Manhattan Skyline (song)

"Manhattan Skyline"
Single by A-ha
from the album Scoundrel Days
B-side	"We're Looking for the Whales" [Live]
Released	16 February 1987
Format	7", 12"
Recorded	1986
Genre	Synthpop New Wave Alternative rock
Length	4:52 (album version) 4:18 (single edit) 6:50 (extended remix)
Label	Warner Bros
Writer(s)	Paul Waaktaar-Savoy & Magne Furuholmen
Producer	Alan Tarney
A-ha singles chronology
"Maybe, Maybe" (1986) "Manhattan Skyline" (1987) "The Living Daylights" (1987)

"Manhattan Skyline" is a song by the Norwegian pop band A-ha. It was the third single from their Scoundrel Days album, and reached #13 in the UK Singles Chart.

The song was co-written by keyboardist Magne Furuholmen and guitarist Paul Waaktaar-Savoy. The song starts with Furuholmen playing a Roland Juno synth 106 synth or Roland juno 60 ( both synths have the same sound used in this song )- in F major, 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."^[1]

The music video was directed by Steve Barron and was inspired by newsprint, featuring a connect-the-dots animation of the band, a crossword puzzle, a printing press, and articles from newspapers from around the world.^[1]

The B-side, "We're Looking for the Whales", was recorded at a concert in London on 19 January 1987.

The Norwegian indie folk-pop duo Kings of Convenience released an acoustic cover version of "Manhattan Skyline" in 2001.

The single version omits the lyric "you see things in the depths of my eyes that my love's run dry" that is present twice on the album version during the song's main chorus.

Track listings

7"

1. "Manhattan Skyline" [Single Edit]
2. "We're Looking for the Whales" [Live, faded out]

12"

1. "Manhattan Skyline" [Extended Remix]
2. "We're Looking for the Whales" [Live, full length]
3. "Manhattan Skyline" [Album Version]

Chart positions

Chart (1987)	Peak position
Irish Singles Chart[2]	3
German Singles Chart[3]	28
Norwegian Singles Chart[4]	4
UK Singles Chart[5]	13

References

1. ^ ^{a b} "The Official Community of A-ha". www.A-ha.com. http://www.A-ha.com/MEDIA/VIDEO/AHA_videoManhattanSkyline.aspx. Retrieved 2009-01-15. 
2. ^ "Irish Singles Chart". The Irish Chart. http://www.irishcharts.ie/. Retrieved 2008-03-07. 
3. ^ "German Singles Chart". Charts-Surfer. http://www.charts-surfer.de/musiksearch.php. Retrieved 2008-06-07. ^{[dead link]}
4. ^ "Norwegian Singles Chart". VG-lista. http://norwegiancharts.com/search.asp?cat=s&search=A-ha. Retrieved 2008-03-07. 
5. ^ "British Single Chart". UK Top 40. http://www.everyhit.com/. Retrieved 2008-03-07.