Radski Photo Studio
UB40 are, judging by their list of influences, the offspring of Bob Marley and Elvis Presley, and one of the most commercially successful reggae acts in history as measured in record sales. They’ve been nominated for multiple Grammys and at their peak in the 1980s spent 214 weeks on the UK singles chart — a feat rivaled only by Madness, a not-dissimilar ska band.
It’s a remarkable story considering the name came from the members’ shared experience filing for unemployment benefits — through the UK’s “Unemployment Benefit, Form 40” — before their fortunes turned. UB40 emerged in 1978 during a particularly relevant period in British music. Punk and new wave were merging with Jamaican riffs and beats, and artists were trying everything under the sun to make music fun.
UB40 were not a punk band, but in a climate of openness to new sounds and hybrids the band’s laid-back, pop-savvy style of reggae found receptive audiences. It wasn’t long before the Neil Diamond-penned “Red Red Wine” became an international hit for UB40, and new generations heard the Elvis standard, “(I Can’t Help) Falling in Love With You,” reset as a reggae track.
Joining UB40 on their North American tour is The Fixx, another English group that emerged from a time of creative flourishing. Formed as the Portraits, they later became The Fix, one “x.” When MCA Records offered the band a deal, provided they changed their name to avoid being associated with drug use, a compromise was made. An extra “x” was added, and The Fixx became radio and MTV favorites with the quintessentially new wave “Stand or Fall,” “Red Skies,” “One Thing Leads to Another” and “Saved by Zero.”
Both bands have carved out careers worthy of not only retrospective recognition but celebration, with both delivering new music in every decade of their activity. They’ve just never quit, and their audience has grown with them as they continue to tour and record. Take that, Unemployment Benefit Form 40!
UB40 and The Fixx play Hard Rock Live in Hollywood 8pm Friday, August 22. ub40.global thefixx.com ~ Tim Moffatt
