a-ha: ranking highs and lows (2025)

16/06/2025

‘Hey listen honey, something you should rank / This can’t wait’

Dear a-ha friends,

We are extremely proud to share this new episode of ‘a-ha: Ranking Highs and Lows’ with you. We had the chance to catch up with Jørun Bøgeberg – A-ha’s bass player from 1990 to 1994, all-round cool dude and one of the nicest guys you’re likely to meet.

In this episode, Jørun kindly shares his favourite moments from his time with a-ha, and we are just there for the ride. Among other things, you will hear a great impression of Magne, you will hear about a fake bass part that Jørun got credited for, and you’ll also learn which a-ha song he was likely the first person ever to listen to. You’ll hear a salad being prepared in the background, and you will find out if missing a couple of bass notes on stage at an a-ha concert has consequences.

There are a couple of phone calls from Morten to Jørun at odd times, and we ALMOST tell you where you can find a real collector’s item. There are, of course, also memories of some great shows in South America, we play some lesser-known sound bites, and Jørun tries to decide if he played on a much-beloved demo song.

In addition to that, you get some cool insights into working with our favourite trio, a new take on how a-ha felt about those 90s albums, and the modest party culture within the band despite some major achievements. And what is the story behind the nickname “Boogieberg”?

We had a blast with Jørun, and we hope you’ll enjoy the episode and the stories from someone who’s played with a-ha and Savoy on some of our absolute favourite albums and tours. As always, please like, subscribe, share, give us a positive review on your podcast app and all that algorithm-related tech stuff to make sure we get the episode out to as many a-ha fans as possible. Sharing is caring, and we do care a lot about a-ha!

This episode as well as the previous ones can all be found here:
Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/dk/podcast/a-ha-ranking-highs-and-lows/id1602079523
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4fQN4fVnSXLwQj6nuZoLG1?si=4bcff9f51f0043a9
Spreaker: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/a-ha-ranking-highs-and-lows--5277221
Pocketcasts: https://play.pocketcasts.com/podcasts/196c4700-4872-013a-d6ae-0acc26574db2
Or find all the links here: www.linktr.ee/rankingaha

Let’s continue to make this 40-year anniversary of Hunting High and Low a special one and keep celebrating the wonderful music of a-ha. We will do our best at least – and this time with Jørun Bøgeberg!

All the best,
JP, Jesper and Peter the Producer

‘You say you want to rank / You’re not the only one / Not the only one’

Waaktaar I FEEL A-HA

15/06/2025

"Jørun's rankings had such weight / I guess they made us hesitate"

Dear a-ha friends,

The recent news about Morten has of course has had an emotional impact on all of us, but we couldn't be prouder of the way he's handled the communication with grace, dignity and strength.

For a-ha: ranking highs and lows things remain the same: We're still the podcast that celebrates the wonderful music of a-ha, and if you'd like to join us in that quest you can soon do so by listening to a very special episode that we recorded yesterday. We've managed to get none other than Jørun "JB" Bøgeberg - a-ha's bass player on East of the Sun West of the Moon and Memorial Beach and the associated tours - to join us on the show and he's brought us a special treat: A ranking of his biggest moments from the time with A-ha! And remember, this is a guy who's played to 200.000 people in Rio!

We'll get the episode ready over the coming days, but you can look forward to stories that range from the very personal and intimate moments to the stadium sized experiences. Jørun is a great storyteller with a lovely underplayed Norwegian demeanour and we thoroughly enjoyed spending a couple of hours with him.

So, we won't say much more for now but remember to follow us and hit "subscribe" to Ranking Highs and Lows on your podcast player so you - like Jørun - won't miss a beat.

Stay tuned for a slap of bass in your face - Norwegian style!

All the best,

JP, Jesper and Peter the Producer

"I've ranked songs with the ones that rescued my soul"

03/05/2025

‘I went down to the ranking / Like a lamb to the slaughter’

Dear a-ha friends,

We are very proud to share with you this episode of ‘a-ha: Ranking Highs and Lows’. Not only is it episode 20, but it is also our first episode to feature a guest star and guest ranker - none other than Norwegian journalist and author Ørjan Nilsson, the man behind three excellent books about our beloved A-ha members.

