UB40 - Did You Know?
June 20, 2018Music facts, music trivia, interesting stories and much more. Introducing the "Did You Know" page about English reggae and pop band, UB40.
Enjoy!
UB40 are an English reggae and pop band that was formed in Birmingham, England in 1978.
UB40 have had more than 50 singles feature in the UK Singles Chart, and have also achieved international success. The band was nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Reggae Album four times, and in 1984 were also nominated for the Brit Award for Best British Group.
In the summer of 1978, UB40 was born out of a jam session in a basement rehearsal space in Birmingham. Several of the band members knew each other from the campus of the Moseley School of Art.
The band's line-up that included Ali Campbell, Earl Falconer, Brian Travers, Robin Campbell, James Brown, Norman Hassan, Mickey Virtue and Astro, remained unchanged for nearly 30 years. In 2008, Ali Campbell decided to leave the band and shortly after, keyboardist Mickry Virtue also left the band.
When the band just began its musical career, they caught their first break after Pretenders band member, Chrissie Hynde saw the band on stage, rocking a pub in London and asked them to sign on as the opening act for the Pretenders upcoming tour back then.
UB40 have sold more than 70 million records all over the world.
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The song "Can't Help Falling in Love" by UB40 was originally recorded by Elvis Presley in 1961.
UB40 were asked to record an Elvis Presley tune of their choice for a new film that is called Honeymoon In Vegas. James Brown, the drummer of UB40, suggested that the band record the song "Can't Help Falling in Love" because it was one of his favorites.
The band members agreed on the song, but when they presented the song to the film director, Andrew Bergman, they learned that a few other acts had recorded the same song.
UB40's version of the song wasn't part of Bergman's movie, but was included eventually on the soundtrack for a different movie, Sliver, starring William Baldwin and Sharon Stone.
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