This Week's Smash Hit: Take On Me - A-ha

I always say that the Scandinavians make one of the best music in the world. They have the talent in their genes for ages. Aaand the legendary A-ha is the living proof since 1984!

When they first recorded and released Take On Me back in 1984 the result wasn't so bright because the song sounded like an unfinished demo, it didn't chart anywhere. So they've got back in the studio and worked on the track again and finally re-released it in  1985 with probably the most iconic video in the music scene ever.

Written by the entire members of the group Magne Furuholmen, Morten Harket and Pal Waaktaar with the famous Linn Drum Machine.


VIDEO 
The video was taken at Kim's Cafe (now called Savoy Cafe) in London in sixteen weeks because the video included sketch drawing animation scenes which made the video iconic and ahead of its time. It made A-ha win 6 awards at the 1986 MTV Video Music Awards including Best New Artist in a Video, Best Concept Video, Most Experimental Video, Best Direction in a Video, Best Special Effects in a Video, and Viewer's Choice.

TRACK LIST:

12'' Maxi Single (1985) :

A Side

1) Take On Me (Extended Version)

B Side

1) Love Is Reason

2) Take On Me (Single Version)

7'' Single (1985) : 

A Side

1) Take On Me (Single Version)

B Side

1) Love Is Reason

Record Store Day 30th Anniversary 7'' Picture Disc: 

A Side

1) Take On Me

B Side (AA Side)

1) Take On Me (Live)

EU 12'' (920 336-0)

EU 12'' Back

EU 12'' Side A 

EU 12'' Side B 

EU 7'' (929 006-7)

EU 7'' Back

EU 7'' Side A 

EU 7'' Side B

30th Year Anniversary Picture Disc US 7'' (R7 547285) Side A 

30th Year Anniversary Picture Disc US 7'' Side B

This Week's Smash Hit: True Blue - Madonna

It's been exactly 30 years this year since Madonna gave us her best ever. To me, the most qualified and amazing album she's ever done. True Blue. After releasing her then sensational album Like A Virgin, Madonna gained herself an edgy image but with True Blue she's attepmted to give a girl-next door image with the theme of the album. Unlike her previous album Like A Virgin, she wrote all the songs on her own, inspired by her then husband Sean Penn (she's dedicated the album to him) and her experiences. The album talks about her wanting to keep her child and believing in his lover (Papa Don't Preach), wanting her lover to opening up to her (Open Your Heart), personal worries and fears which leads to one of her most brilliand and personal ballad (Live To Tell), enjoying herself (Where's The Party & Love Makes The World Go Round and true love (True Blue).

Released on 30 June 1986, True Blue became #1 in the USA, UK, Australia, New Zealand and all around Europe, giving her first appearance on Guiness Book Of World Records by selling 25 million records worldwide.

On the cover, we see the queen on the profile posing fiercely with her bleached short hair as she holds her head up against the blue background. The image fastly became one of her most iconic images throughout her career. In the US the artwork didn't include her name and title but they've added the title and her name so they didn't take a chance with her popularity in Europe. On the innersleeve, it reads ''This album is dedicated to my husband, the coolest guy in the universe'' to dedicate the album to her then husband Sean Penn.

The album features my most favourite Madonna song ever ''White Heat'' along with Open Your Heart, True Blue & Live To Tell. With the song White Heat including famous lines of James Cagney from the 1949 movie White Heat, the song is one of the most creative and iconic songs that she's ever done by paying tribute to the good times of Hollywood and proving people that a pop song can be edgy, creative and decent.


TRACKLIST

1) Papa Don't Preach
2) Open Your Heart
3) White Heat
4) Live To Tell
5) Where's The Party
6) True Blue
7) La Isla Bonita
8) Jimmy Jimmy
9) Love Makes The World Go Round

EU LP (925 442-1)

EU LP Back

EU LP Inner Sleeve Front

EU LP Inner Sleeve Back

EU LP Side A

EU LP Side B

This Week's Smash Hit: Kylie - Kylie Minogue

ABOUT KYLIE

No one could ever argue with me about what's the best and most successful debut album in the world. With over 6 milion copies sold worldwide, Kylie was the one and only Minogue's debut album on the 4th of July 1988. Produced by the famous hit producing trio Stock, Aitken & Waterman, Kylie lasts only more than thirty minutes. Although it's short length (35:22), Kylie has a strong dance-pop and synth-pop sound and reflects the brilliance of the 80s perfectly.

