a-ha “The Way We Talk” released

The Way We Talk A-ha

Writer(s): Magne Furuholmen (see lyrics here) Released: October 22, 1990 (album cut) First Charted: -- Peak: 1 DF (Click for codes to singles charts.) Sales (in millions): -- Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, 0.06 video, -- streaming

Awards: Click on award for more details.

About the Song: The new wave group a-ha formed in Norway in 1982. The trio consisted of singer Morten Harket, guitarist Paul Waaktar-Savoy, and keyboardist/guitarist Magne Furuholmen. Their 1985 debut album Hunting High and Low produced the U.S. #1 single “Take on Me” and was followed up by top-20 hit “The Sun Always Shines on TV” (despite often being said to be a one-hit wonder). Of course, those were the band’s only two top-40 hits in the U.S. However, in their native Norway, A-ha was far from a one-hit wonder. That debut album generated four top-10 hits, including the #1 songs “Take on Me” and “Train of Thought.” Their sophomore album, 1986’s Scoundrel Days, produced three more top-5 hits, including “Cry Wolf” and the #1 song “I’ve Been Losing You.” The former was the group’s only other chart entry on the Billboard Hot 100 (#50). The next album, Stay on These Roads, produced twp more #1 songs in Norway – 1987’s “The Living Daylights” (the theme song from the James Bond movie of the same name) and the title cut from the album. In 1990, East of the Sun, West of the Moon gave the band another #1 hit with their cover of the Everly Brothers’ “Crying in the Rain.” All told, a-ha has racked up nine #1 hits and another nine top-10 hits in Norway as of this post. The song from that latter album which became my favorite, however, was “The Way We Talk.” It has the lilting quality of a slow jazz number, feeling like it could noodle along for ten minutes or so, despite a mere minute-and-a-half run time. It wasn’t a single and wasn’t even sung by the band’s usual vocalist, Morten Harket, but by keyboardist and guitarist Magne Furuholmen. Those first four albums made me an a-ha fan and convinced me how criminally underappreciated they were in the United States. The showcased a bounty of shouda-been hits and above-average album cuts that won me over. East of the Sun, West of the Moon marked the moment I became hooked. I knew I was likely to buy everything they released from that point on – which I have. Resources: DMDB encyclopedia entry for A-ha Related Links: First posted 9/3/2022.