''Scoundrel Days'' is the second studio album by Norwegian
new wave band
A-ha, released on 6 October 1986 by
Warner Bros. Records
Warner Records Inc. (formerly Warner Bros. Records Inc.) is an American record label. A subsidiary of the Warner Music Group, it is headquartered in Los Angeles, California. It was founded on March 19, 1958, as the recorded music division of the ...
. A remastered edition with additional tracks was released in 2010.
Production
''Scoundrel Days'' was the second long-player release from ''A-ha'', which was highly anticipated after the success of their first album, ''
Hunting High and Low
''Hunting High and Low'' is the debut studio album by Norwegian new wave band A-ha, released on 1 June 1985 in the United States and 28 October 1985 in the United Kingdom by Warner Bros. Records. The album was a huge commercial success, reachin ...
'' (1985), which had reached #2 in the United Kingdom's Album Chart, and number 15 in the United States'
''Billboard'' 200 in the previous year. ''Scoundrel Days'' was recorded in England in early 1986 at R.G. Jones Studio in Beulah Road in
Wimbledon
Wimbledon most often refers to:
* Wimbledon, London, a district of southwest London
* Wimbledon Championships, the oldest tennis tournament in the world and one of the four Grand Slam championships
Wimbledon may also refer to:
Places London
* ...
, South-West London. The record was produced by
Alan Tarney
Alan Tarney (born 19 November 1945) is an English record producer and musician. He was born in Northside, Workington, Cumberland, but spent his teenage years in Adelaide, Australia, where he met his songwriting and musical partner Trevor Spence ...
, who had produced the band's singles "
Take On Me
"Take On Me" is a song by the Norwegian synth-pop band A-ha. The original version, recorded in 1984 and released in October of that same year, was produced by Tony Mansfield and remixed by John Ratcliff. The 1985 international hit version was p ...
" and "
The Sun Always Shines on T.V." in the previous year, and it was engineered by Gerry Kitchingham.
[Cover sleeve production credits for ''Scoundrel Days'' (1986).]
The songs were composed by
Pal Waaktaar and
Magne Furuholmen
Magne Furuholmen (born 1 November 1962) is a Norwegian musician and visual artist. He was named Knight First Class of the Order of St. Olav by King Harald for his services to Norwegian music and his international success. Furuholmen, better know ...
; the band's vocalist
Morten Harket
Morten Harket () (born September 14, 1959) is a Norwegian vocalist and songwriter, who is the lead singer of the synthpop/rock band A-ha.
A-ha has released 10 studio albums to date, and topped the charts internationally after their breakthrough ...
did not contribute to the songwriting as he had on their first album. Waaktaar and Furuholmen also self-produced three of the record's tracks, "
I've Been Losing You", "Maybe Maybe", and "Soft Rains of April".
Yamaha DX7
The Yamaha DX7 is a synthesizer manufactured by the Yamaha Corporation from 1983 to 1989. It was the first successful digital synthesizer and is one of the best-selling synthesizers in history, selling more than 200,000 units.
In the early 1980 ...
and
Roland Juno-60
The Roland Juno-60 is an analog synthesizer manufactured by the Roland Corporation between 1982 and 1984. It followed the Juno-6, an almost identical synthesizer released months earlier. The Juno synthesizers introduced Roland's digitally contr ...
/
106 synths were used in the recording of this album, the Roland Juno 60 was used on opening of the song "Manhattan Skyline" (which is the same synth used on the "Take On Me" riff) and the Yamaha DX7 drum sound was used on the opening of "October". "Scoundrel Days" and "Swing of Things" signature sounds were obtained from a
PPG Wave
The PPG Wave is a series of synthesizers built by the German company Palm Products GmbH from 1981 to 1987.
Background
Until the early 1980s, the tonal palette of commercial synthesizers was limited to that which could be obtained by combining ...
