UB40 on Tour

A UB40 concert doubles as a lesson in how reggae has informed pop music over the last few decades. Weaving together island-inspired covers of American hits like “Red Red Wine” and “(I Can’t Help) Falling in Love With You” with their own songs such as “Food for Thought” and “Love Is All Is Alright,” the band keeps people dancing and vibing throughout their whole set. 

Currently, there are two versions of UB40 touring. One features founding members Robin Campbell, Brian Travers, Jimmy Brown, Earl Falconer and Norman Hassan alongside vocalist Duncan Campbell, while the other features founding vocalist Ali Campbell and percussionist-vocalist Astro. (Please check with your venue to see which group will be appearing.) 

UB40 Background

For more than four decades, Birmingham’s UB40 have been one of the world’s premier fusers of pop and reggae, with their working class, multicultural heritage and keen ear combining to create big hits. Formed in late 1978, the band named themselves after a form Brits had to file in order to receive unemployment benefits. They released their first album, Signing Off, in 1980, and its blend of dub, ska and reggae with pop hooks plus socially aware lyrics made it a critical favorite that launched two Top 10 singles in the UK. In 1983, they had a commercial breakthrough with their fourth album, Labour of Love, an all-covers collection made up of songs released between 1969 and 1972. Songs by reggae and rocksteady stars like The Melodians and Lee “Scratch” Perry made up the bulk of the album, and its biggest hit was a take on Jamaican singer Tony Tribe’s cover of Neil Diamond’s “Red Red Wine,” which lets Campbell and Astro trade verses over a bubbly beat. 

The global success of “Red Red Wine,” which went to No. 1 in the UK in 1983 and topped the American charts five years later, helped UB40 become Britain’s de facto reggae ambassadors. Blending self-penned reggae songs with Caribbean-influenced covers of pop hits like “I Got You Babe” (a collaboration with Pretenders leader Chrissie Hynde) and “(I Can’t Help) Falling in Love With You,” UB40 have forged a path as one of the world’s leading reggae bands, their dual commitment to social issues and groovy beats only growing stronger as time goes on.