The original "Take On Me" was recorded in 1984 and it took two versions and three releases to finally chart in the United Kingdom, reaching number two on the UK Singles Chart in November 1985. In the United States in October 1985, the song became the only A-ha song to reach the top position of the Billboard Hot 100, due in no small part to the wide exposure on MTV of its innovative music video, directed by Steve Barron. The video features the band in a pencil-sketch animation method called rotoscoping, combined with live action. The video won six awards and was nominated for two others at the 1986 MTV Video Music Awards. . CHART (1985-86) Australia - 1 Austria - 1 Belgium - 1 Belgium - 1 Canada - 1 Canada Top Singles - 2 Finnish Singles Chart - 4 France - 3 Germany - 1 Ireland - 2 Italy - 1 Japanese - 25 Netherlands - 1 Netherlands - 1 New Zealand - 7 Norway - 1 Portuguese Singles - 2 South Africa - 7 Spain - 11 Sweden - 1 Switzerland - 1 UK Singles - 2 US Billboard Hot 100 - 1 US Billboard Adult Contemporary - 4 US Billboard Hot Dance Music/Maxi-Singles - 36 US Cash Box - 1 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Take_On_Me