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a-ha / Hunting High and Low super deluxe edition 5-disc box set

By Paul Sinclair

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a-ha - HHAL30

Details of the 30th anniversary super deluxe edition box set of Hunting High and Low,  a-ha‘s 1985 debut album, have finally been officially confirmed, seven months after fans were alerted to the fact that the project was happening.

This deluxe box contains four CDs and a DVD, and when compared to the two-CD deluxe of 2010, essentially offers more demos, more remixes and more alternate versions.

The first CD now reverts to ‘just’ the 10-track album, with the four bonus cuts from the previous deluxe evacuated and relocated to disc three of this new set.

Disc 2 is packed with demos – almost all of the previous ones, plus a few extra including four “Naersnes” Demos and a second demo of The Blue Sky. I say ‘almost’ because the ‘slow version demo’ of the title track isn’t included here.

The third CD concerns itself with commercially released material: edits, remixes, dubs, second twelve-inch mixes, and the like. This is much more comprehensive than before – with a full set of seven-inch remixes plus the dub mix of Train of Thought, and those pesky digital bonus tracks are now included as part of the physical offering.

More digging around in the archives has resulted the content of CD 4 – an entirely new reading of Hunting High and Low compiled from previously unheard early/alternate mixes – while a DVD completes this box with five videos, including an ‘alternate’ cut of the famous 1985 promo of Take On Me.

This set comes packaged as a 10 x 10-inch hardcover book with 60 pages of never before seen photos of the band, handwritten lyric sheets and new liner notes by Kieron Tyler.

The Hunting High and Low super deluxe edition is released on 18 September 2015.

Disc: 1
1. Take On Me (2015 Remastered)
2. Train Of Thought (2015 Remastered)
3. Hunting High And Low (2015 Remastered)
4. The Blue Sky (2015 Remastered)
5. Living A Boy’s Adventure Tale (2015 Remastered) – a-Ha
6. The Sun Always Shines On T.V. (2015 Remastered)
7. And You Tell Me (2015 Remastered)
8. Love Is Reason (2015 Remastered)
9. I Dream Myself Alive
10. Here I Stand And Face The Rain (2015 Remastered)

Disc: 2
1. Lesson One (Autumn 1982 “Take On Me” Demo) (2015 Remastered)
2. Presenting Lily Mars Naersnes Demo) (2015 Remastered)
3. Sa Blaser Det Pa Jorden (Naersnes Demo) [2015 Remastered]
4. The Sphinx(Naersnes Demo)
5. Living A Boy’s Adventure Tale (Naersnes Demo)
6. Dot The I (2015 Remastered)
7. The Love Goodbye (2015 Remastered)
8. Nothing To It (2015 Remastered)
9. Go To Sleep (2015 Remastered)
10. Train Of Thought (Demo) (2015 Remastered)
11. Monday Mourning (2015 Remastered)
12. All The Planes That Come In On The Quiet (2015 Remastered)
13. The Blue Sky (Demo) (2015 Remastered)
14. You Have Grown Thoughtful Again (2015 Remastered)
15. What’s That You’re Doing To Yourself In The Pouring Rain (2015 Remastered)
16. Take On Me (Demo) (2015 Remastered)
17. Hunting High And Low (Demo)
18. I Dream Myself Alive (Demo) [2015 Remastered]
19. And You Tell Me (Demo) [2015 Remastered]
20. Here I Stand And Face The Rain (Demo) (2015 Remastered)
21. Love Is Reason (Demo) (2015 Remastered)
22. The Blue Sky (2nd Demo)
23. Never Never (2015 Remastered)
24. The Sun Always Shines On T.V. (Demo) (2015 Remastered)
25. Presenting Lily Mars (Rendezvous Demo)

