If you're a regular reader of my reviews you might have guessed that I've been going through my old record collection lately! After a previous review of UB40's debut album 'Signing Off' I thought I'd take a look at their second offering 'Present Arms'.
After the huge critical and chart success of 'Signing Off' multiracial Brummie Reggae outfit UB40 had a difficult task in producing a worthy second album. Coming from a an area of the country that had been decimated by unemployment and racial unrest caused or at least made worse by Tory government policy UB40 taking their name from the then unemployment form clearly nailed their political colours to the mast. Signing Off was a fierce attack on Thatcher and her policies and 'Present Arms' broadly speaking carries on where the debut album left off. The main themes are once again unemployment, the destruction of communities and societies and the seemingly uncaring attitude of those in power. 'Present Arms' as its ironic title suggest is a rallying cry to the millions of disaffected youths to make their voices heard against the brutality of the state. As a teenager at the time this message was very much in tune with what the vast majority of young people were thinking.
One of UB40's strengths as a band is that they managed to combine a strong political massage with radio friendly tuneful music that had a broader appeal than it's reggae roots
would suggest. This is still he case on 'Present Arms' released in May 1981.
THE ALBUM
1. Present Arms 2. Sardonicus 3. Don't Let It Pass You By 4. Wild Cat 5. One in Ten 6. Don't Slow Down 7. Silent Witness 8. Lambs Bread 9. Don't Walk on the Grass 10. Doctor X
The album has a very distinctive and explosive start with the sound of marching soldiers on the lead in to the first track
"You got no job you got no pay Join the military, sign today They'll take you off to fight on foreign shores"
The lyrics leave you in no doubt that they are talking about the army of unemployed mostly young men that existed at the time. One popular suggestion among right wing commentators at the time that a possible 'solution' to the employed problem rather creating jobs was to bring back national service! The song also resonated even more with event when the Falklands war started in 1982 when many thought that conscription of troops might be needed if the conflict escalated.
'Present Arms' is also notable for a slight change in UB40's musical direction, many of the songs on this album seemed to be adhering more to traditional reggae. The big band reggae sound is still there with a strong drum and base element as well as the distinctive brass section. Certainly the first single of the album 'Don't Let It Pass You By' is a great example of roots reggae with a virtuoso sax backing from Brian Travers and a wonderful bit of Dub toasting by Astro.
"Burn two spliff play ital riddem Rub two dub burn ital collie Because the rhythm a the marshall And the rhythm a no partial go deh Seh the rhythm a the marshall And the rhythm a no partial Rub two dub burn ital collie Burn two spliff play ital riddem Because you jamming with you brethren Jam it 'till a morning"
The sentiments of the song are less focused on any particular social issue but is rather a hopeful cry to people to strive for something better in their lives.
"Don't let it pass you by, You gonna wake up and wonder why"
Certainly these were sentiments that were worth stating in the general gloom that existed in many people's lives at the time. It is strange looking back at the 80's from the political situation we have now, unemployment is not a massive issue for most people these days and it is easy to forget how big a problem it was for young people especially in that period. In this respect some of the anger and passion that the record manifests is probably lost on younger listeners.
A fast paced instrumental piece 'Wild Cat' follows before we get to the best song and the biggest hit off the album 'One In Ten', which reached no 7 in the UK charts. In contrast to 'Don't Let It Pass You By', 'One In Ten' brought back a clear political focus. The title referred to the statistic that one in ten of the working population were out of work in 1981.
"I am the one in ten A number on a list I am the one in ten Even though I don't exist Nobody knows me Even though I'm always there A statistic, a reminder Of a world that doesn't care"
A very clear message here!
'One in Ten' is a great track and really epitomises what UB40's early music was about, passion, commitment to a cause but never forgetting great song-writing. Ali Campbell's vocals are never better, his slightly higher pitched nasal style seemed to complement perfectly the drum and baseline and the rhythm guitar that interspersed the song. I have to admit that as the band progressed in later albums Ali's vocals became slightly grating to me as he seemed to go from high pitched to whiny but in this period he was fabulous.
One of the vagrancies of the CD format is that you only have one side to the album, on the original 'One In Ten' opens the second side of the vinyl and thus has a little more prominence and a bit more impact, still even on the CD it is still one of the stand out tracks.
Just like the Signing off the original vinyl release include a bonus 12 inch record containing two extra tracks 'Don't Walk on the Grass' and 'Doctor X', which on the CD have been simply tacked on to the end. Both are very pleasant if undistinguished instrumental tracks.
Overall this album never quite reached the dizzy heights of 'Signing Off', its overall impact wasn't as great, which is understandable since it closely follows the idea presented in their debut. However it is still a high quality album and many of the songs rank amongst UB40's best. If 'Present Arms' were the only album that the band had ever released it would have been an n exceptional piece of work and only suffers a little by comparison to the groundbreaking 'Signing Off'. Looking at it specifically at the music and compositions we can see a slight change occurring the focused anger seen in 'Signing Off' has been diluted a little and there are lighter less clearly identifiably political tracks present. Maybe this is a very subtle warning of what was to come next for the band. Certainly by the time they brought out 'Labour of Love' the 'angry young Brummies' seems to have mellowed a little and were looking back at the music they listened to as youngsters and some of the passion seemed to have gone.
While Present Arms might not be as easily accessible as 'Signing Off' it is still a must for any fans of the band and it represents a brilliant follow up to the debut album, thus cementing the reputation of the band as one of the freshest and successful acts of the 80's
'Present Arms' can be bought from Play.com for £6.99 delivered, a bargain!
Nice review of the band at a time when they really were relevant. Afterwards they just got old and boring. How soon bands change.
COOOEEE 13.06.2005 19:31
You need to edit the review and you will see the review is still there but we can't see it as the ciao gremlins have made the review disappear. Just send again and it will reappear. Let me know when it is back so I can come and rate it. Fionaxx
Mickie26 10.06.2005 00:57
I'm sorry, but I can't rate this because I cannot see the review.
very helpful by (100%):
