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| Sunday, 8 December 2002 |
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Buddies from schooldays, the eight striplings used to meet regularly at the unemployment bureau to sign for the dole back in the 70s. Born into a musical household, the two Campbells teamed up with five other jobless lads and Brian Travers, the saxophonist, the only one who had a job. James Brown, Ali Campbell, Robin Campbell, Earl Falconer, Norman Lamont Hassan, Brian Travers, Michael Virtue and Astro became UB40 even before they played a note. According to Ali the group hyped themselves so brilliantly and they called themselves UB40, even before having any instruments. Getting equipment was a problem however. They used the compensation money Ali got from being hit in the eye on his 17th birthday, for a few vital pieces, and the rest was `acquired' and the group positions were determined according the instruments each owned, possessed, acquired or purchased. "Jimmy had a set of drums, so he became the drummer," Ali is reported as saying. He had wanted to be the drummer, but since Jimmy couldn't sing drummer he had to be.
The multi ethnic group that has made many a gargantuan gigs around the world made a statement in London that they would be performing in Sri Lanka. Well, it's not just another statement. The band that has triumphed over higher grounds, will actually fulfil the reggae hopes of local reggae fanatics. Now howz that? Probably a great eye opener for those who fret to set foot in Sri Lanka, the arrival of the multi ethnic group will also be a huge boost to ethnic harmony, much in demand these days. Especially since the mission of these monarchs of reggae is to dish out flavours of music that has no race or religious biases or time limits. Enduringly appealing, be it the modern 80s or the hi-tech 21st Century stuff, UB40 has taken them places and undertaking many tasks. The band's most recent musical endeavour is the album titled `Cover up' with the title of the same name, which is about the AIDS epidemic in Africa. They say that the UN approached them to ask if they could write something to promote AIDS awareness in Africa. The title which has a double meaning is about wearing a condom to protect yourself from infection and to make people aware," reports saxophonist Brian Travers. And check out what the chorus has to proclaim. Cover up Stand your ground and voice an objection. UB40's decision to help the UN to battle against AIDS has been inspired by the alarming spread of AIDS in the world in recent years. So there, all you reggae-ites, grab the chance to see them live in concert and grab it fast. ################## Let's Party
Tickets for the "Peace Concert" featuring the international band are available at the Ministry of Commerce, Cargills outlets and CWE, City Hotels, SriLankan Airline offices, MTV and YES FM stations. The concert is an apt attempt to inspire the peace thoughts of people, says Ravi Karunanyake, Trade and Commerce minister. According to the minister, the band has issued a press release in London proclaiming that they would be performing in Sri Lanka. The organising committee has issued 60,000 tickets of which 500 tickets will be available at Rs. 15,000 each, 1,000 tickets at Rs. 5,000, 3,500 tickets at Rs. 2,500 and the rest will be sold at Rs.300. There will be 5,000 seats, 10 mega TV screens to give all the fans a chance to see the group in action. The show will be telecast live in Kandy, Jaffna, Kurunegala, Anuradhapura, Matara and Galle. Sri Lankan duo, Bathiya and Santhush will perform during the first 90 minutes of the four hour concert which will kick off at 7.30 pm on December 14. The concert is meant to be an eye opener for the foreign market, where Sri Lanka is being promoted as a peaceful destination. Caltex is the principal sponsor of the event, which is co-sponsored by ANCL, SriLankan Airlines, Galle Face Hotel, Galadari, Hemtours and Stassens. ##################### UB40 bio Michael Virtue Date of birth: 19-1-57 Astro Date of birth: 24-6-57 Norman Lamont Hassan Date of birth: 26-1-57 Ali Campbell Date of birth: 15-2-59 Robin Campbell Date of birth: 25-12-54 Earl Falconer Date of birth: 23-1-59 Brian Travers Date of birth: Classified information James Brown Date of birth: 20-11-57 |
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| Produced by Lake House |
"Red,
red wine, stay close to me..." the evergreen sounds of a group that's
old enough to span three generations. UB40- their's is a story of rags to
riches and grit packed perseverance that has seen eight ethnically diverse
guys from the West Midlands (Birmingham) not only sticking together for 30
years, but also making great music and being on the charts for a better
part of those three decades.
Those drums weren't very good though and the group was compelled to buy
another kit off a junkie in Moseley village. The drum kit that was fire
damaged was taken back to their cellars and was given a brand new look,
after which it was flogged to someone in order to buy a new one. The right
handed guitar was picked up from a party in Moseley. Earl broke it in half
and put it on left handed especially for Ali, making it his first ever
guitar Fed on reggae, the clan has over the years established themselves
as the kings of reggae and have sold over 50 million albums worldwide and
also achieved their original goal of popularising reggae.
UB40, a band that has spread the essence of reggae the world over will
set foot in local grounds and the Sri Lankan reggae enthusiasts, will have
that once in a life time opportunity to catch them live on December 14. A
night to remember, a quality time to shake and move to music like `Red red
wine', `Can't help falling in love with you', `Breakfast in bed', tunes
that never seem to lose their high octave appeal.