Disc: 3
1. Take On Me (Original 7″ Version 1984) (2015 Remastered)
2. Take On Me (1984 12″ Mix) (2015 Remastered)
3. Stop! And Make Your Mind Up (2015 Remastered)
4. Take On Me (1985 12″ Mix) (2015 Remastered)
5. Take On Me (Instrumental Mix) (2015 Remastered)
6. The Sun Always Shines On T.V. (7′ Mix) (2015 Remastered)
7. The Sun Always Shines On T.V. (Extended Version) (2015 Remastered)
8. Driftwood (2015 Remastered)
9. The Sun Always Shines On T.V. (Extended Version) [2015 Remastered]
10. The Sun Always Shines On T.V. (Instrumental) [2015 Remastered]
11. Train Of Thought (7″ Remix) (2015 Remastered)
12. Train Of Thought (U.S. Remix) (2015 Remastered)
13. Train Of Thought (Dub Mix) (2015 Remastered)
14. Hunting High And Low(7″ Remix) (2015 Remastered)
15. Hunting High And Low(Extended Remix) [2015 Remastered]

Disc: 4
1. Take On Me (Video Version) (2015 Remastered)
2. Train Of Thought (Early Mix) (2015 Remastered)
3. Hunting High And Low (Early Mix) (2015 Remastered)
4. The Blue Sky (Alternate Long Mix) (2015 Remastered)
5. Living A Boy’s Adventure Tale (Early Mix) (2015 Remastered)
6. The Sun Always Shines On T.V. (Alternate Early Mix) (2015 Remastered)
7. And You Tell Me (Early Mix) (2015 Remastered)
8. Love Is Reason (Early Mix) (2015 Remastered)
9. Dream Myself Alive (Early “NYC” Mix) (2015 Remastered)
10. Here I Stand And Face The Rain (Early Mix (2015 Remastered)

Disc: 5 (DVD)
1. Take On Me (1985 Version)
2. The Sun Always Shines On TV
3. Train Of Thought
4. Hunting High And Low
5. Take On Me (1984 Version)
6. Take On Me (1985 Alternate Cut)

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98 Comments

98 thoughts on “a-ha / Hunting High and Low super deluxe edition 5-disc box set”

  3. It seems the 30th Anniversary Super Deluxe Edition of “Hunting High and Low” is omitting one track previously released.

    “Living A Boy’s Adventure Tale” was included with an “Early Version” on the 2010 “Deluxe Edition”:
    https://open.spotify.com/track/4nLGV3VVWkakzEuI6yRN7V

    But on this 2015 Super Deluxe Edition an “Early Mix” is included instead:
    https://open.spotify.com/track/71AOKS08xerGtPgwAYnlDr

    This “Early Mix” is different from (and shorter than) the “Early Version” from the 2010 remaster. Just FYI.

  4. £33.08 on Amazon France plus your postage on top of that. As i stated earlier it’s £34.99 on HMV and you are certain to receive it either on Friday or Saturday. I just can’t justify buying this already owning the 2010 remaster which has all the tracks repeated on this box set and i have the two DVD video compilations they have released. I will buy the rest of the remasters released in October but not from Amazon at £17.99 each they can go run and jump.

  5. £44.67 on Amazon now. I noticed there is a single disc release but no double. If they had released a double with disc 1 and disc 3 i would have bought it but i will stick with my 2010 release.

  6. I am surprised they are not releasing a singles box set similar to the Nanas and Belinda recent releases, I would buy that before another version of this album!! Any truth in the rumours that Kate Bush and Dusty Springfield singles box sets are in the works??

  12. Interesting how it says in the sleevenotes of the 2010 remaster in other words this deluxe edition of HHIAL is the LAST word on a-ha’s landmark breakthrough.

  13. will be getting this.

    actually, glad there isn’t a gimmicky 5.1 mix. no point in trying to enhance something that didn’t need it.

    yes, there should have been a lot more on the DVD, but maybe next time.

    later
    -1

    1. Next time? This’ll be the 3rd time i buy this and for almost £40. Others more (4th, 5th etc). No ‘next time’ for me. This is the LAST time

  14. Haven’t checked in for a while as I’ve been travelling.
    As soon as I saw that there was an SDE of ‘Hunting…’ due for release I thought “Oh there had better be a 5.1 mix on it or there is going to be a lot of unhappy folks” and sure enough….