Ørjan kindly agreed to create his very own list of the 20 best a-ha songs as well as sharing some interesting anecdotes about the book writing process.

In this episode you can hear stories about police permits, which a-ha song is like a hand, why it’s Samantha Fox’s fault that young Ørjan had to listen to Scoundrel Days in his dad’s car, and how Ørjan ended up in Take On Me-producer Alan Tarney’s studio listening to an unreleased album by Morten. Honestly, if Ørjan wasn’t such a pleasure to talk to, we would have turned his microphone off out of sheer envy.

There’s also the story about Morten lying on the couch (“lying” as in Morten being positioned horizontally, not as in him not telling the truth) while Ørjan reads to him. There are countless memories from a-ha concerts and life as an a-ha fan, and we get to hear about Ørjan’s fascination with celebrities and sports stars who hit rock bottom. There’s also a dog, and for once JP and Jesper do a bit less of the talking, so what’s not to like?

We hope you’ll like the episode - we had a lot of fun making it at least - and as always please like, subscribe, share and all that algorithm jazz to make sure we get the episode out to as many a-ha fans as possible.

This episode as well as the previous ones call be found here:

Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/dk/podcast/a-ha-ranking-highs-and-lows/id1602079523

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4fQN4fVnSXLwQj6nuZoLG1?si=4bcff9f51f0043a9

Spreaker: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/a-ha-ranking-highs-and-lows--5277221

Pocketcasts: https://play.pocketcasts.com/podcasts/196c4700-4872-013a-d6ae-0acc26574db2

Or find all the links here: www.linktr.ee/rankingaha

Let’s make this 40-year anniversary of Hunting High and Low a special one and keep celebrating the wonderful music of a-ha. We will do our best - and this time with excellent contribution from Ørjan Nilsson!

All the best,

JP, Jesper and Peter the Producer

‘Ranking works a wrinkle over time’

Waaktaar Magne Furuholmen Morten Harket A-ha Savoy

02/05/2025

'One ranked low/ Joined two who ranked high'

Dear a-ha friends,

We've had a visitor, and that visitor was none other than a-ha biographer, journalist and all-round-great-guy Ørjan Nilsson! And like any good visitor, Ørjan brought two gifts for the hosts: His very own top 20 of A-ha songs and a lot of cool insights into the working process when he wrote the books about Pål Waaktaar-Savoy ("Tårer fra en stein", Morten Harket ("Hjemkomst") and most recently Magne Furuholmen ("Livslinjer").

Peter the Producer quickly stopped by the recording session, but in order not to be the fourth wheel on the tricycle he happily took the opportunity to find something better to do (he claims there are better things to do than record with Jesper and JP, but we're yet to discover what that could be).

After some profuse sweating and panicking without Peter's technical skills, JP managed to record the whole session and now it's time to edit it. That might take a few days still, but you should have a new episode of the world's finest a-ha podcast within the forseeable future.

It's episode 20, so it's a bit of an anniversary. We hope you'll celebrate it with us and Ørjan to find out what makes his a-heart skip a beat.

All the best,

JP, Jesper and Peter the Producer

P.S. JP was the only one who wore an a-ha t-shirt for the recording sessions. Ørjan is forgiven. Jesper needs to do better.

'You see things / In the depths of my eyes / That my ranking's run dry, no'

12/04/2025

"It's hard to conceive it / All comes to a rank"

Dear a-ha friends,

We had to get up early today because the record store opened at 8 o'clock (pretty darn precise), and Jesper and JP managed to scoop the last two copies of the Record Store Day release of Hunting High and Low. We want to say that we hunted high and low for it, but in reality the records were placed in a wooden case more or less at waist level. "Hunting waist level / Wai-i-ai-i-aist / There's no end to the length..." doesn't sound quite as good, does it? We hope those of you who wanted one got a copy as well. At least there were more of them than of Magne's recent album!

