Birmingham, England, is the hometown of UB40, who first got together in 1978. The members knew one another, mostly from school, and had a wide range of ethnic backgrounds including Welsh, Jamaican, Yemeni, English, Irish, and Scottish. The group took their name from a government form used in the UK: Unemployment Form 40, as all the members were unemployed early in their career.
The group has been successful both in the UK and around the world. Fifty of their songs charted on the UK Singles chart, and two of their albums made it to the top of the UK Albums chart. Two of their biggest hits are “Red Red Wine” and “Can’t Help Falling in Love,” which were number-one hits on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. Their worldwide record sales are over 70 million units and have been nominated for the “Best Reggae Album” Grammy four times and received one nomination for Best British Group from the Brit Award.
Ali Cambell was the band’s frontman from its inception in 1978 until 2008, but is now touring with them again, much to fans’ delight. A review says:
“The room turned into a dance floor as people were moved by the rhythmic music of this legendary band.”
UB40 will be at Humphreys Concerts by the Bay on April 27. Organizers of concerts like this will often use poster printing to promote them.