    Personally speaking, I don’t have a 5.1 system so I am pretty happy with this actually – it seems pretty exhaustive, contains demos (which I love), no live cuts (which I tend not to like as much without the visuals) and does not go overboard on mixes.

    The one thing I would change/add would be more video content on the DVD which, as others have mentioned, seems pretty light. Maybe a contemporaneous live set would have been a nice addition.

    I’m not sure how much works goes into a 5.1 mix but maybe the record company didn’t have the appetite for it… (and sometimes they get released separately as a money grab although I guess Paul would know about it by now if it were happening).

    Thanks for the info Paul as always.

  15. The 2010 Albert Hall show was not filmed although you can watch superb edits of the various audience-shot footage paired with the BBC audio on youtube.

    I agree this was a missed opportunity to include the audio of the Albert Hall HHAL performance. As for the discs full of remixes…am I the only person who finds these incredibly tedious? They’re one-listen out-of-curiosity affairs. There’s a wealth of professionally recorded concerts from throughout the band’s career. I would WAY rather have stuff like that included on a set like this.

    Despite being a huge fan I think the deluxe 2CD set already included everything I care to own.

  17. There are no missing mixes. The flexi was just an edit and was never an official release in any case. If you start including non-official edits of everything it can get silly very quickly and makes for a weird listening experience. Where would it end?

  18. …And a missed opportunity for a physical release of Kygo’s 2015 remix of “Take on me”, a new Apple digital ecxlusive.It leaves out the famous keyboard riff and adds a panflute. “Ballsy” Mags from A-ha called it.

  20. Not sure what the point of this is when they released a remaster a couple of years ago. I was excited about it when it was announced there would be a DVD, but there is hardly anything on it. No 5.1, hi-Rez, and more demos and stuff that could have been on the initial remaster is s bit fleecing the customer here. Bit disappointed, but looking forward to the other three remasters and the new album regardless.

  21. So, missing is…
    HHAL (Slow version demo)
    TSASOTV (Flexi disc)
    5.1 mix from DVD
    TV performaces on DVD
    HHAL Royal Albert Hall 2010 on DVD
    Take on me 1st 12″ as someone mentioned but i do see TOM 1984 12″ listed

  23. After getting so much joy out of the dvd’s of “Songs From Thr Big Chair” and “Sparkel In The Rain” super deluxe edition.
    Then it is hard to get excited about this, without s new mix in high res and 5.1.
    5 videos that I can catch on YouTube….
    Such a disappointment….

  24. Disc 1/2/4 plus some missing mix(es) as mentioned by others: flexi disc! Then fit them onto a 2-disc set for less would do for me. Too many demo’s! I’ll buy this anyway. But the DVD without extra just don’t make much sense! Everybody has those or seen those already. Other live TV performances or a concert would make more sense. Why don’t they do an A-ha CD singles box? :P

  25. Whew. An early track list for this set had the 1985 12″ mix of “Take on Me” missing from Disc 3. Glad they fixed that!

    The amazon listing mentions “more than two dozen rare and unreleased demos,” so I’m guessing the “rare” ones are from the previous deluxe edition and the “unreleased” ones are whatever is left over. Also, it does say that Disc 4 consists of entirely unreleased material.

    Can’t wait for this!

  26. why oh why are we not getting a 5:1 mix and a lot more content on the DVD?, the DVD just seems pointless when you consider how much footage is available, its such a missed opportunity

    2. Not happening in the foresable future Continuing the festivities there will be Deluxe Editions of “Stay On These Roads” (1988), “East of the Sun, West of the Moon” (1990) and “Memorial Beach” (1993) later in the year.

  29. Great set, thanks for the heads up Paul
    Been looking forward to the a-ha SDE’s since mentioned months ago.
    The only thing missing (for me anyway) is some kind of vinyl inclusion. Orginal TOM 7″ reissue or vinyl LP of HHAL would have been good.