Anyway, it's a nice addition to the A-ha collection and hopefully it marks the beginning of a long celebration of the 40 year anniversary of Hunting High and Low. And speaking of celebrating or marking the anniversary: We've actually pencilled a podcast recording session in for early May, and this time we're not alone! Well, technically we're never alone since there's three of us in the group, but we've made plans to team up with a guy who's also dabbled in podcasting when he's not busy writing books about three cool dudes from Scandinavia (no, the books are not about JP, Jesper and Peter the Producer, but we're starting a petition any day now). More on that episode as we get closer to the recording session.

We also have a couple of other fun ideas lined up for this special year. "How do we know they are fun?" you ask. Because we've done a survey among the a-ha: ranking highs and lows team, and 2/3 of the respondents said "That could be fun!"

So stay tuned and don't throw your podcast player away.

All the best,

JP, Jesper and Peter the Producer

"You know I always had the strength to rank"

07/03/2025

"So, hold on to hope and / Pray there will be / Fair rankings and following sea"

Dear a-ha friends,

we just want to once again thank you for the kind reception you've given our latest episode of a-ha: ranking highs and lows, which was a ranking of the songs on Magne's latest solo album 'living with ourselves'. It's still a great album, so if you haven't listened to it yet we strongly recommend that you do so. And to our ranking of the songs of course, but such blatant self-promotion doesn't come natural to us modest Danes... (it's an excellent episode, though - you'll love it!).

You can find it here:
Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/dk/podcast/episode-19-ranking-the-magne-album-living-with-ourselves/id1602079523?i=1000691834411

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/0eWIqI9YuFfS2CyyrNP7yQ?si=I5YRe-vJSuaNEZtiT6JyUA

Spreaker: https://www.spreaker.com/episode/episode-19-ranking-the-magne-album-living-with-ourselves--64353567

Or find all the relevant links here: https://linktr.ee/rankingaha

Meanwhile, we thought it was a good opportunity to also promote the book about Magne that Ørjan Nilsson has written. The book is out today, and sadly it's only in Norwegian so far, but there's always the hope that the publishers will wisen up and maybe create an anthology containing all three books about Magne, Morten and Pål written by Ørjan. Or maybe there's a clever app you can download that will translate the Norwegian gibberish into English or whatever exotic language you prefer? It's a shame if international A-ha fans won't get the chance to read these insightful conversations between the author and three of your six favourite Scandinavians (there's that Danish modesty again!!).

Anyhow, we'll be back with an actual ranking sooner or later as we ALSO want to celebrate the 40 year anniversary of Hunting High and Low. So let's make it soon.

All the best from,

JP, Jesper and Peter the Producer

"There's nothing you can rank / To make me change my mind"

13/02/2025

“You’re hoping for rankings / Well, just look around / Everyone here is standing in line”

Dear a-ha friends,

It’s time we made good on our promise to record a new episode of ‘a-ha: Ranking Highs and Lows’ - as far as we know the world’s only (and therefore arguably: best) podcast solely dedicated to the wonderful music of A-ha and their related solo projects. And this episode is of course a ranking of the songs from Magne's new album ‘living with ourselves’ (and in case anyone is wondering: Yes, every cell in our bodies screams for us to begin the words with capital letters, but we can’t argue with artists, can we? Maybe we can).

Anyway, it’s not a secret that we are rather fond of ‘living with ourselves’ so if you decided to press Play on this episode hoping to listen to three angry middle-aged men (us, not a-ha), you’ll be unpleasantly surprised. However, you will get to hear about currency exchange rates, Peter the Producer’s sneaky musical adventures as a young boy, a conversation at work that maybe robbed Jesper of a treasured item, and the idea for a band called “a-heatles” and a single called “Gospel from a Beatle”.

We also speculate what it takes for a Magne to be a John, if 400,000 NOK is enough to send three people to Southern France to record an album, and how much time a-ha owes us back. We also talk a little about Depeche Mode, Babybird, Sting, and Tom Waits, and we talk a fair bit about a-ha and of course a lot about Magne.

