It just seems that some want to be able to tell you all their favorite bands are so obscure that even the band members themselves don't know about their own band. I discovered Simple Minds maybe 3 years before they broke over huge and was so happy for them and didn't mind sharing. I love Coldplay, when our daughter was born she developed pneumonia and was in the ICU for a week. We refused to leave the hospital and I made some regrettable threats involving getting in a bomber and paying them a visit in order to keep them from tossing us out because I knew it was their lack of initiative that led to what was happening. They let my wife stay in a bed and I slept in this awful chair for a week but while getting some magazines for us I picked up a copy of Q where they named "Parachutes" one of their top albums, I picked up the disc and I've been a massive fan ever since. I love Ghost Stories and like you, I think "Speed of Sound" is fantastic, one of the best singles of that decade. I just wonder how I would have discovered them had all those events not happened that way and kudos to them for all the kind words they've had for A-ha over the years. Like U2 and Simple Minds, Coldplay doesn't deserve the loathing you see on display in here.
They also played some songs from the first album not featured in any of the other post 2000 tours. Dream Myself Alive, And You Tell Me + Train Of Thought. Loved them!
Never been too much of a fan of videos with the members just miming it out but these are about as well done as a video in that context could be. The masters at work.
Any thoughts regarding the choice of singles? Foot Of The Mountain is an obvious first single but then? Did Nothing Is Keeping You Here and Shadowside get a lot of airplay in key markets Germany, Norway and the UK? Many fans, me included, seem to prefer Bandstand, Sunny Mystery and Riding The Crest. All three singles are more mainstream and less retro in the production, was that the reason?
I agree with you 100%. At some point in the mid-'00s, it became very hip to trash Coldplay but I never bought into that. Loved them from the second my friend played me the opening notes of an import single for "Shiver" and while I'm not as crazy about the new album as I was some of their past releases, I still listen to them quite regularly, and they are a fantastic live band. I remember in 2002 when Jim Kerr blogged about the wonderful guitar that opens "In My Place," and yes, Chris Martin has repeatedly named a-ha as an influence!
Those would have been my choice, I loved Bandstand and it may be my favorite track......very close with Sunny Mystery. Interesting info about the cover art, I really appreciate the artistic theme of this album.
Wow, I have been out of circulation for a couple of weeks and I guess summer has moved on. Or at least this thread has. Too late I think to go over the albums that I have missed in detail but a few brief thoughts. How Can I Sleep.... I picked up the double disc version of this cheap in Germany a few years ago. I haven't played it often but i do not remember being bothered by the defects that other people have identified. I like it and cherish it in particular for introducing me to Forever Not Yours which is, for me, one of the band's towering achievements. As I have previously mentioned, I bought the albums between MEMS and Foot of the Mountain out of order and only caught up with the release schedule with the latter. Wonderful cover art. My favourite on any a-ha album. Analogue. Once again it is not an album that I am as familiar with as some of the others but I listened to it again a couple of weeks ago and it seems to me to be a strong piece of work. Whatever the circumstances of its making, it is consistently full of memorable songs and imaginative arrangements and the title track is one of their most effective earworms. Foot Of The Mountain was a return to their earlier sound that worked brilliantly. It was shocking how quickly the end of the band arrived after this. There seemed no hint of it when the record was released. Three years ago I took an extended trip to Norway. I flew into Bergen on a beautiful snowy day in early March and as I had some hours to kill before travelling on that night, I took a trip up the Floyen mountain on the Floibanen. The view of the snow covered city was stunningly lovely and the knee deep snow at the top made it a perfectly peaceful. almost deserted playground with just the sound of the birds for company. The title song of Foot Of The Mountain made a perfect soundtrack to the video footage of my trip.
Before that we got the "25" 2-disc compilation. Maybe not so much to discuss except the different edits, remixes, the artwork and the final single.
