 | This article needs additional citations for verification .(May 2011) |
| "Velvet" | |
|---|---|
| Single by Savoy | |
| from the album Mary Is Coming | |
| Released | May 1996 [1] |
| Recorded | c. 1996 |
| Genre | Rock |
| Length | 4:35 [2] |
| Label | Warner Bros. |
| Songwriter(s) | |
"Velvet" is a song by Savoy, a band fronted by A-ha's guitarist Paul Waaktaar-Savoy, from their debut studio album, Mary Is Coming (1996). Savoy's version was released as a single in the United States, but received minimal airplay.
| "Velvet" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by A-ha | ||||
| from the album Minor Earth Major Sky | ||||
| Released | September 2000 | |||
| Recorded | 2000 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 4:01 | |||
| Label | WEA | |||
| Songwriter(s) | ||||
| Producer(s) |
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| A-ha singles chronology | ||||
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A-ha's version of "Velvet" replaced Savoy's guitars with sitars. Their version, which served as the third single from Minor Earth Major Sky , was released to radio stations in Germany (and in other European countries such as Sweden, Switzerland and the Netherlands) in September 2000 and was released to German record stores on 6 November (one week later in other parts of Europe). Originally, "The Sun Never Shone That Day" was to be released in Norway instead of "Velvet", but it was later decided that "Velvet" would also be released in Norway.
The backing vocals were performed by Simone Larsen of the Norwegian band D'Sound.
A-ha's music video for "Velvet" portrays the band as murder victims, opening with Morten Harket as a dead man in a bathtub: a girl killed him by electrocution, dropping a plugged hairdryer in the tub. Throughout the video he is taken to the morgue, tagged, etc., all the while singing the lyrics. Paul Waaktaar-Savoy plays his guitar while apparently dead from a gunshot to the head (shot by a girl who looks very similar to the girl who killed Morten), and Magne Furuholmen's body is found in a freezer. All three continue singing and playing while being brought to the morgue, and within it. Some scenes in the morgue controversially suggest necrophilia. [3] The director of this video was Harald Zwart, who also directs Hollywood movies. Zwart, a fellow Norwegian, chose this song to be a part of his new film at the time, One Night at McCool's .
The so-called "licking version" of this video appears on the international DVD release of One Night at McCool's, as well as on the DVD enclosed with the deluxe edition of 25 , where it is labeled as "European Cut". The "licking version" got its name because it features the older nurse seen near the end of the video licking Morten's lips instead of kissing him.
| Chart (2000) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Germany (Official German Charts) [4] | 48 |
| Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade) [5] | 92 |
a-ha is a Norwegian synth-pop band formed in Oslo in 1982. Founded by Paul Waaktaar-Savoy, Magne Furuholmen, and Morten Harket, the band rose to fame during the mid-1980s.
Harald Zwart is a Dutch-Norwegian film director.
Paul Waaktaar-Savoy 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 albums worldwide. He has written or co-written most of the band's biggest hits, including "The Sun Always Shines on T.V.", "Hunting High and Low", "Take On Me", the 1987 James Bond theme "The Living Daylights" and the ballad "Summer Moved On". In addition, Waaktaar-Savoy is also a painter.
Savoy are a Norwegian-American rock trio consisting of Paul Waaktaar-Savoy (vocals/guitars/bass/keyboards), his wife Lauren Savoy (vocals/guitars) and Frode Unneland. The band was formed in 1994 and has released seven studio albums to date.
Memorial Beach is the fifth studio album by the Norwegian band A-ha, released on 14 June 1993 by Warner Bros. Records.
Minor Earth Major Sky is the sixth studio album by Norwegian band A-ha, released on 14 April 2000 by WEA.
Lifelines is the seventh studio album by the Norwegian band A-ha, released on 24 April 2002 by WEA Records. The album topped the charts in Norway and Germany, and reached the top 10 in Austria, Denmark, Poland and Switzerland. In 2019, Lifelines and Minor Earth Major Sky, both of A-ha's albums recorded for Warner Music Germany, were remastered and re-released with an extra disc, which contained demos, early versions and alternate mixes. They also received their first official vinyl releases.
