The story of UB40, and how this group of young friends from Birmingham transcended their working-class origins to become the world’s most successful reggae band, selling over 100 million records and spending over a combined 11 years in the UK album charts, is not the stuff of fairytales as might be imagined. The group’s led a charmed life in many respects it’s true, but it’s been a long haul since the days they’d meet up in the bars and clubs around Moseley, and some of them had to scrape by on less than £8 a week unemployment benefit. The choice was simple if you’d left school early. You could either work in one of the local factories, like Robin Campbell did, or scuffle along aimlessly whilst waiting for something else to happen.
