You know that feeling when a song starts and you immediately get a bit of a chill? Not because it’s scary. Just because it feels huge. That’s "The Sun Always Shines on TV." Honestly, a-ha is often relegated to "one-hit wonder" status in the States because of "Take on Me," but anyone who actually listens to 80s synth-pop knows this track is the real masterpiece. It’s moody. It’s loud. It’s kinda heartbreaking.
Released in late 1985 as the third single from their debut album Hunting High and Low, this song did something "Take on Me" couldn’t. It proved Morten Harket, Pål Waaktaar-Savoy, and Magne Furuholmen weren’t just poster boys with a clever pencil-sketch video. They had range. While the world was busy trying to mimic the high notes of their first hit, a-ha was busy crafting a wall of sound that felt more like Joy Division meeting a stadium rock band.
The Story Behind the Wall of Sound
The song didn't just happen. Pål Waaktaar-Savoy, the band’s primary songwriter, reportedly wrote it when he was feeling pretty low. He was in an English hotel room. The weather was gray. Depressing. He turned on the TV and saw these bright, smiling people in a world that felt totally disconnected from his reality. That’s the core of the song. It’s about the friction between the manufactured "perfection" of media and the messy, often cold reality of being a human being.
Musically, it’s a beast. It starts with that delicate, haunting piano and Morten’s soft vocals, then—bang. The drums kick in. It’s an explosion. Interestingly, the band actually struggled with the production. They wanted it to sound massive. They used the PPG Wave synthesizer, which gave it that icy, digital edge that still sounds fresh today. Unlike a lot of 80s tracks that feel thin or "tinny" now, "The Sun Always Shines on TV" has a weight to it.
Why the British Loved It (And Americans Were Confused)
In the UK, this was a-ha's first and only number-one hit. Think about that for a second. "Take on Me" peaked at number two there. The British audience grabbed onto the melancholy. They liked the drama. In the US, it reached the Top 20 but never quite hit the same heights. Maybe it was too dark for the MTV "spring break" era.
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There's a specific irony in the lyrics that usually gets missed. When Morten sings "Touch me... how can I believe you?" it’s not a romantic plea. It’s a crisis of faith. He’s asking how to find something real in a world made of pixels and static.
That Gothic Puppet Music Video
We have to talk about the video. It’s a direct sequel to "Take on Me." Remember how the first video ends with the guy becoming human? This one picks up right there. But instead of a happy ending, it’s grim. They’re in a gothic, abandoned church (Saint Jude's in London, for the trivia buffs).
The church was filled with hundreds of wooden mannequins. It’s unsettling. You see the band performing to a crowd of lifeless dolls. It’s literal visual storytelling about the themes of the song: fame is hollow, and the "audience" on the other side of the screen isn't always alive. Director Steve Barron, who also did "Billie Jean," used high-contrast lighting to make it look like a noir film. It’s a far cry from the colorful rotoscoping of their first hit.
The Technical Brilliance of Morten Harket
Morten Harket’s voice is a freak of nature. Seriously. Most singers have a "break" in their voice where they shift from chest to head voice. Morten just... glides. In "The Sun Always Shines on TV," he hits those low, operatic notes in the verses and then rockets into a falsetto that stays powerful.
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- Range: He covers multiple octaves in this single track.
- Breath Control: If you’ve ever tried to sing the long notes in the chorus at karaoke, you’ve probably turned blue.
- Tone: There’s a "cry" in his voice that fits the synth-pop aesthetic perfectly.
The arrangement also utilizes a real orchestra, which was a big deal for a synth-heavy band at the time. It added a layer of "prestige" to the track that helped it bridge the gap between pop and "serious" music.
Legacy and Live Performances
If you ever watch a-ha live—even their later stuff like the MTV Unplugged sessions—this is the song that usually gets the biggest reaction. When they performed it at the 1986 MTV Video Music Awards, they basically blew the roof off the place.
It’s been covered by everyone from Milk Inc. to In Strict Confidence. Why? Because the melody is indestructible. You can strip away the synths, play it on an acoustic guitar, and it still works. That’s the sign of a truly great song. It’s not just about the "sound" of the 80s; it’s about the structure.
What Most People Get Wrong
People think a-ha was "manufactured." They weren't. They were three guys from Norway who moved to a damp flat in London and lived on bread and jam while trying to make it. They were nerds about gear. They obsessed over the mix of this song.
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Another misconception is that the song is "happy" because of the title. It’s literally the opposite. The title is sarcastic. It’s a critique of how television simplifies human emotion. The sun only always shines on TV because it’s a script. Real life has rain. Real life has shadows.
Actionable Insights for Music Lovers
If you want to truly appreciate this track and the era it came from, don't just stream it on your phone speakers. Do these three things:
- Listen to the 12-inch Extended Mix. This version lets the atmospheric intro breathe. You can hear the layering of the synthesizers much more clearly, especially the way the bass interacts with the kick drum. It’s nearly eight minutes of synth-pop perfection.
- Watch the MTV Unplugged - Summer Solstice version. Seeing them perform this as older men with acoustic instruments reveals the "bones" of the songwriting. It transforms from a stadium anthem into a fragile folk-ballad.
- Check out the rest of the Hunting High and Low album. If you only know the hits, you’re missing "The Blue Sky" and "Living a Boy's Adventure Tale." These tracks share the same DNA as "The Sun Always Shines on TV" and show the band’s darker, more experimental side.
The song remains a masterclass in how to mix commercial appeal with genuine artistic anxiety. It’s the perfect bridge between the neon-soaked 80s and the introspective alternative rock that would follow a decade later. So, next time it comes on the radio, turn it up. Let that wall of sound hit you. It’s exactly what the band intended.