The UK’s most successful reggae band, UB40, is returning to New Zealand in November 2017, playing all their hits and more! Spearheading the global reggae revival throughout the 80s and 90s, UB40 became a household name with smash tunes like ‘Red Red Wine’, ‘Can’t Help Falling In Love’, ‘Kingston Town’ and ‘Here I Am’.
Filling the charts with their own songs and creating seminal versions of some of the world’s greatest tunes, the band crossed radio formats and their songs are still blasted on the airwaves to this day. With dozens of top 40 hits in Britain and sales of more than 100 million records, UB40 is one of the biggest UK music acts of all time. The band continues to record charting albums while touring the world including regular trips to Australia and New Zealand where they have firmly found a place in the hearts of fans.
“Our Australasian tour in 2015 was so much fun for us we were very keen to ensure we got back as soon as possible,” said founding member songwriter Robin Campbell. “Unfortunately, scheduling has meant that November next year is our next opportunity, so rather than keep fans guessing, we wanted to let everyone know now and start the anticipation for what we hope will be 2017s biggest reggae party!”
After nearly four decades of success including their hit singles, international stadium tours, festival headline slots and the dramatic replacement of long-time lead singer Ali Campbell with his brother Duncan Campbell in 2008, the band continue with their key founding members and songwriting core, staying true to and building on the legacy and ethos of the band.
UB40 are Robin Campbell (co-lead vocals and guitar), Duncan Campbell (lead vocals) Earl Falconer (bass, vocal), Brian Travers (sax and keyboards), Jimmy Brown (drums), Norman Hassan (percussion, vocals).
The band also features Martin Meredith (sax) and Lawrence Parry (trumpet), who have both been in UB40’s touring line-up for more than 20 years, and Tony Mullins (keyboards), creating a genre-defining synergy of horns and rhythm section that are uniquely UB40.
