UB40 is probably the UK's most successful reggae band in history having released music spanning 3 decades. I have been a great fan of UB40 since the early 80s. They formed in Birmingham in the UK in 1978 and have had many a famous single in the UK charts throughout their career.

EARLY DAYS AND INFLUENCES

The band got its name "UB40" from the form that was used for unemployment benefit claimants (Unemployment Benefit Form 40) which has now been replaced with the more friendly JSAG (Job Seekers AGreement form). UB40's earlier songs and influences were very much related to unemployment and racism in varying forms.

The band members grew up in the same area and when they got together initially they weren't expert musicians, just a bunch of guys who loved reggae and had been influenced strongly by this genre of music which had been around for a few years by then. They were also strongly influenced by ska, lovers rock and blues music.

UB40 got their first big break when Chrissie Hynde of The Pretenders spotted them playing in a pub and asked them to be a support act to her group and things took off from there. It wasn't until 1983 that the band became popular in the US.

BAND MEMBERS

The original members of the band were all born in the mid to late 50s and are as follows:

• Ali Campbell - played guitar and was the lead vocalist till he left the band in February of 2008.
• Jimmy Brown - drummer.
• Robin Campbell - lead guitarist.
• Norman Hassan - percussionist, trombone and vocalist.
• Earl Falconer - bass guitarist and vocalist.
• Astro (Terence Wilson) - vocalist, percussionist, trumpeter.
• Mickey Virtue - keyboards.
• Brian Travers - saxophone.

2008 has seen Ali Campbell leaving after 30 years with the band as well as Mickey Virtue and 2 new band members have been taken on Duncan Campbell on vocals and Tony Mullings on keyboards.

ALBUMS, SINGLES, OTHER IMPORTANT STUFF

To this date July 2008, UB40 have released about 33 albums, their first one titled "Signing Off" in 1980 (which is now a Platinum album), an album which stayed in the charts for 72 weeks and most recently they released TwentyFourSeven in 2008 (which sadly didn't even make the top 75 album charts). 9 of their albums have had decent sales in the US including: "Labour of Love", "Labour of Love II", "Promises and Lies" and "Rat in the Kitchen".

Of their singles, they have had a several singles which topped the UK charts and some which topped the US charts too, namely: "Red, Red Wine", "I Got You Babe", "Can't Help Falling in Love", and many other singles got into the top 40 charts including: "One in Ten", "Please Don't Make Me Cry", "Many Rivers to Cross", "Cherry Oh Baby", "If It Happens Again", "Rat in my Kitchen", "Homely Girl", "Kingston Town" and "Don't Break My Heart". Kingston Town is one of my all time favourite songs by any band and I am very fond of "One in Ten" and "Homely Girl" too.

It's worth noting that UB40 were nominated for a Grammy Award in 2006 in the Reggae category for Who You Fighting For and they've performed twice at Night of the Proms, in 2000 and 2006. UB40 toured South Africa in 2007 and headlined the Live Earth concert performing a set of nearly 60 minutes live on stage.

Something I should mention is all of UB40s songs that topped the charts in the UK were cover singles and most of their US number 1s were also covers.

I wanted to list part of the lyrics to a few of my fave UB40 singles starting with Homely Girl. This song is about a girl who was very "homely" back in school days and then grew into a beautiful woman…

"It must have broke your poor little heart
When the boys used to say,
you looked better in the dark.
But now they'd give all they learnt in school
To be somewhere in the dark with you

The teacher would ask the questions
And you, would always raise your hand
But somehow you never got your turn
And my eyes would fill with water, inside I'd burn"

Then there was One in Ten, a powerful song about the misery surrounding being unemployed, when one in ten people in the UK were signing on to get benefits because they couldn't find work:

"I am the one in ten
A number on a list
I am the one in ten
Even though I don't exist
Nobody knows me
But I'm always there
A statistic, a reminder
Of a world that doesn't care

My arms enfold the dole queue
Malnutrition dulls my hair
My eyes are black and lifeless
With an underprivileged stare
I'm the beggar on the corner
Will no-one spare a dime?
I'm the child that never learns to read
'Cause no-one spared the time"

COLLABORATIONS

Over the years UB40 have collaborated with many other bands. Probably the most famous artists that they have worked with are Chrissie Hynde, Maxi Priest (another artist whom I admire), Robert Palmer and Afrika Bambaataa. Their single with Chrissie Hyne "I Got You Babe" was a a UK number 1 and reached number 28 in the US charts and "I'll be Your Baby Tonight" with Robert Palmer reached number 6 in the UK charts. "Can't Help Falling in Love" was the title track for the Sharon Shone starrer Sliver and reached the top of UK and US charts and even today when I hear that song it always reminds me of a particular scene from that film! Do you know the one I mean?!

UB40 have also collaborated with Madness, Pato Banton and Hunterz.

TO CLOSE

In closing I would say I am a diehard UB40 fan. I've loved their music since my adolescent days and imagine I will continue to like them well into my old age. Many of their songs hold a special place in my heart and if you honestly have never heard any of their songs, do have a listen at youtube.com where you can type in the name of any of the songs I've mentioned above or have a browse around their official website which is http://www.ub40.co.uk

What does the future hold for UB40? For me, I don't know if I'll feel the same about their music since Ali Campbell has moved on to concentrate on solo projects. His brother might still be in the band but it was Ali's voice that did the lead vocals for all these years. Watch this space… Maybe I'll update this in a year or so once they've release a few more singles.