The Cultural Bouillabaisse of Red Red Wine by UB40

Red Red Wine by British reggae band UB40 charted twice in the ‘80s, once in 1984 and again in 1988.  UB40 brought a “modern beat” to this cover of reggae artist Tony Tribe’s 1969 version of Neil Diamond’s 1967 hit about a guy drowning his sorrows. 

Here’s UB40’s official video (minus toasting break):

Here’s a live performance featuring Astro’s toasting break:

Here’s a little more about the impact of the Windrush Generation, the influx of Caribbean immigrants to the U.K.:

Here’s Tony Tribe’s version of Red Red Wine from 1969, released by Trojan Records. This is the version UB40 covered.

Here’s Neil Diamond’s version from 1967. His evocative lyrics really sell the song, which is in the grand tradition of songs about indulging in vices.

Here’s Shirley Ellis’ Clapping Song from 1965, from which UB40’s Astro interpolated lyrics for his toasting break. 

And here’s the Light Crust Doughboys singing Little Rubber Dolly in 1939:

Guess what? The Light Crust Doughboys are still together, billing themselves as the longest-running band in the history of recorded music.

Here are Toots & the Maytals performing Do the Reggae (thus coining the term in the first mention of reggae in recorded music). We mentioned the influence of Toots & The Maytals in our episode on Living Colour. Toots Hibbert passed at his home in Kingston, Jamaica, shortly after we recorded this episode. Here’s his lovely obituary from the New York Times.

Check out Cleveland’s own reggae band First Light at their 30th anniversary concert:

Why not enjoy this episode with some savory oatmeal?