Sing Our Own Song

"Sing Our Own Song"
Single by UB40
from the album Rat in the Kitchen
B-side	"Sing Our Own Song" (version)
Released	30 June 1986 (1986-06-30) [1]
Genre	Reggae fusion
Length	4:00
Label	DEP International
Songwriter(s)	UB40
Producer(s)	UB40
UB40 singles chronology
"Don't Break My Heart" (1985) "Sing Our Own Song" (1986) "All I Want to Do" (1986)

"Sing Our Own Song" is a song written and performed by British reggae group UB40. It features backing singers Jaki Graham, Mo Birch and Ruby Turner and appeared as the ninth and final track on their seventh album, Rat in the Kitchen (1986). Released in 1986, it reached number five on the UK Singles Chart and became a number-one hit in the Netherlands.

The song was written as an anti-apartheid song and was censored in South Africa. ^[2] Featuring the ANC rallying cry of "Amandla Awethu", it is considered a protest song of the time. ^[3]

Charts

Weekly charts

Weekly chart performance for "Sing Our Own Song"

Chart (1986)	Peak position
Australia (Kent Music Report) [4]	76
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders) [5]	7
Canada Top Singles ( RPM ) [6]	70
Europe (European Hot 100 Singles) [7]	17
Ireland (IRMA) [8]	4
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40) [9]	1
Netherlands (Single Top 100) [10]	1
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ) [11]	7
UK Singles (OCC) [12]	5
US Dance Club Songs ( Billboard ) [13]	22

Year-end charts

Year-end chart performance for "Sing Our Own Song"

Chart (1986)	Position
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders) [14]	42
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40) [15]	4
Netherlands (Single Top 100) [16]	7
UK Singles (OCC) [17]	98

References

1. "Index". Record Mirror . 28 June 1986. p. 2.
2. "Avoid the censored songs". SABC Media Libraries. Retrieved 13 June 2013.
3. "UB40". www.thebiographychannel.co.uk. Retrieved 13 June 2013.
4. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 . St Ives, NSW: Australian Chart Book. ISBN   0-646-11917-6.
5. "UB40 – Sing Our Own Song" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 30 May 2020.
6. "Top RPM Singles: Issue 0859." RPM . Library and Archives Canada.
7. "European Hot 100 Singles". Music & Media . Vol. 3, no. 31. 9 August 1986. p. 6.
8. "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Sing Our Own Song". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 22 July 2023.
9. "Nederlandse Top 40 – week 34, 1986" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 30 May 2020.
10. "UB40 – Sing Our Own Song" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 30 May 2020.
11. "UB40 – Sing Our Own Song". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved 30 May 2020.
12. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 30 May 2020.
13. "UB40 Chart History (Dance Club Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved 21 August 2023.
14. "Jaaroverzichten 1986" (in Dutch). Ultratop . Retrieved 30 May 2020.
15. "Top 100–Jaaroverzicht van 1986" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40 . Retrieved 30 May 2020.
16. "Jaaroverzichten – Single 1986" (in Dutch). MegaCharts . Retrieved 30 May 2020.
17. "January to December 1986: Top 100 Singles" (PDF). Music Week . 24 January 1987. p. 26. Retrieved 12 April 2022.