Guitar Songs, Tabs & Lessons

a-ha

1 guitar song · Tabs, Lessons & Tone Guide Synthpop

Choose a a-ha Song to Play

Take On Me - Guitar Lesson

YouTube Stats: 96K · 3.6K

GuitarLessons365SongLessons Guitar Lesson

Take On Me - Guitar Cover

YouTube Stats: 1.2M · 26K

Kfir Ochaion Guitar Cover

Band Overview

A-ha emerged from Oslo, Norway in 1982 and became one of the defining synth-pop acts of the 1980s, achieving worldwide fame with their 1985 debut album "Hunting High and Low." While most people associate the band with keyboards and Morten Harket's soaring vocals, guitarist Pål Waaktaar-Savoy has always been the quiet engine room of the group's songwriting and sonic identity. He co-wrote virtually every A-ha song, and his guitar work, though often understated in the mix, provides essential harmonic texture, melodic counterpoint, and rhythmic drive that elevates the music beyond standard synth-pop. Pål Waaktaar-Savoy's guitar style is a masterclass in tasteful restraint. Rather than shredding over synth pads, he layers clean, chorus-drenched arpeggios and jangly chord voicings that interlock with the keyboards. Think of it as the intersection between The Edge's ambient approach and Johnny Marr's melodic sensibility. His parts often use open-string chord voicings, suspended chords, and sixth intervals that give A-ha songs their bittersweet, cinematic quality. For guitarists interested in learning how to serve a song rather than dominate it, Waaktaar-Savoy is an exceptional study. In terms of difficulty, most A-ha guitar parts are intermediate-level. The challenge is not in speed or technical acrobatics but in precision, dynamics, and getting the right tone. Clean playing is unforgiving because every note rings out clearly, so sloppy fretting or inconsistent picking will be immediately exposed. Songs like "Take On Me" require you to nail arpeggiated patterns with a specific rhythmic feel that locks in with the synth riff. If you are a guitarist who wants to develop your ear for arrangement, learn how to use effects musically, and build a vocabulary of sophisticated pop chord voicings, A-ha's catalog is surprisingly rewarding territory to explore.

What Makes a-ha Essential for Guitar Players

Pål Waaktaar-Savoy relies heavily on clean arpeggiated patterns using open-string voicings and suspended chords. Practicing these parts will build your ability to play precise, ringing arpeggios without any gain to hide behind.
Chorus and delay effects are essential to the A-ha guitar sound. Waaktaar-Savoy layers modulated clean tones that sit in the mix like a pad, making this a great study in using time-based effects to create atmosphere rather than just volume.
Many A-ha guitar parts use sixth intervals and add9 chords that give the music its distinctive melancholic sparkle. Working through these voicings will expand your chord vocabulary well beyond standard barre and power chord shapes.
Rhythmic precision is critical. The guitar parts often lock tightly with programmed synth sequences and drum machines, so practicing with a metronome or backing track is essential to nailing the feel of songs like "Take On Me."
Waaktaar-Savoy occasionally introduces overdriven tones on later albums, using moderate gain for textural contrast rather than outright distortion. This is a great exercise in learning how to use gain as a dynamic tool within a predominantly clean arrangement.

Did You Know?

Pål Waaktaar-Savoy originally wrote "Take On Me" (then called "Lesson One") on acoustic guitar in a much slower, moodier arrangement before the band and producer Alan Tarney transformed it into the synth-driven hit we know today.

Before A-ha, Waaktaar-Savoy played in a punk-influenced band called Bridges, and you can hear traces of that raw energy in some of A-ha's more guitar-forward deep cuts from the late 1980s and 1990s.

Waaktaar-Savoy formed a side project called Savoy in the 1990s, which leaned much more heavily on guitars with alternative rock and shoegaze influences. It is a goldmine for fans who want to hear his playing in a less polished context.

The guitar on "Take On Me" is often overlooked because the iconic synth riff dominates the arrangement, but the strummed and arpeggiated guitar parts are what give the verses their warmth and forward momentum.

A-ha's 2000s reunion albums, particularly "Foot of the Mountain" (2009), feature noticeably more prominent electric guitar work, blending modern rock production with their classic synth-pop sensibility.

Waaktaar-Savoy is known for being a prolific home-studio songwriter who demos extensively on guitar before bringing songs to the full band. Many of A-ha's biggest hits started as simple acoustic guitar sketches.

During the recording of "Hunting High and Low," the band went through multiple producers and studio sessions. The guitar parts were re-recorded and refined several times, demonstrating how much attention Waaktaar-Savoy pays to tone and arrangement.

Essential Albums for Guitarists

Hunting High and Low 1985

This is the essential starting point. "Take On Me" teaches you rhythmic precision with clean arpeggios, while deeper cuts like "Train of Thought" and "The Sun Always Shines on T.V." showcase jangly chord work and atmospheric clean tones. The album is a clinic in how to make guitar parts shine within a synth-heavy arrangement.