We hope you’ll like the episode and that it might even inspire a few of you who haven’t listened to the album yet - or only a few times - to give it some more spins (or streams, probably).

You can find the episode here:

iPhone/Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/dk/podcast/a-ha-ranking-highs-and-lows/id1602079523?i=1000691834411

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/0eWIqI9YuFfS2CyyrNP7yQ?si=kH8dPuh_SVC-_RHmpfBEEw

Spreaker: https://www.spreaker.com/episode/episode-19-ranking-the-magne-album-living-with-ourselves--64353567

Pocket Casts: https://pca.st/episode/f1651fe0-794e-4eea-8fe6-56e32dae05b6

And as always: we appreciate all the comments we get from you guys and guysettes so keep ‘em coming. Please also make sure to like, subscribe, share and whatever else it takes to become friends with the algorithm.

We’ll surely find something else to rank eventually - this is a year to celebrate after all - so we’ll certainly be back. Until then!

All the best,

JP, Jesper and Peter the Producer

“Your life is a podcast / The rankings are you”

12/02/2025

"You ranked / It's done / And then some"

Dear a-ha friends,

Look how far we have and haven't come! We've come as far as to record the episode where we rank the songs from Magne's new album 'Living With Ourselves', but we haven't come as far as to edit it for your listening pleasure. Maybe already tomorrow, though! Or at least within the next couple of days. There's much to edit...

We'll be covering such interesting topics as the Danish pop pioneering duo Laid Back as well as Joan Osborne, Kate Bush, Cher, arguing parents, questionable interpretations, sore thumbs, ghosts and the giving up on them, new promotional campaigns for big furniture retailers, sleeping on the job, currency conversion rates, and much, much more. Oh, and of course Magne and his new songs which is the main reason why you should turn on and tune in (don't cop out).

Keep your eyes on your podcast feed. Maybe also on your feet - we won't judge. And we'll be back in a day or two(ish).

All the best,

JP, Jesper and Peter the Producer

P.S. JP's arm has been photoshopped to look less muscular this time.

"Love is ranking enough"

04/02/2025

"How are we ranking with ourselves?"

Dear a-ha friends,

Just a quick update from here to say that we will very soon get together in Peter the Producer's exclusive man cave to record a new episode of a-ha: ranking highs and lows which will be our ranking of the songs on Magne's new album "Living With Ourselves". We don't know exactly when the podcast will come out but it won't be long (by that we mean that the time until the podcast comes out won't be long. The actual podcast might still be (too) long!).

Apart from that: We hope you're keeping well and getting yourself acquainted with the new songs. So why not do a small survey (a classic tactic when you don't know what else to do)? Also, why all the parentheses (must stop using them!!)?

The question is: What is currently your favourite and your least favourite song from Living With Ourselves? Comment below!

We'll be back before you know it - assuming that time is on our side.

All the best,

JP, Jesper and Peter the Producer

"Maybe you were ranking when you chucked me out the Rover at full speed"

20/01/2025

Dear all,

Just a quick note to say that a fake Paul-profile has been replying to some of your comments, thanking for your love and support with a request for you to send him a direct message. No doubt that the REAL Pål is a very kind guy, but this is not him!

Don’t engage with him or respond to his requests. Thank you!

All the best,

JP, Jesper and Peter the Producer

18/12/2024

"Faces look back at her from the page / And they say / The world's full of ranking people"

Dear a-ha friends,

We want to take this opportunity to wish you all a Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays from the ranking highs and lows office! We haven't done as many new episodes as we'd hoped this year, so we are a bit curious (and anxious) to see if we've ended up on Santa's "nice" or "naughty" list. Anyways, we can see from our download statistics that you've still been nice to us, which we really appreciate and certainly don't take for granted. Thank you!!

