Norwegian trio A-Ha have announced a run of UK shows for 2018 including dates in Blackpool and Manchester.
The tour dates kick off in Canterbury on June 7th before reaching Doncaster and Blackpool on the 14th and 16th respectively.
7th June – Spitfire Ground, Canterbury
9th June – Yeovil Town Football Club
10th June – Cambridge United Football Club
14th June – Doncaster Rovers Football Club
16th June – Blackpool Football Club
17th June – Mowden Park, Darlington
Hailing from Oslo, A-ha took root in 1982 when keyboardist Magne Furuholmen and guitarist Pål Waaktaar-Savoy left the band Bridges to come to London and try to break into the UK’s music scene. After returning home six months later, the pair got together with vocalist Morten Harket, formerly of Souldier Blue, and started recording demos. While brainstorming Norweigan words that people could say in English, they chose the name A-ha because it was a familiar expression in any language.
The trio returned to London in 1983 and began working with producer John Ratcliff, who spotted their potential and helped get them signed to Warner Brothers. Teamed up with producer Tony Mansfield, they recorded and released the first version of their debut single Take On Me in 1984, which met with lukewarm response – and sold just 300 copies in the UK. A second version of the song that added synth-pop instrumentation was produced by Alan Tarney for their 1985 debut album Hunting High And Low.
Accompanied by a ground-breaking animated video that got worldwide exposure on MTV, Take On Me became a massive hit. The song not only reached No.2 in the UK in 1985, but also No.1 in Australia and many European countries as well as on the US Billboard Hot 100. In addition, the video went on to win six awards at the MTV Video Music Awards.
