UB40 legend Ali Campbell has labelled his former group “a tribute band” as he promised an “all thrillers” set on his return to Ireland later this year.
The Birmingham reggae icon will headline Big Day Out at the Gaelic Grounds in Limerick on August 24.
Now performing as UB40 featuring Ali Campbell, while his ex-bandmates still use the original name, the singer said there was sadly nothing but “sour grapes” between the feuding sides.
And he revealed he turned down an offer to once again team up with his former bandmates following the 2021 death of Astro, who quit UB40 following Ali’s departure to join forces with his friend.
Speaking exclusively to The Irish Sun, 66-year-old Ali revealed that in 2008 he quit the iconic band he started after they refused to allow him time off to promote his first solo album.
And despite trading under the original UB40 name, he described them as nothing more than a “tribute band”.
He said: “It’s all sour grapes, it’s all gone rather horrible. I’d call them a tribute band. Now there’s a few original members with them.
“But you know they haven’t got the original singer. I’m the man who sang all the hits. So yeah, they’re a tribute band – and I think there are better tribute bands out there anyway.”
He described the offer to rejoin the original band following Astro’s death as “disgusting”.
Ali said: “That was awful. That left a hole that will never be filled.
“The week that Astro died money was offered for me to go back, which I thought was pretty disgusting — and I said no, obviously.”
Asked what his relationship was like with his brothers Robin, who was with him in UB40 from the beginning in 1978, and Duncan, who replaced him as the singer for a period, Ali said: “I don’t have one. Of course it is (disappointing), but that’s just the way things have panned out.”
Ali has a long history of performing in Ireland with UB40 and as a solo artist, having recorded in Windmill Lane Studios in the 1980s and supporting Bob Dylan at Slane Castle in 1984.
He said: “The Irish crowds have always been more raucous. They love going to gigs. I love playing in Ireland. We’ve had some standout gigs there.
“Slane Castle stands out in my memory as one of the good ones.
“I remember everybody jumping in the water and us getting very worried that somebody might have a mishap, or we might drown, or something, because it was a riotous crowd.
‘WE LOVED IT’
“We loved it. We loved the reaction, but we were a bit worried about people’s safety jumping in the water.
“Irish people just enjoy the craic. They like to dance and we’ve always gone down great in Ireland. We’ve also had many great nights in the Point in Dublin.”
His fans are sure to be in for a blistering set when he takes to the stage in Limerick.
Ali said: “We’ll be doing a greatest hits set. We’re not self-indulgent, we don’t do new stuff that they wouldn’t know. We do everything. All winners, no fillers, all thrillers.”
- Tickets for UB40 featuring Ali Campbell are available from the usual outlets.