We do have plans for more rankings in the new year. Magne is ever so slowly sharing his new album "Living With Ourselves" song by song, and once that slow-release-silliness is done we'll of course rank the songs in a separate episode. We also have other ideas that are yet to materialise, but it would be silly of us not to make use of the 40 year anniversary of the success of Take On Me (yes, we know it was released in 1984, but that wasn't much to celebrate, was it?) and of course the stunning debut album, Hunting High and Low. 2025 is going to be a special year for A-ha, and so it should be special for us as well. We'll see what we can come up with.

Let's also not forget that Savoy (of course fronted by Pål Waaktaar) released a new album earlier this year - the übercool "Under". Most of you have probably already listened to it. If you haven't then we really recommend it. We have a special episode of a-ha: ranking highs and lows dedicated to that album.

And let's not forget that there are plenty of Christmas songs - plus songs that give a bit of a Christmas feeling - when you dive into the guys' solo stuff in particular. Magne released a few years ago, but we'd like to remind you of Savoy's non-album Christmas song from 1997, "Xmas Time (Blows My Mind)". It has the added benefit that the lyrics give you some great ideas for Christmas presents if you (like us) still need to get some last minute gift shopping done! The link to the song is in the comments 🎄🎅

Apart from that we just want to say again how much we enjoy making these podcasts as our small contribution to keeping the a-ha legacy alive and reminding us all of all the wonderful music they have given - and in various constellations continue to give - us. Or, making the podcasts is 17% of the fun. Interacting with you guys afterwards is 78% of the fun. That leaves another 5% of un-allocated sources of fun, which is always good.

We'll be back in the new year - and hopefully you and a-ha will, too!

All the best,

JP, Jesper and Peter the Producer

P.S. No photoshop or editing has been done to the photo below...

"I've done all I can do / All the rankings I've sent through"

22/11/2024

“Vague are hopes that try our rankings / Listen now to what I say”

Dear a-ha friends,

Well, that didn’t take long, did it? We’re already back with episode two of ‘ranking the music videos’ where we present what we consider to be the 20 best music videos by A-ha. And what a fantastic selection!

In this episode we consider taking up synchronised swimming, we recall a sad day in 1991, and we have lengthy discussions about feet. We also hear about a cool gadget in Jesper’s teenage room, we discuss plot holes, find the optimal role for Morten in Hollywood, and speculate if slow-cooked wolf is a French delicacy.

We also do some book research, speculate who would get rescued on Noah’s ark today, recount JP’s stellar performance in a remake of a classic video, and use the word “cool” way too much. We also speculate who normally gets the idea to have Morten appear semi-naked in so many videos.

There are also more cars, more girls and more animals in this episode, and we try to assess the chances of a-ha getting nominated for an Academy Award, and JP’s pronunciation of the word “tour” sounds increasingly like the German word for “door”. We also argue a bit about the top ranked video (a pointless argument, really), and we discuss if a-ha has done any good to the perception of what it means to be a nurse.

Among all that we manage to also rank 20 videos, so there should still be plenty of a-ha related content to keep the listener engaged (we hope). It’s all sprinkled with the usual loving stabs at each other, Peter the Producer’s ability to cut through the discussions, and most of all: Love of a-ha, their music and their videos!

As always you can find the podcast as well as the 17 previous episodes on your preferred podcast app by searching for "a-ha Ranking Highs and Lows" or go straight to the source: https://www.spreaker.com/show/a-ha-ranking-highs-and-lows

Also, please share your thoughts, comments and reactions below - but please DON’T spoil the ranking for other listeners when you write in the comments section ;)

Finally, If you like what you hear then please give us a like and a follow or recommend the podcast to other fans. We know there are still fans out there who we haven’t reached yet, so feel free to share the info about the podcast in fan forums, Instagram or Facebook groups etc. if you feel that’s appropriate. Thanks!

All the best,
JP, Jesper and Peter the Producer

“I find it hard to rank / As life just eats away”

Waaktaar Magne Furuholmen Morten Harket a-ha: ranking highs and lows Savoy Apparatjik

a-ha: ranking highs and lows