UB40 bound for Napier with Dragon and Jefferson Starship

Laurence Parry, Robin Campbell and Martin Meredith of UB40 perform at Weyfest Festival 2021 at Rural Life Centre in August in Tilford, England. The band is headed for Napier. Photo / Getty Images

Hawke's Bay residents will get a unique opportunity in December to compare the two international acts performing UB40 songs.

In 2019, UB40 featuring Ali Campbell and Astro performed at Church Road Winery.

The act is different from the band UB40, which announced on Tuesday that it is performing at Church Road Winery in December as part of a New Zealand tour.

Astro died in November last year after a short illness.

The legendary British band - sans original vocalist Ali Campbell who quit in 2008 - will celebrate their 40th anniversary (2020) and perform their hits at shows in Napier, New Plymouth, Matakana, Tauranga, Nelson, and Queenstown.

The band touring in December has the legal rights to perform as UB40.

They will be joined by the legendary Jefferson Starship and Australasian
heroes Dragon on all six dates.

"We always look forward to trips Down Under," UB40 said in a statement on Tuesday.

"It's one of our favourite places in the world to perform, but with so many uncertainties in the world these past two years, we felt it was far more important to focus on everyone's safety.

"Now that borders have reopened, we're finally ready to get back to New Zealand and
perform the show fans have been waiting for.

The New Zealand tour will offer audiences a taste of classic hits like Food for Thought, 1 in 10, Red Red Wine, Kingston Town and Can't Help falling In Love With You.

UB40 is one of the UK's biggest exports and has achieved more than 40 top-40 hits in Britain.

With international sales of over 100 million records, UB40 is one of the biggest UK music acts of all time and continue to record charting albums while touring the world.

After four decades of success including their hit singles, international stadium tours and
festival headline slots, the band suffered the devastating loss of founder member, lyricist and lead sax player Brian Travers, who lost his long battle with cancer last year.

UB40 continue with founder members Robin Campbell (vocals and guitar), Earl Falconer (bass, vocal), Jimmy Brown (drums) and Norman Hassan (percussion, vocals) with new lead vocalist Matt Doyle.

The band also feature Martin Meredith (sax) and Laurence Parry (trumpet).

Tour dates

Thursday, December 29 - Church Road Winery - Napier w/ Jefferson Starship, Dragon
Friday, December 30 - Bowl of Brooklands - New Plymouth w/ Jefferson Starship, Dragon
Monday, January 2 - Matakana Country Park - Matakana w/ Jefferson Starship, Dragon
Wednesday, January 4 - Wharepai Domain - Tauranga w/ Jefferson Starship, Dragon
Friday, January 6 - Trafalgar Park - Nelson w/ Jefferson Starship, Dragon
Saturday, January 7 - Venue tbc - Queenstown w/ Jefferson Starship, Dragon