UK reggae superstars UB40, with Ali, Astro and Mickey, love New Zealand, and Northland in particular, and the band will be back in the region next year on its 40th anniversary tour.
In an exclusive interview with the Northern Advocate, second vocalist Astro said the band's visit to Northland in 2016, which included a powhiri at the Waitangi Treaty Grounds, was one of their most memorable of the many tours they have done since bursting out of Birmingham in the late 1970s.
Astro said the Māori welcome and treatment the band received will stay with them forever and they are looking forward to returning to the North.
The band, responsible for timeless hits such as Red Red Wine, Cherry Oh Baby, Rat In Mi Kitchen and Kingston Town will headline the Reggae by the River concert, overlooking the Waitangi River, on January 26, next year on its 40th Anniversary Tour – UB40TH.
If the band's last appearance in Northland is anything to go by, tickets for next year's show will be in high demand.