2000 studio album by A-ha
Minor Earth Major Sky Released 14 April 2000 Recorded 1998–2000 Genre
Length 58 :42 Label WEA Producer
A-ha
Kjetil Bjerkestrand
Millenia Nova
Ras
Roland Spremberg
Andre Tanneberger
Pål Waaktaar
Minor Earth Major Sky (stylised as minor earth | major sky ) is the sixth studio album by Norwegian band A-ha , released on 14 April 2000 by WEA .
Background and release [ ]
Following the release of A-ha's fifth studio album, Memorial Beach (1993), the band decided to go on a hiatus. In 1998, the band was invited to perform at the Nobel Peace Prize Concert . Paul Waaktaar-Savoy had written "Summer Moved On " especially for this performance.[2] They also performed "The Sun Always Shines on T.V. ". This performance was A-ha's comeback into the world of music and the band decided to return to the studio.
Almost the entire album was remixed by producer Niven Garland at the record company's insistence to make it more radio-friendly for the band's German market.
"Summer Moved On ", "Minor Earth Major Sky " and "Velvet " were commercially released as singles. "I Wish I Cared" was an Internet download single, accompanied by an Internet-only music video—one of the first of its kind.
Backing vocals for track 3 "Velvet" were provided by Simone Larsen of the Norwegian band, D-Sound.
Reception [ ]
Critical reception [ ]
Professional ratings Review scores Source Rating Allmusic link The Encyclopedia of Popular Music [3] Musicfolio link
Jayne Howarth of The Birmingham Post gave the album a mixed review writing, "It was grown-up ballad stuff and a few attempts at light pop but it didn't work and some of the vocals were, frankly, strained. There were a couple of bright spots, apart from the opener – The Sun Never Shone That Day and I Wish I Cared – and although it was a grower, I fear the CD is condemned to stay on the CD shelf."[4]
Commercial performance [ ]
Minor Earth Major Sky debuted at number one on the Norwegian Albums Chart , and became the band's first number one album in Germany. The album peaked at number 27 on the UK Albums Chart , but was not released in the U.S.
This album was certified platinum in Norway and Germany and gold in Austria, Spain and Switzerland.
Track listing [ ]
1. "Minor Earth Major Sky " Paul Waaktaar-Savoy , Magne Furuholmen Boogieman, Roland Spremberg, a-ha[a] , Kjetil Bjerkestrand[a] 5:25 2. "Little Black Heart" Furuholmen, Waaktaar-Savoy Boogieman, Spremberg, a-ha[a] , Bjerkestrand[a] 4:35 3. "Velvet " Waaktaar-Savoy, Lauren Savoy Boogieman, Spremberg, a-ha[a] , Bjerkestrand[a] 4:21 4. "Summer Moved On " Waaktaar-Savoy Boogieman, Spremberg, a-ha[a] , Bjerkestrand[a] 4:38 5. "The Sun Never Shone That Day " Waaktaar-Savoy, Savoy Boogieman, Spremberg, a-ha[a] , Bjerkestrand[a] 4:40 6. "To Let You Win" Morten Harket , Håvard RemBoogieman, Spremberg, a-ha[a] , Bjerkestrand[a] 4:24 7. "The Company Man" Furuholmen, Waaktaar-Savoy Boogieman, Spremberg, a-ha[a] , Bjerkestrand[a] 3:15 8. "Thought That It Was You" Harket, Ole Sverre-Olsen Bjerkestrand 3:50 9. "I Wish I Cared" Furuholmen Boogieman, Spremberg, a-ha[a] , Bjerkestrand[a] 4:23 10. "Barely Hanging On" Waaktaar-Savoy Boogieman, Spremberg, a-ha[a] , Bjerkestrand[a] 3:56 11. "You'll Never Get Over Me" Waaktaar-Savoy Boogieman, Spremberg, a-ha[a] , Bjerkestrand[a] 5:40 12. "I Won't Forget Her" Waaktaar-Savoy Boogieman 4:44 13. "Mary Ellen Makes the Moment Count" Waaktaar-Savoy Waaktaar-Savoy 4:51
14. "Summer Moved On" (remix) Waaktaar-Savoy Boogieman, Spremberg, a-ha[a] , Bjerkestrand[a] , C.L.A.S.S. Production[b] 6:00
14. "Minor Earth Major Sky" (Black Dog mix) Waaktaar-Savoy, Furuholmen Boogieman, Spremberg, a-ha[a] , Bjerkestrand[a] , R.A.S[b] , Island Brothers[b] 4:07 15. "Velvet" (Stockholm mix) Waaktaar-Savoy, Savoy Boogieman, Spremberg, a-ha[a] , Bjerkestrand[a] , Palaar Suna[b] 4:16
1. "Minor Earth Major Sky" (Early Version) 5:50 2. "Little Black Heart" (Alternate Mix) 4:35 3. "Velvet" (Early Version) 5:18 4. "Summer Moved On" (Early Version) 4:38 5. "The Sun Never Shone That Day" (Early Version) 4:24 6. "To Let You Win" (Early Mix) 4:39 7. "We Will Never Speak Again" (Demo) 4:19 8. "The Company Man" (Early Version) 4:30 9. "Life’s Not Fair" (Early Version of "I Wish I Cared") 3:31 10. "Barely Hanging On" (Early Version) 3:52 11. "I Won’t Forget Her" (Early Version) 4:51 12. "Manhattan Skyline" (Live - Oslo 2001) 5:51 13. "Thought That It Was You" (Live - Oslo 2001) 3:45 14. "You’ll Never Get Over Me" (Live - Oslo 2001) 6:02 15. "Mary Ellen Makes the Moment Count" (Live Oslo - 2001) 6:06 16. "Summer Moved On" (Demo) 3:34
Notes
^[a] signifies a co-producer
^[b] signifies a remixer
Personnel [ ]
A-ha
Morten Harket - vocals
Magne Furuholmen - keyboards
Pal Waaktaar Savoy - guitar
Technical
Arranged by a-ha[5]
Strings arranged by Kjetil Bjerkestrand, Magne Furuholmen, Paul Waaktaar-Savoy
Engineers – Jan-Erik Kongshaug*, Jon Marius Aareskjold, Ulf Holand
Mixed by Boogieman (tracks: 4, 6), Niven Garland (tracks: 1-3, 5, 7-13)
Producers – Boogieman (tracks: 1-7, 9-12), Kjetil Bjerkestrand (tracks: 8), Paul Waaktaar-Savoy (tracks: 13), Roland Spremberg (tracks: 1-7, 9-11)
Strings – Norwegian Radio Orchestra, Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra
Pro Tools Operators – Jon Marius Aareskjold, Kjetil Bjerkestrand
Written by Håvard Rem (tracks: 6), Lauren Savoy (tracks: 3, 5), Magne Furuholmen (tracks: 1, 2, 7, 9), Morten Harket (tracks: 6, 8), Ole Sverre Olsen (tracks: 8), Paul Waaktaar-Savoy (tracks: 1-5, 7, 10-13)
Frode Unneland - drums (tracks 1, 7).
