
Peak
20
Weeks
17
Score
1,920
Chart Year
1986
Pal Waaktaar, a-ha's guitarist and writer of this song is quoted in 1000 UK #1 Hits by Jon Kutner and Spencer Leigh as saying: "The Sun Always Shines On TV was written on one of those down days. Me and Mags (Furuholmen, keyboards) were in a hotel watching English television on a rainy day and the guy announcing the program says, 'It's a rainy day but, as always, the sun always shines on TV.' The song is about the power of television and the way television presents life." The video continues the story of the "Take On Me" video. At the beginning, Morten Harket turns back into a comic book character and then it shows television-like credits. >> Andrew Wickham, the Warner Bros. A&R exec who signed the band to the label, listened to his secretary when she said the tune would be a hit. "She convinced him to make room for it," Waaktaar explained. But the sun wasn't shining on the band when it came time to record. "When we recorded it, we were really sick with influenza. Magne and Morten were lying in the studio on camping beds with high fevers." This was used in the trailer for the 2008 film Slumdog Millionaire. This won two trophies at the MTV Video Music Awards in 1986: Best Editing in a Video (for editor David Yardley) and Best Cinematography in a Video (for Director of Photography Oliver Stapleton). Report this ad A live version was recorded for a-ha's 2003 album, How Can I Sleep with Your Voice in My Head. The band performed this at the Nobel Peace Prize concert in 1998. The chorus on "The Sun Always Shines On T.V." was originally a last-minute middle-8 on a tune Paul Waaktaar-Savoy was working on called "Never Never." "Putting bits of songs together that come from different places often provides a great lift or adds a dimension you wouldn't have stumbled upon otherwise," he told American Songwriter.
Touch me, how can it be ? Believe me, the sun always shines on T.V. Hold me close to your heart Touch me and give all your love to me, to me... I reached inside myself and found nothing there To ease the pressure off my ever worrying mind All my powers waste away, I fear the crazed and lonely looks The mirror's sending me these Days Touch me, how can it be ? Believe me, the sun always shines on T.V. Hold me close to your heart Touch me and give all your love to me, to me... Please don't ask me to defend the shamefull lowlands Of the way I'm drifting gloomily through time (Touch me) I reached inside myself today (Give all your love) Thinking there's got to be some way To keep my troubles distant Touch me, how can it be ? Believe me, the sun always shines on T.V. Hold me close to your heart Touch me and give all your love to me, to me... Hold me close to your heart Touch me and give all your love to me, to me...
| Week | Chart Date | Position | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nov 30, 1985 | 79 | 47 |
| 2 | Dec 7, 1985 | 68 | 58 |
| 3 | Dec 14, 1985 | 55 | 71 |
| 4 | Dec 21, 1985 | 50 | 76 |
| 5 | Dec 28, 1985 | 43 | 83 |
| 6 | Jan 4, 1986 | 43 | 83 |
| 7 | Jan 11, 1986 | 37 | 89 |
| 8 | Jan 18, 1986 | 36 | 90 |
| 9 | Jan 25, 1986 | 32 | 94 |
| 10 | Feb 1, 1986 | 28 | 98 |
| 11 | Feb 8, 1986 | 24 | 102 |
| 12 | Feb 15, 1986 | 21 | 105 |
| 13 | Feb 22, 1986 | 20 | 106 |
| 14 | Mar 1, 1986 | 32 | 94 |
| 15 | Mar 8, 1986 | 46 | 80 |
| 16 | Mar 15, 1986 | 69 | 57 |
| 17 | Mar 22, 1986 | 100 | 26 |