Analogue is the eighth studio album by the Norwegian band A-ha, released in 2005. It is a-ha's first album on Polydor Records (Universal), having previously been signed to Warner Music. Four singles were also released from this record. The album's second single, "Analogue " became the group's first top 10 hit on the UK Singles Chart since "Stay on These Roads" (1988). The album reached No. 24 in the UK and got silver certification there.
Necrophilia has been a topic in popular culture.
"The Sun Always Shines on T.V." is a song by Norwegian synth-pop band a-ha, released as the third single from their debut studio album, Hunting High and Low (1985). The song was written by guitarist Pål Waaktaar. In some commercial markets the single was not as popular as their previous (debut) single "Take On Me", which had achieved the top spot in the United States and several other countries around the world, but in the United Kingdom and Ireland it improved upon the number-two charting of "Take On Me", reaching number one on the UK Singles Chart for two weeks in January 1986, having been released there on 16 December 1985. Its success secured for the band the prestige of having achieved number-one single status in both the primary Anglo-American popular music charts on either side of the Atlantic.
How Can I Sleep with Your Voice in My Head is a live album by Norwegian band A-ha, released on 25 March 2003 by WEA Records.
"Minor Earth Major Sky" is a song by Norwegian band A-ha, released as the second single from their sixth studio album of the same name (2000). The single was serviced to European radio stations around 5 June 2000 and was released commercially in Norway and Germany on 10 July.
"Foot of the Mountain" is a song by Norwegian band A-ha, released as the lead single from their ninth studio album of the same name (2009). It was used as the official anthem of the 2009 World Championships in Athletics held in Berlin. The single reached number three in Germany, the band's highest-charting single in that country since "Take On Me" in 1985.
"Nothing Is Keeping You Here" is a song by the Norwegian band a-ha taken from their ninth studio album Foot of the Mountain (2009). It was written by band member Paul Waaktaar-Savoy, produced by Roland Spremberg and it contains elements produced by Mark Saunders. It was released as the second single from the album in the United Kingdom on September 20, 2009, and as the third single in Europe on 20 November 2009. In an interview in Norway, Waaktaar-Savoy stated that the track was the first song to be written for the album while on tour.
Live at Vallhall: Homecoming is a live video album by Norwegian band A-ha, released on 5 November 2001 by Warner Music Vision. It was filmed during the band's two concerts at Vallhall Arena in Oslo on 24 and 25 March 2001.
Ending on a High Note: The Final Concert is a live album by Norwegian band a-ha, released on 1 April 2011. It was recorded at the Oslo Spektrum in Oslo on 4 December 2010, which was initially planned to be their final concert before their eventual reunion in 2015. The concert on the previous night was also recorded as a back-up. The album contains the entire set from the final concert with the exception of "The Bandstand" and "Bowling Green", the latter being an Everly Brothers cover the band performed as part of the final encore.
Morten Harket is a Norwegian singer who is the lead vocalist of the synth-pop band a-ha.
Cast in Steel is the tenth studio album by Norwegian band A-ha. The album was released on 4 September 2015 by We Love Music and Polydor. It is their first studio album since Foot of the Mountain (2009), following their second reunion in early 2015.
"Move to Memphis" is a song by Norwegian band A-ha, which was released in October 1991 as a single from their greatest hits album Headlines and Deadlines: The Hits of A-ha (1991). It was written by Paul Waaktaar-Savoy and Magne Furuholmen, and produced by A-ha. "Move to Memphis" reached number two in Norway and number 47 in the United Kingdom.
"Early Morning" is a song by Norwegian band A-ha, which was released in 1991 as the third single from their fourth studio album, East of the Sun, West of the Moon (1990). It was written by Paul Waaktaar-Savoy and Magne Furuholmen, and produced by Ian Stanley. "Early Morning" reached number 78 in the United Kingdom and number 29 in Ireland. A music video was filmed to promote the single, directed by Michael Burlingame, while the video's black-and-white footage was directed by Lauren Savoy.
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| Live albums | |
| Extended plays | |
| Box sets | |
| Singles |
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| Related articles | |