  30. Description from CDJapan page:

    Super deluxe edition of “Hunting High And Low” from a-ha. Consists of five discs, a description, lyrics, and a 60-page booklet. CD 1 includes the original tracks, featuring 2015 remastering. CD2 includes demo tracks and more, which were the same contents with ones included in its deluxe edition released in 2010. CD3 includes B-side tracks from their singles not included in the album plus alternate mixes/versions. CD4 is the album “Hunting High And Low” featuring alternate mix. DVD includes music video(s), an early take of “Take On Me,” and high-resolution audio track(s) (24bit/96kHz). *The DVD disc is encoded for region 2 (Japan, Europe, and Middle East), and no subtitles are included.
    Special Feature / Bonus Track: bonus track(s)

  31. a question to all the a-ha fans out there: after a quick check, these are the new songs/mixes/demos which were not on the 2010 two disc deluxe edition, is that right?

    CD2 – song 2 presenting lily mars (naersnes demo)
    CD2 – song 3 sa blaster det pa jorden (naersnes demo)
    CD2 – song 4 the sphinx (naersnes demo)
    CD2 – song 5 living a boy’s adventure tale (naersnes demo)
    CD2 – song 13 the blue sky (demo)
    CD2 – song 22 the blue sky (2nd demo)
    CD2 – song 25 presenting lily mars (rendezvous demo)

    CD3 – song 2 take on me (1984 12″ mix)
    CD3 – song 4 take on me (1985 12″ mix)
    CD3 – song 5 take on me (instrumental mix)
    CD3 – song 6 the sun always shines on t.v. (7″ mix)
    CD3 – song 9 the sun always shines on t.v. (extended version)
    CD 3 – song 10 the sun always shines on t.v. (instrumental)
    CD 3 – song 11 train of thought (7″ remix)
    CD 3 – song 13 train of thought (dub mix)
    CD 4 – song 14 hunting high and low (7″ remix)

    CD 5 – all songs except song 5 living a boy’s adventure tale (early mix)

    am i right? i got a bit confused with the two versions of “presenting lily mars” and also with the extended versions of “the sun always shines on t.v.”… not sure which is which as there is no info which feature on the 2010 edition.

    1. Okay, I *think* that one of the Blue Sky demos will be the same as appeared on the previous edition (and on the b-side of Hunting High & Low single.) The Alan Tarney extended mix of Sun Always… is on the 2CD set. It’s the one that isn’t danced up, just extended at the beginning and includes a verse with vocal & piano and then seems to cut to the LP version at the first “Touch me…”

      Other people here will know far more than me!

    2. Re Presenting Lily Mars – it’s the Rendez Vous version that is new. The “naersnes demo” was the version on the previous 2CD. I got this info from someone in the know, because I queried it. Living A Boy’s Adventure Tale could be a different early version, because my understanding was that they were trying to sell CD4 as all unreleased. I should be able to confirm soon.

  32. Unfortunately, I have only recently given A-ha a second chance. Wow, did I miss a lot. It has been great getting to know this band I blew off decades ago. Very much looking forward to this time capsule. Duran Duran and Pet Shop Boys take note!

  33. I would have prefered a 2 disc edition with the main album and disc 3 with all the remixes. The DVD is a total waste of time and if they could drop the DVD and make it a 4 disc affair for £20 then i would consider buying it but certainly not for £35.

  35. I’m a little surprised that considering the way these box sets are coming out, that there is no hi-res or 5.1 formats included, and pretty flimsy set of DVD extras I must say…but I’ll buy it. Big fan!

    1. No, there is not going to be Scroudel Day super deluxe. They did a deluxe edition of this album, along side the first time they deluxed Hunting High and Low. It was alleged that they were doing deluxe editions of Stay On These Roads, East and West Of The Sun, and Memorial Beach. Not forgetting the new album, which could be Deluxed, Cast Of Steel.