Spotify Apple Music

Scoundrel Days 1986

A-ha's second album is darker and more guitar-forward than the debut. Tracks like "Cry Wolf" and the title track feature more prominent electric guitar with overdriven textures and moody arpeggios. It is the best album for guitarists who want to explore the band beyond their pop hits and learn how to blend guitar with electronic production.

Spotify Apple Music

Memorial Beach 1993

This underrated album leans heavily into alternative rock territory with grittier guitar tones and more aggressive strumming patterns. Songs like "Dark Is the Night" and "Move to Memphis" feature prominent guitar riffs that sit closer to bands like Depeche Mode or U2 in their guitar approach. Great for intermediate players looking to explore dynamics and gain staging.

Spotify Apple Music

Tone & Gear

Guitar

Pål Waaktaar-Savoy has most commonly been seen with Fender Stratocasters and Telecasters throughout his career, particularly during the classic 1980s era. He has also used various semi-hollow and hollow-body guitars for warmer tones on certain tracks. In later years, he has been spotted with Gibson Les Pauls and various boutique instruments, but the core of his recorded sound leans toward single-coil Fender territory, which gives his parts that bright, chimey quality that cuts through synth layers.

Amp

Waaktaar-Savoy's amp choices have varied across eras, but his studio tone in the 1980s was primarily achieved through clean, relatively high-headroom amplifiers. Fender Twin Reverbs and Vox AC30s are consistent with the sparkly, chorus-rich clean tones heard on the records. The amps are typically run clean with volume around 4-5, relying on effects rather than power-tube breakup for tonal color. For the grittier tones on later albums, moderate gain from a cranked AC30 or low-wattage amp gets you in the ballpark.

Pickups

Single-coil pickups are the foundation of the classic A-ha guitar sound. Standard Fender Stratocaster pickups in the neck and middle positions deliver the bright, glassy tone you hear on "Take On Me" and most of "Hunting High and Low." The lower output of single-coils keeps the dynamics responsive and allows chorus and delay effects to sound open and defined rather than muddy. On tracks requiring warmer or thicker tones, humbucker-equipped guitars fill out the low-mids without pushing into heavy rock territory.

Effects & Chain

Chorus is the single most important effect for nailing the A-ha guitar sound. A Boss CE-2 or Roland Dimension D style chorus set to a moderate depth and rate is essential. After that, a stereo delay (think Boss DD-2 or Roland SDE-1000) with dotted-eighth or quarter-note repeats adds the ambient spaciousness. A touch of reverb (plate or hall) rounds out the chain. The signal path is typically guitar into chorus, then delay, then reverb, running into a clean amp. Keep the gain off your amp and let the effects do the work.

Recommended Gear

Guitar

Fender Stratocaster

Pål Waaktaar-Savoy's primary choice for A-ha's signature sound, the Strat's bright single-coil pickups deliver the glassy, chimey tone that cuts through synth layers on hits like 'Take On Me.' The responsive dynamics let chorus and delay effects shine without muddiness.

Guitar

Fender Telecaster

Used alongside the Stratocaster throughout A-ha's classic 1980s era, the Telecaster provides additional brightness and snap to complement the band's synth-driven arrangements. Its single-coil character maintains that open, defined quality essential to their chorus-heavy effects palette.

Guitar

Gibson Les Paul Standard

In later years, Waaktaar-Savoy employed the Les Paul Standard for warmer, thicker low-mid tones that contrast with his Fender arsenal without venturing into heavy rock territory. The humbucker warmth adds textural depth to newer material while keeping the sound distinctly A-ha.

Guitar

Gibson Les Paul Custom

Similar to the Standard, the Custom provides the humbucker thickness needed for fuller tones on later albums, offering warmer character than single-coils while maintaining the clean, effects-driven approach that defines A-ha's production aesthetic.

Amp

Fender Twin Reverb

The Twin Reverb's high-headroom clean platform and lush reverb tank are foundational to A-ha's sparkly 1980s tone, allowing Waaktaar-Savoy to run effects at moderate volumes without power-tube breakup. The amp's transparency lets chorus and delay effects articulate clearly.

Amp

Vox AC30

The AC30's natural chime and breakup characteristics align perfectly with A-ha's chorus-rich sound, capable of running pristine and clean for 1980s hits or providing grittier moderate gain for later material. Its resonant character enhances the band's signature atmospheric effects.

How to Practice a-ha on GuitarZone

Every a-ha song page on GuitarZone includes a built-in Practice Toolbar. No app to download, no account needed. Open any song, then use the toolbar to slow the video to 0.5× speed, set an A/B loop around the exact riff you're working on, and jump between song sections instantly.

The toolbar appears automatically on every guitar tab, lesson, and cover page. Pick a song below, hit play, and start practicing at your own pace.

Practice Take On Me - Guitar Cover Practice Take On Me - Guitar Lesson