A-ha releases remastered 4K version of their iconic classic 'Take On Me', 25 years after its first release
Norwegian synthpop band A-ha has released a 4K restoration of their iconic 80s classic 'Take On Me', 25 years after the song's first release in 1984. The band had previously released two versions of the songs and two videos as well.
The second release of the song appeared on the band's debut album in 1985, 'Hunting High and Low'. The rotoscoped video for the second version of the song was directed by Steve Barron. Rotoscoping — a mix of live-action and pencil animation — was used to tell a creative love story.
A 30-second side-by-side comparison of the original and remastered videos was also released to show the difference the 4K restoration has made. The band stated that the clip was uniquely restored from the original 35mm film reels.
In a three-part docuseries that released in November, A-ha spoke about the making of 'Take On Me' — both the song and the video. Earlier this year, when President Donald Trump posted a video on Twitter that used similar rotoscoping, the band found themselves pulled into controversy.
In an interview with the Rolling Stone magazine, keyboardist and co-songwriter Magne Furuholmen said, "You want to be careful about deciding who's allowed to do what with what you put out in the world…"
He added. "We make our music for everybody. We didn't intend to make our music part of a divisive campaign and, all things equal would have preferred it not to have been.”
On its release, the hit song topped the Billboard Hot 100 charts and its video was rotated heavily on MTV in the 80s. The video previously released on YouTube in 2010 currently has over 975 million views.
If it reaches one billion views, it would become the first pop music video of the '80s and first music video by a European act to accomplish this feat.
The only other pre-2000s tracks to hit the milestone includes Guns N' Roses' 'November Rain', Nirvana's 'Smells Like Teen Spirit' and Queen's 'Bohemian Rhapsody'.