I love, love, love that Butterfly video. It's obviously designed to push the emotional buttons of fans, and I fell for it. I love the archival concert footage where it looks like Morten is looking into the future and seeing his 2010 self... SO AWESOME. And then at 2:38 when Morten suddenly stops singing and the band huddles up and just stares at one another... whoah. There is a lot of history and emotion and yes, even baggage there. I know that moment was "staged," but wow, it speaks volumes. What a great video. I could do without the very end, when they actually TURN INTO BUTTERFLIES and fly away, but everything leading up to that is aces.
25 2010 A-ha's last compilation released in the fall of 2010 contained all 33 of the band's singles with the exception of 6 promotional versions of "I Wish I Cared", "Birthright", "Waiting for Her", "Lie Down in Darkness" and "Love Is Reason". The Japanese release contains a different but shorter track list but with 7 songs not offered on the international version including 3 singles selected by the Japanese public. The release also contains "Butterfly, Butterfly (The Last Hurrah) which was to be the band's very last studio recording together. The compilation managed several top 20 chart positions around the world including hitting number 2 in Germany and France. The compilation includes several mixes of songs that were previously fairly hard to find for collectors. Personally, it's a very good by the numbers compilation where some of the radio edits are actually better than the album versions. I would consider this among the top 10 "Best of" releases by anyone in pop music. From Wikipedia: CD 1[2] "Take on Me" – 3:49 from Hunting High and Low "The Blue Sky" – 2:36 from Hunting High and Low "The Sun Always Shines on T.V." – 5:08 from Hunting High and Low "Train of Thought" (7" remix) – 4:15 from Hunting High and Low "Hunting High and Low" (7" remix) – 3:48 from Hunting High and Low "I've Been Losing You" – 4:26 from Scoundrel Days "Scoundrel Days" – 4:00 from Scoundrel Days "The Swing of Things" – 4:15 from Scoundrel Days "Cry Wolf" – 4:06 from Scoundrel Days "Manhattan Skyline" (edit version) – 4:21 from Scoundrel Days "The Living Daylights" – 4:12 from Stay on These Roads "Stay on These Roads" – 4:46 from Stay on These Roads "Touchy!" (UK DJ edit) – 3:38 from Stay on These Roads "There's Never a Forever Thing" – 2:51 from Stay on These Roads "You Are the One" (7" remix) – 3:50 from Stay on These Roads "The Blood That Moves the Body" (Two-Time Gun Remix) – 4:08 from Stay on These Roads "Crying in the Rain" – 4:21 from East of the Sun, West of the Moon "Early Morning" – 2:59 from East of the Sun, West of the Moon "Slender Frame" – 3:43 from East of the Sun, West of the Moon "I Call Your Name" (Special DJ Edit) – 4:29 from East of the Sun, West of the Moon CD 2 "Move to Memphis" (single version) – 4:17 from Headlines and Deadlines - The Hits of A-ha "Dark is the Night for All" – 3:45 from Memorial Beach "Cold as Stone" (Remix) – 4:33 from Memorial Beach "Angel in the Snow" (edit) – 4:07 from Memorial Beach "Shapes That Go Together" – 4:14 Single release only "Summer Moved On" – 4:37 from Minor Earth Major Sky "Minor Earth Major Sky" (Niven's Radio Edit) – 4:02 from Minor Earth Major Sky "The Sun Never Shone That Day" (radio edit) – 3:31 from Minor Earth Major Sky "Velvet" – 4:20 from Minor Earth Major Sky "Forever Not Yours" – 4:06 from Lifelines "Lifelines" – 4:17 from Lifelines "Did Anyone Approach You?" – 4:11 from Lifelines "Celice" – 3:40 from Analogue "Analogue" – 3:49 from Analogue "Cosy Prisons" (Radio Mix) – 3:58 from Analogue "Foot of the Mountain" – 3:57 from Foot of the Mountain "Nothing Is Keeping You Here" (single remix) – 3:05 from Foot of the Mountain "Shadowside" (single edit) – 3:31 from Foot of the Mountain "Butterfly, Butterfly (The Last Hurrah)" – 4:10 Previously unreleased "Hunting High and Low" (slow version demo) – 3:45 (German Amazon.de bonus track)[3] "Butterfly, Butterfly (The Last Hurrah)" (Steve Osborne Version) – 4:28 (Canadian iTunes Deluxe Edition bonus track)
How do you know that didn't actually happen and the director just decided "Cat's out of the bag now, may as well print it."