Already a big star in Australia with the soap opera Neighbours as Charlene, Kylie performed the big hit of the 60s, Locomotion, everybody was moved by her voice and performance. So she's decided to team with Mushroom Records of Australia and recorded the song and released on July 1988. It became a massive hit in her native OZ easily and launched her singing career. After the success of Locomotion, Kylie wanted to record a new song with Stock, Aitken & Waterman and had an appointment in their studio in London. While she was in the lobby of PWL Records, the trio had already forgot that they've had an appointment with her and they needed to give her something and when Matt Aitken told Pete Waterman that ''There's a girl called Kylie flew here from Australia this morning and she needs something from us.'' Pete replied him ''She should be so lucky! Wait! We can go with that. Change it to I Should Be So Lucky!) and  they wrote one of her most known and loved song I Should Be So Lucky less than thirty minutes with Kylie repeating the word Lucky more than 60 times in a three minute song. Released on 29 December 1987 as the first single of her first studio album Kylie, I Should Be So Lucky debuted at #1 in the UK, Australia, Finland, Germany, Hong Kong, Ireland, Japan and Switzerland and quickly became one of Kylie Minogue's signature songs.

The cover of the album features Kylie smiling and wearing her iconic hat as the girl-next door image she's represented on Neighbours.Smiley-Kylie was introduced to world with her big hair, big hat, muslin dress that she wore on the video of ''Lucky''.

During the Kylie era, Minogue released 6 singles to promote the record, one of them being the re-recorded version of her very first single Locomotion.  Every single release was a top ten hit in her native OZ, UK and around Europe.


TRACKLIST

1) I Should Be So Lucky
2) The Loco-Motion
3) Je Ne Sais Pas Pourquoi
4) It's No Secret
5) Got To Be Certain
6) Turn It Into Love
7) I Miss You
8) I'll Still Be Loving You
9) Look My Way
10) Love At First Sight

UK LP (HF 3)

UK LP Back

UK LP Inner Sleeve Front

UK LP Inner Sleeve Back

UK LP Side A

UK LP Side B

UK Cd (HFCD 3)

UK Cd Back

UK Cd

US Cd (9 24195-2)

US Cd Back

US Cd

UK Cassette (HFC 3), Turkish Cassette (066)

My Very First Pick: Close - Kim Wilde

ABOUT CLOSE

Close was released by Kim Wilde on the 1st of June 1988 as her sixth studio album. Produced by her brother Ricky Wilde & Tony Swain the album was her most well ballanced album with pop, ballad and rock sounds. The songs were concentrated on love (Hey Mr. Heartache, Four Letter Word, Love In The Natural Way, Love's A No, Lucky Guy), what's going on around the world (Stone, European Soul) and her nephew coming into her life (You Came). Promoting the album, its singles and videos as being an opening act on Michael Jackson's Bad World Tour, Close sold over 2 million copies worldwide, making it her best-selling album of her entire career. Many critics praised the album with its successful producing while some critics finding the album sounding similar to Bananarama's famous album WOW which was produced by the well known producers Stock, Aitken & Waterman. Other than that critics gave the album such favorable reviews with the success of the album and its singles.

TRACKLIST: 

1) Hey Mr. Heartache

2) You Came

3) Four Letter Word

4) Love In The Natural Way

5) Love's A No

6) Never Trust A Stranger

7) You'll Be The One Who'll Lose

8) European Soul

9) Stone

10) Lucky Guy

SINGLES

1) Hey Mr. Heartache, released on 18th of April 1988 in the UK & Europe; Heartache featured the vocals of Junior Giscombe whom worked with Kim on her previous album Another Step. Heartache wasn't a big hit in her native country, debuting at #31 although it was successful in Norway (#3), Sweden (#6) & Italy (#7)

2) You Came, released on the 4th of July 1988, was the biggest selling of Kim Wilde. Charting #3 in the UK, #1 in Denmark and #3 in Irelan, You Came showed a major success all around the UK & Europe. It was written with Kim Wilde and her brother about the birth of Marty. 

3) Never Trust A Stranger, released on 19 September 1988 it was her 3rd single off the album. It was another big hit around the UK & Europe. With its Hi-NRG sound Never Trust A Stranger is one of my favourite tracks of Kim Wilde. 

4) Four Letter Word, released on 21 November 1988. It was another hit in the UK & Europe as a naive love ballad. It became her third top ten hit in the UK from her album Close. 

5) Love In The Natural Way, released on 20 February 1989 it was her last release in the 80 which she was one of the biggest selling artists then. Although it was produced very well and promoted it only charted in the UK & Ireland. Love In The Natural Way was also the final release from the album Close.

EU LP (255 588-1)

EU LP Back

EU LP Inner Sleeve Front

EU LP Inner Sleeve Back

EU LP Side A 

EU LP Side B