. The drums and several other sound effects were from drawn from a
Fairlight CMI
The Fairlight CMI (short for Computer Musical Instrument) is a digital synthesizer, sampler, and digital audio workstation introduced in 1979 by Fairlight.
— with links to some Fairlight history and photos
It was based on a commercial lic ...
.
Single releases
"
I've Been Losing You" was the first single from the album. It reached number one in Norway and number eight in the United Kingdom. "I've Been Losing You" became the most commercially successful single from the album in Europe.
"
Cry Wolf" was the second single from the album. It was the most successful single from the album in the United States, where it peaked at number 14 on the
Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart, and at number 50 on the
''Billboard'' Hot 100. It was the band's last entry on the latter chart. The single reached the top 40 nearly everywhere else it was released, including top-five chartings in the United Kingdom, Poland and Ireland, reaching number two in Norway. (The lyrics "Night I left the city I dreamt of a Wolf..." are credited to Lauren Savoy whom
Pål later married).
"Maybe, Maybe" was the third single released from the album, but was released solely in Bolivia.
"
Manhattan Skyline
Manhattan Skyline is a Norwegian mathcore band based in Oslo, Norway. They are influenced by metal, hardcore, contemporary music, jazz, fusion and electronica.
After their performance at the 2005 Bodø Hardcore festival, The Faceless Masses ...
" was the forth and final single released from the long-player, reaching #13 on the United Kingdom's chart. The song was co-written by keyboardist
Magne Furuholmen
Magne Furuholmen (born 1 November 1962) is a Norwegian musician and visual artist. He was named Knight First Class of the Order of St. Olav by King Harald for his services to Norwegian music and his international success. Furuholmen, better know ...
and guitarist
Paul Waaktaar-Savoy
Paul Waaktaar-Savoy (born Pål Gamst, 6 September 1961) is a Norwegian musician and songwriter. Waaktaar-Savoy is best known for his work as the main songwriter and guitarist in the Norwegian pop band A-ha, which has sold more than 50 million al ...
. The song starts with a calm verse in
F major
F major (or the key of F) is a major scale based on F, with the pitches F, G, A, B, C, D, and E. Its key signature has one flat. Its relative minor is D minor and its parallel minor is F minor.
The F major scale is:
:
F major is the ...
, before kicking into a hard rock-style chorus with a guitar riff in
D minor. In the official A-ha biography, ''The Swing of Things'', Furuholmen said it was "perhaps one of the most inspired cut and paste-projects that Paul and I did. I wrote the quiet part. Paul wrote the rock part."
Artwork
The cover photography was taken by Norwegian photographer
Knut Bry at the
Haleakala volcano on
Maui,
Hawaii
Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only state ...
, in 1986.
Release and reception
The album's peak on the
''Billboard'' 200 was number 74. The album was another big hit by A-ha and sold over 6 million copies worldwide which gave the band international recognition. ''Scoundrel Days'' achieved Platinum status in the UK and Switzerland as well as Germany and Brazil. The album reached number two in the
European Top 100 Albums
The European Top 100 Albums chart was the European adaptation of the ''Billboard'' 200 albums chart. It ran from March 1984 until December 2010. Also commonly referred to as Eurochart Top 100 Albums, the chart showcased the sales of an act in 19 E ...
chart.
Ned Raggett of
AllMusic
AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databa ...
said, "The opening two songs alone make for one of the best one-two opening punches around: the tense edge of the title track, featuring one of Morten Harket's soaring vocals during the chorus and a crisp, pristine punch in the music, and 'The Swing of Things,' a moody, elegant number with a beautiful synth/guitar arrangement (plus some fine drumming courtesy of studio pro Michael Sturgis) and utterly lovelorn lyrical sentiments that balance on the edge of being overheated without quite going over...The '80s may be long gone, but ''Scoundrel Days'' makes clear that not everything was bad back then."
