FOREST LIVE FESTIVAL – DAY THREE – UB40

DELAMERE FOREST

Today was the third day of Forest Live, where we saw UB40 ft Ali Campbell play an iconic set in the beautiful setting of Delamere Forest. From the moment I stepped into the arena, the crowd was full of energy and excitement. From camping chairs to picnics to cans of San Miguel, everyone was ready for a night of reggae beats.

First up, we had the lively Reggae Roast featuring Horseman, who played well-known tunes as well as originals that the crowd vibed to throughout the set. We even heard songs by Bob Marley, such as ‘Could you be loved’, where the whole crowd shouted the lyrics back – everyone was on their feet with drinks in their hands, swaying and dancing to the beat. In my opinion, this support act was an outstanding choice for this night. Honestly, the atmosphere from the very moment the gates opened was unbelievable, people were queuing to get in and a sea of brightly coloured bucket hats.

Next, we had classic reggae artist ‘Bitty Mclean’ who graced the crowd’s presence by getting on that stage. Everyone had arms around one another and swayed to every beat that came out of those speakers. Bitty McLean has put out many hits over the years, such as ‘The Real Thing’ and ‘Walk Away From Love’. Mclean started his musical journey as a teenager and became mainstream in 1992 due to being a co-producer, engineer and vocalist for UB40’s album Promises and Lies. His solo career with his own band really took off after this in 1993 and 1994 due to his debut album ‘Just to let you know’, and he also managed to get three UK top ten singles, which shows his success and the number of people who loved his music. His whole band was almost all in suits, which gave them a classy vibe.

Next, the moment everyone had been waiting for swiftly came along at 9:30, just moments before this, the crowd was chanting ‘Ali! Ali!’ which built the suspense for his set even more. The whole arena was full of people of all ages, all there to witness an outstanding set. They first kicked the set off with ‘Big Love’ that was written by Ali Campbell in his solo album back in 1995, and wow, was the crowd happy to hear this. They played a mixture of songs from UB40 albums, Ali Campbell’s solo album and covers from various artists such as Elvis Presley. After ‘Big Love’, we heard songs such as ‘One in Ten’ and ‘If It Happens Again’ – every time I looked around the arena, all I could see was a sea of people swaying all together, enjoying every second. The atmosphere was immaculate, and it seems to be like this at every concert that this band plays. My favourite songs of the night had to be ‘Red Red Wine’, ‘Kingston Town’ and ‘Can’t help falling in Love’, they are all classic songs that everyone of all ages knows the words to. I think that they created this setlist perfectly, and I wouldn’t have wanted to miss it for the world.