Sven Lindvall - bass (tracks 2, 13).
Simone (D'Sound, courtesy of Virgin Records Norway AS) - vocals (track 3).
Per Lindvall - drums (tracks 3, 10 & 13).
Lauren Savoy - vocals (track 11).
Per Hillestad - drums (track 11).
Vertavo Quartet - strings (track 11).
Jørun Bøgeberg - bass (track 11)
Charts [ ]
Weekly charts [ ]
Year-end charts [ ]
Certifications [ ]
References [ ]
^ Stavenes-Dove, Siri (1 April 2000). "a-ha, It's Those Norwegians Again". Music & Media . Vol. 17, no. 14. p. 1.
^ interview on "A-ha live at valhall homecoming" DVD, 2001
^ Larkin, Colin (2007). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music (5th Concise ed.). United Kingdom: Omnibus Press. p. 30. ISBN 978-1-84609-856-7 .
^ [1] [dead link ]
^ a-ha – Minor Earth | Major Sky
^ "Response from ARIA re: a-ha ARIA chart history, received 22 December 2017" . Retrieved 19 January 2019 – via Imgur .
^ "Austriancharts.at – a-ha – Minor Earth | Major Sky" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved 19 January 2019.
^ "Ultratop.be – a-ha – Minor Earth | Major Sky" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 19 January 2019.
^ "Dutchcharts.nl – a-ha – Minor Earth | Major Sky" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 19 January 2019.
^ "European Top 100 Albums" (PDF) . Music & Media . Vol. 17, no. 19. 6 May 2000. p. 12. OCLC 29800226 – via World Radio History.
^ "a-ha: Minor Earth - Major Sky" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland . Retrieved 19 January 2019.
^ "Lescharts.com – a-ha – Minor Earth | Major Sky" . Hung Medien. Retrieved 19 January 2019.
^ "Offiziellecharts.de – a-ha – Minor Earth | Major Sky" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts . Retrieved 19 January 2019.
^ "Album Top 40 slágerlista – 2000. 22. hét" (in Hungarian). MAHASZ . Retrieved 19 January 2019.
^ "GFK Chart-Track Albums: Week 23, 2000" . Chart-Track . IRMA . Retrieved 19 January 2019.
^ a〜haのアルバム売り上げランキング [a-ha album sales ranking] (in Japanese). Oricon . Archived from the original on 29 June 2013. Retrieved 19 January 2019 .
^ "Norwegiancharts.com – a-ha – Minor Earth | Major Sky" . Hung Medien. Retrieved 19 January 2019.
^ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100" . Official Charts Company . Retrieved 19 January 2019.
^ "Top National Sellers" (PDF) . Music & Media . Vol. 17, no. 20. 13 May 2000. p. 13. OCLC 29800226 – via World Radio History.
^ "Swedishcharts.com – a-ha – Minor Earth | Major Sky" . Hung Medien. Retrieved 19 January 2019.
^ "Swisscharts.com – a-ha – Minor Earth | Major Sky" . Hung Medien. Retrieved 19 January 2019.
^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100" . Official Charts Company . Retrieved 19 January 2019.
^ "Year in Focus – European Top 100 Albums 2000" (PDF) . Music & Media . Vol. 17, no. 52. 23 December 2000. p. 9. OCLC 29800226 – via World Radio History.
^ "Top 100 Album-Jahrescharts – 2000" (in German). Offizielle Deutsche Charts. Retrieved 19 January 2019 .
^ "Swiss Year-End Charts 2000" . swisscharts.com . Retrieved 19 January 2019 .
^ "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (A-ha; ' Minor Earth / Major Sky' )" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie . Retrieved 19 January 2019 .
^ Salaverrie, Fernando (September 2005). Sólo éxitos: año a año, 1959–2002 (PDF) (in Spanish) (1st ed.). Madrid: Fundación Autor/SGAE . p. 954. ISBN 84-8048-639-2 . Retrieved 19 January 2019 .
^ "The Official Swiss Charts and Music Community: Awards (A-ha; ' Minor Earth, Major Sky' )" . IFPI Switzerland. Hung Medien. Retrieved 19 January 2019 .
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