Ok, one more thing. At around 2:45 in the video (or 2:52 in the album version), when Morten sings "You don't have to mean what you saaaaay..." does anyone else hear AUTOTUNE? I feel like there's some sort of digital enhancement happening on that final word...
I bought 25 mainly for the dvd of video clips. It's not perfect and has some mastering errors, though. Especially weird is the US Armed Forces advert stuck in between 2 clips! It should be noted for US fans this is the first time any of their videos have been available in the NTSC format as well. DVD <disc 3> Track Listing : 1. Take On Me 2. The Sun Always Shines On TV 3. I've Been Losing You 4. Manhattan Skyline 5. Stay On These Roads 6. Crying In The Rain 7. Dark Is The Night For All 8. Move To Memphis 9. Shapes That Go Together 10. Angel In The Snow 11. Summer Moved On 12. Minor Earth Major Sky 13. Lifelines 14. Did Anyone Approach You 15. Velvet 16. "Butterfly, Butterfly [The Last Hurrah]" 17. Take On Me <original version>
Also, the Steve Osborne remix of Butterfly is worth seeking out. Strangely, it has more guitar/bass/live drums in the mix and sounds less electronic than the album version. It also has different lyrics in a couple places.
Oh I love Butterfly video/song too. It combines so well the joy and pride of being able to summarise things and the seriousness and tinge of sadness of something irrevocably lost. The looking deep in the eyes moment was quite a gasp-moment the first time I saw it. I too could do without the butterflies in the end though. It's a great classic Waaktaar song, one of the best of Pål's later songs. The lyrics feels like the song was written very fast and intuitive, what he first felt after the decision was made. I love when Pål opens up and writes like this and don't overwork things. Not my favourite a-ha sound production-wise, but hey with such a good last song I can live with it. The unplugged version really shows the quality, and the melancholy essence, of the song. I don't think one can exaggerate how important the compilation is for the a-ha legacy and them reaching a new (young) audience.
Definitely Autotune. Not very subtle and not an effect that brings a plus-factor to the recording. The Steve Osborne version doesn't have it and I prefer Morten's vocals on that one. Otherwise I especially noted the hesitant and somewhat fragile deliverance of the first verse on the compilation-version, a sensitive interpretation of the theme.
The Autotune definitely is not subtle, which makes me think it's an intentional production choice rather than an attempt to "fix" a vocal mistake on Morten's part. It's just strange that it shows up at that point in the song. Autotune aside, Morten's vocals on both versions of this song are fantastic. And Pal really nailed the lyrics. It's a perfect send-off.
I think we can safely assume it's deliberate or else the studio should recruite another engineer. It's not like Morten is in need of heavy autotuning. Anyway, as you say, brilliant work from both Pål and Morten, can't decide which of the two versions I prefer.
This is definitely a stellar collection. All of the singles, some rare mixes, and no glaring omissions. It's essential in just about every way. Does anyone have the Japanese edition? I'd love to hear "Out of Blue Comes Green" in remastered form and I'm wondering if anyone can comment on the sound. The booklet is great, too--all those glossy photos and the gorgeous arctic imagery. If I could add only one thing, it might be a center spread showing all of the album and single cover art in a collage or a grid. I'm a sucker for stuff like that.
Overall I think it's a strong package. The music is what counts, and with a-ha, we simply get a collection of outstanding music. My only issue with the package is that they used some single mixes and some album versions. I'm of the mindset that a greatest hits package should generally contain the single mixes, although I've had to make an "executive decision" on packages I've worked on in the past. I just would have preferred all single mixes on this one.
