Track Listing

1. One In Ten
2. Red Red Wine
3. Kingston Town
4. Higher Ground
5. King
6. Cherry Oh Baby
7. I Got You Babe
8. Come Back Darling
9. Earth Dies Screaming
10. If It Happens Again
11. Don't Break My Heart
12. Can't Help Falling In Love
13. Watchdogs
14. Tell Me Is It True
15. Rat In Mi Kitchen
16. Homely Girl
17. Light My Fire
18. Bring Me Your Cup
19. Food For Thought
20. Sing Our Own Song

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #730 in Music
• Released on: 2000-10-23
• Number of discs: 1
• Dimensions: .22 pounds

Amazon.co.uk Review
Few things in life are as reliable as UB40. For more than 20 years the eight Birmingham lads, led by brothers Robin and Ali (the one with the odd voice) Campbell, have been plying their very individual, and very British brand of reggae. And, save for a slight shift from the rootsy Ska of their first top-10 single, "King/Food For Thought", to the more commercial likes of "Homely Girl", little has changed over their 43-single career. Although their own tracks were always laid-back and infectious, it was their reggae-lite makeovers of pop classics like "Red Red Wine", "I Got You Babe" and "I Can't Help Falling In Love", that brought their biggest hits and are the main focus of The Very Best Of. Not as comprehensive as previous compilations, The Best Of UB40 Volume 1 and Volume 2, it still boasts more memorable and happily lilting hits than most bands could lay claim to. Of those, two tracks standout a mile--the William Orbit (he who revamped American Pie for Madonna) styled production of their recent cover of "Light My Fire" is exceptional, but "Rat In Mi Kitchen", thanks to superb lyrics, sparse yet perfectly formed dub horns and a little hindsight, is just as good as Brit-reggae gets. --Dan Gennoe

CD Description
This platinum selling compilation brings together the most popular material recorded by UB40 in a career which covers two decades. It is a single disc alternative to the two 'Bestof UB40' volumes, which were released in 1987 and 1995 repectively. Fourteen of the tracks here reached the top ten of the UK singles chart, three of which reached the no.1 spot.

Customer Reviews

Doesn't Get Any Better
For me, UB40 are at their very best when writing their own material. But there are certain exceptions to that rule - Red Red Wine, Can't Help Falling In Love With You. UB40 are a band who remain true to their roots, still living in Birmingham, they also remain close to their musical roots and give due respect to their idols. This album represents a commercial Best Of, songs which have either sold by the bucket loadand is guaranteed to make you dance and sing along. The perfect album by a vastly underrated band, to introduce someone to UB40, every song is infectious and you'll play it again and again.

For me, the highlight is Sing Our Own Song, a tribute to the Freedom fighters primarily in South Africa, but could also apply to other oppressed parts of the world. This is followed closely by King, which is in a word - SUPREME.

Melodious pop reggae
It might not be roots, but UB40 has mellow pop reggae down to a T. This hit-packed compilation includes their early ska-based songs King and Food For Thought, plus all their later successes. Most of their biggest hits were covers of older classics, but they always did a good job in the interpretation. Red Red Wine, for example, is absolutely brilliant and the same can be said for Kingston Town, Cherry Oh Baby and I Got You Babe with Chrissie Hynde on guest vocal. I also love the humorous Rat In Mi Kitchen and their excellent interpretation of The Doors’ Light My Fire. Although not completely comprehensive, this compilation offers excellent value for money in that these tracks really were their greatest hits from a 20-year career. There’s not one filler track and every song is catchy and hummable. If you like your reggae melodic and mellow, this album is a must.

An outstanding album, by an outstanding band
Having been a UB40 fan for 15 years, I decided to buy this album the day it was released, even though I had all the songs on other albums. This album really does show how talented this band really are. Their new single "Light My Fire", is an outstanding contribution to the album, which I am sure will do well when released as a single.

For any UB40 fan this album is a must and for anyone else, buy it you will not be dissapointed.