release date: Sep. 12, 1983
format: vinyl (LP DEP 5) / digital
[album rate: 4 / 5] [3,76]
producer: UB40 and Ray "Pablo" Falconer
label: DEP International - nationality: England, UK
4th studio album by British octet UB40 is the band's complete commitment to mainstream pop. There are bonds to reggae and still examples of dub, but the overall style is one of pop reggae.
The band had always sold well and all of its albums were top-5 albums on the UK albums chart list, but with this, they sold multi-platinum and UB40 became an international success.
I recall, purchasing the album, and initially thinking "Red Red Wine" was a mighty fine pop song, but within a couple of weeks my feelings for the album had cooled down, and the song became painfull in the long run. And that pretty much sums up my sensations for the album. It's fine as a mainstream pop album, it contains nicely-wrapped compositions, but it's just too slick, and too much of the same. As a sales product, the album is a mighty success, but as an example of UB40's artistic level, I think the band sold out. It was my last purchase with the band, and in retrospect, I have always preferred their earlier works.
