A-ha (stylized as a-ha; Norwegian pronunciation: [ɑˈhɑː]) are a Norwegian band formed in Oslo in 1982. The band was founded by Morten Harket (vocals), Magne Furuholmen (keyboards) and Pål Waaktaar-Savoy (guitars). The group initially rose to fame during the mid-1980s after being discovered by musician and producer John Ratcliff, and had continued global success in the 1990s and 2000s.

A-ha achieved their biggest success with their debut album, Hunting High and Low, in 1985. That album peaked at number 1 in their native Norway, number 2 in the UK, and number 15 on the US Billboard album chart; yielded two international number-one singles, "Take On Me" and "The Sun Always Shines on TV"; and earned the band a Grammy Award nomination as Best New Artist. In the UK, Hunting High and Low continued its chart success into the following year, becoming one of the best-selling albums of 1986. In 1994, after their fifth studio album, Memorial Beach, failed to achieve the commercial success of their previous albums, the band went on a hiatus.

Scoundrel Days is the second full-length album by the new wave pop/rock band A-ha. It was released on 6 October 1986 through Warner Bros. Records. A deluxe/expanded edition with additional tracks was released in 2010.

Music

Yamaha DX7 and Roland Juno-60/106 synths used in the recording of this album—Roland Juno used on intro of the song "Manhattan Skyline " and Yamaha DX7 drum sound used on the intro of song called "October". "Scoundrel Days" and "Swing of Things" signature sounds are from the PPG Wave. The drums and several other sounds are from the Fairlight CMI.

Songs

"I've Been Losing You" was the first single from the album. It reached #1 in Norway, and #8 in the UK. "I've Been Losing You" became the biggest hit from the album in Europe.

"Cry Wolf" was the second single from the album. It was the most successful single from the Scoundrel Days album in the U.S., where it peaked at #14 on the Hot Dance Music/Club Play charts and went to #50 on the Billboard Hot 100. While it would be their last entry on that chart, the band would continue to have major pop hits from each album release throughout the rest of the world through to the present day. The single went Top 40 nearly everywhere else it was released, including Top 5 chartings in the UK, Poland and Ireland, going #2 in Norway. The lyrics "Night I left the city I dreamt of a Wolf..." are credited to Lauren Savoy whom Pål later married.