group led them to a reunion, and on March 25, 2015, it became known about the new start of the band's work.
In 2016, fans again saw their favorite band live as part of a big tour, at the same time they visited Russia and Ukraine. But the musicians did not stop there either, they recorded new songs and delighted their "fans" with announcements of new tours.