''Scoundrel Days'' included the singles "
I've Been Losing You", "
Cry Wolf", "Maybe, Maybe", and "
Manhattan Skyline
Manhattan Skyline is a Norwegian mathcore band based in Oslo, Norway. They are influenced by metal, hardcore, contemporary music, jazz, fusion and electronica.
After their performance at the 2005 Bodø Hardcore festival, The Faceless Masses ...
". All of the UK singles made the top 20 on
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...
. "I've Been Losing You" and "Cry Wolf" were the most successful singles from the album, "Cry Wolf" became a minor hit in the US and charted on the
''Billboard'' Hot 100, peaking at #50, while "I've Been Losing You" was the most successful single in
Europe
Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located entirel ...
.
As part of a re-release of their first two albums, ''Scoundrel Days'' was expanded and remastered in 2010.
On 6 July 2010, the A-ha albums ''
Hunting High and Low
''Hunting High and Low'' is the debut studio album by Norwegian new wave band A-ha, released on 1 June 1985 in the United States and 28 October 1985 in the United Kingdom by Warner Bros. Records. The album was a huge commercial success, reachin ...
'' and ''Scoundrel Days'' were released as deluxe editions in the US through
Rhino Records
A rhinoceros (; ; ), commonly abbreviated to rhino, is a member of any of the five extant species (or numerous extinct species) of odd-toed ungulates in the family Rhinocerotidae. (It can also refer to a member of any of the extinct species ...
; both albums debuted in the top 40 of the ''Billboard'' Top Internet Sales chart; ''Hunting High and Low'' at number 34 and ''Scoundrel Days'' at number 36.
The remastered reissue of ''Scoundrel Days'' reached number 52 in Germany, number 27 in Norway, number 190 in the UK.
Track listing
2010 remastered reissue
Personnel
A-ha
*
Morten Harket
Morten Harket () (born September 14, 1959) is a Norwegian vocalist and songwriter, who is the lead singer of the synthpop/rock band A-ha.
A-ha has released 10 studio albums to date, and topped the charts internationally after their breakthrough ...
– lead and backing vocals
*
Magne Furuholmen
Magne Furuholmen (born 1 November 1962) is a Norwegian musician and visual artist. He was named Knight First Class of the Order of St. Olav by King Harald for his services to Norwegian music and his international success. Furuholmen, better know ...
– keyboards, bass and drum programming, backing vocals
*
Pål Waaktaar
Paul Waaktaar-Savoy (born Pål Gamst, 6 September 1961) is a Norwegian musician and songwriter. Waaktaar-Savoy is best known for his work as the main songwriter and guitarist in the Norwegian pop band A-ha, which has sold more than 50 million alb ...
– guitars, drum programming, backing vocals
with:
* Graham Prescott – strings (1)
* Leif Karsten Johansen – bass guitar (3)
*
Michael Sturgis – drums (2, 3, 10)
*
Øystein Jevanord
Øystein Jevanord (born 16 September 1959) is a Norwegian drummer.
He has played with the following bands:
*Bridges
*Poem
Poetry (derived from the Greek ''poiesis'', "making"), also called verse, is a form of literature that uses aesthe ...
– drums (6)
Production
*
Alan Tarney
Alan Tarney (born 19 November 1945) is an English record producer and musician. He was born in Northside, Workington, Cumberland, but spent his teenage years in Adelaide, Australia, where he met his songwriting and musical partner Trevor Spence ...
– producer (1, 2, 4-8), mixing
* Magne Furuholmen – producer (3, 9, 10)
* Paul Waaktaar-Savoy – producer (3, 9, 10)
* Gerry Kitchingham – engineer
* John Hudson – mixing
* Jeri McManus Heiden – art direction, design
* Kim Champagne – design
*
Knut Bry – photography
Charts
Weekly charts
Year-end charts
Certifications
References
{{Authority control
1986 albums
A-ha albums
Albums produced by Alan Tarney
Warner Records albums