      1. What you mean is there are no plans and nothing announced for Scoundrel Days. That doesn’t mean there won’t be one at some point. Stay On These Roads, East of the Sun West of the Moon and Memorial Beach are all coming out as deluxe editions later this year.

  37. Gotta say, think that it looks great and so well priced! Didnt expect a 5.1 but have to agree that I thought there would be more content, it’s very thin as it sits!

  38. Gotta say, think that it looks great and so well priced! Didnt expect a 5.1 but have to agree that I thought there would be content, it’s very thin as it sits!

  39. I though the sleeve notes were excellent for the previous 2CD set – I would have liked to have read more, so hopefully these ones will be even better! Not particularly keen on the 10×10 format, but it’s not a deal breaker.

  40. Lesson One is a quite a challenge to listen to, but I guess it is track 1 on the second disc due to some sense of chronology? What an opener! I’m pleased that the Video Mix of Take On Me is on there, but disappointed that the flexi disc U.S. Remix of Sun Always Shines… has been omitted again. *sigh*

    Disc 4 is of greatest interest to me, and I’m kind of relieved there’s no 5.1 as I was disappointed with the Tears for Fears one.

    1. Well, the flexi disc was “only” an edit of the steve Thompson remix with the A-ha member talking a little on the repeated intro… Maybe they just forgot having done this ! If the introduction part is very rare, it’s easy to redo the edit (I did it already)… Well, maybe we could ask Warner to make this edition perfect ?!

      I think that’s the only thing missing with now the appearance of the first 12″ version of “Take On Me”.
      I’m really pleased with this extended play, and I hope they’ll do the same with the 3 next albums ! Cross fingers…

      1. Yeah, it is an edit, but it has the proper ending unlike the 12″ Thompson mix – and the vocal intros as you said. (And possibly a bit more interesting than the 7″ single edit?)

    2. “I’m kind of relieved there’s no 5.1 as I was disappointed with the Tears for Fears one.”

      I don’t get that: many people said the 5.1 was reference and clearly enjoyed it. Even if you’re disappointed by this one mix, that doesn’t say anything about 5.1 done by somebody else (Steven Wilson is a prog musician…even if a-ha were doing some quite complex things on tracks like the title song or “The Sun Always Shines on TV” he wouldn’t do it, me reckons) and certainly it would be just one element to be possibly disappointed by.

  47. @Scott: There were 2 different official extendeds for “TV”– one is a Thompson & Barbiero remix, the other more like the album version. I am assuming that’s what’s going on here.

  48. I think there are two different ‘extended’ versions. The more recognised extended version (by Steve Thompson) clocks in at around 8 and a half minutes, whilst the original extended version is around 7 minutes in length.

  52. Brilliant. I hope the following reissues are as packed with tracks and videos. A-Ha are one of the best bands of the 80s and onwards

  53. Could have done with more sound options, but the first 4 CD’s seem pretty comprehensive from the train home…
    The DVD looks pretty sparse tho, surely there’s other stuff they could bung on it, old TV appearances and such like. Then again do any of these 5th disc DVDs get a spin after that quick initial look?

  55. It would have been nice to also create a 2-CD edition with the album and the mixes from disc 3. I’d buy that for around £15. But I wouldn’t buy this edition because I’m not a big fan of A-Ha, I just like their singles. I have no need for the alternative mixes and demos, or the DVD.

      1. i have to say im extremely disappointed at disc 5 dvd where are totp shows ,wogan shows, mayb a concert included on one of my fav bands and albums its very good but very short on tv shows

        1. Even if the licensing costs of that proved prohibitive, you’d think there might have been some ‘home video’ footage of the band when they first arrived in London and got their deal etc. Or perhaps they could have included a clickable archive photo gallery. Hell, even ABBA’s much derided (well, by me anyway) “International Sleeve Gallery” is better than nothing! :)

          1. Haha, I can live without the sleeve gallery! A brief digression: with sleeve galleries and menus it would be nice to include a track in instrumental form rather than the same standard stuff!

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