Lead singer Ali Campbell has left the pop-reggae band UB40, which he fronted for nearly 30 years, saying management difficulties have become "intolerable."
The British band is known for hits such as Red, Red Wine and Rat in My Kitchen as well as cover versions of I Got You, Babe and (I Can't Help) Falling in Love With You.
Ali Campbell, shown performing at the Live Earth concert in South Africa in July 2007, is leaving the band UB40, which he fronted since 1978.
(Themba Hadebe/Associated Press)
"I have been deeply unhappy with administrative practices and with many decisions that have been made in recent years," Campbell said in a statement on his website.
"I have an ongoing investigation into the handling of my business affairs in relation to UB40. Suffice to say, I felt I had no other option but to resign from my band."
His seven bandmates are disputing the cause of the split, saying Campbell quit to go solo.
Campbell, 48, said he has been recording solo for 13 years and intended to continue balancing his UB40 and solo commitments until he experienced the unspecified "management difficulties."
Members of UB40, named for a British unemployment form, met in an unemployment line in Birmingham, U.K., in 1978.
Campbell said he still considers fellow bandmates "brothers" and wishes them success as they continue as a band.
UB40 has upcoming concerts booked in Australia, New Zealand and Uganda.
With files from the Associated PressShare Tools
FILM REVIEW: Men in Black 3 by Eli Glasner May. 25, 2012 11:40 AM Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones are back in the action sequel Men in Black 3, a third instalment of a series now 15 years old. Though new addition Josh Brolin manages some amazing mimicry as a younger version of Jones, the story doesn't measure up to the weird and wonderful charms of the original, says film reviewer Eli Glasner.
Top News Headlines
- Everest victim's family asks for government help
- The family of a Toronto woman who died in pursuit of her lifelong dream to climb Mount Everest is asking the Canadian government for help in bringing her body back to Canada. more »
- Teens share bullying tales in confession booth
- Raw stories about bullying emerged when a video booth was set up inside a Quebec high school. more »
- Double-lung recipient dances on Ellen show
- Organ donation advocate Hèlène Campbell of Ottawa made her second appearance on the Ellen DeGeneres Show, but her first since undergoing a double-lung transplant. more »
- Victim's boyfriend held in Aylmer triple stabbing
- The boyfriend of a young mother is being held by police, according to a victim's friend, after three people were found dead at a home in the Gatineau, Que., suburb of Aylmer. more »
Latest Arts & Entertainment News Headlines
- Sotheby's Canadian art auction sets records
- Sotheby's auction of Canadian art produced a sale total of $3.55 million Thursday night in Toronto, with record prices for several Canadian artists, including Paul-Émile Borduas, whose Froissement Multicolore sold for $663,750. more »
- Shakespeare's Winter's Tale gets African reboot
- A Nigerian theatre company is performing an African reboot of The Winter's Tale, one of the lesser known tragicomedies written by the Bard, in London as part of the London Cultural Olympiad. more »
- Elton John cancels Las Vegas concerts over illness
- Elton John is suffering from a serious respiratory infection and has cancelled three Las Vegas performances on doctors' orders. more »
- Double-lung recipient dances on Ellen show
- Organ donation advocate Hèlène Campbell of Ottawa made her second appearance on the Ellen DeGeneres Show, but her first since undergoing a double-lung transplant. more »
Q Blog
Toni Morrison on her two selves May. 25, 2012 12:44 PM Jian speaks with the celebrated African American author and academic about her two conflicting selves, and her new novel, Home.
CBC Books
Talking about war May. 25, 2012 12:09 PM The public conversation around war has always been complex and thorny. How does Canada's military approach differ from that of other countries? Are we a society of peacekeepers or warriors? These are some of the questions that Noah Richler explores in his new book What We Talk About When We Talk About War.
- Reclaiming the dead on Mt. Everest
- Victim's boyfriend held in Aylmer triple stabbing
- Employment Insurance review boards to be scrapped
- Teens share bullying tales in confession booth
- Workers' EI history to affect claim under new rules
- Conservatives move again to have robocalls suits tossed
- SpaceX capsule captured by Canadarm2
- Coffee prices get jolt in jittery economy
- Gatineau police to question man in multiple homicides
