"Rat in Mi Kitchen" is a song written and performed by British

reggae Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica during the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its Jamaican diaspora, diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, "Do the Reggay", was the first ...

and

pop Pop or POP may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Pop music, a musical genre Artists * POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade * Pop! (British group), a UK pop group * Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band Album ...

group

UB40 UB40 are an English reggae band, formed in December 1978 in Birmingham, England. The band has had more than 50 singles in the UK Singles Chart and has also achieved considerable international success. They have been nominated for the Grammy ...

. It features

Herb Alpert Herb Alpert (born March 31, 1935) is an American trumpeter, pianist, singer, songwriter, record producer, arranger, conductor, painter, sculptor and theatre producer, who led the band Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass (sometimes called "Herb Alpe ...

on trumpet and is the sixth track on their album 1986 ''

Rat in the Kitchen ''Rat in the Kitchen'' is the seventh album by UB40, released in July 1986. This album contained two UK hits, " Sing Our Own Song" (UK No. 5 in 1986) and "Rat in Mi Kitchen" (UK No. 12 in 1987). The album itself reached 8 in the UK album charts ...

''. Released as a single on 5 January 1987, it reached number 12 on the UK Singles Chart later the same month, staying on the chart for seven weeks. Although "Rat in Mi Kitchen" is attributed to the whole group, like many UB40 songs, it was written by

Astro Astro may refer to: Entertainment and media * Astro (South Korean band), a South Korean boy band * Astro (UB40) (born Terence Wilson) (1957–2021), rapper and member of the British reggae band UB40 * Astro (Chilean band), a Chilean indie ro ...

. At the time, lead singer

Ali Campbell Alistair Ian Campbell (born 15 February 1959) is an English singer and songwriter who was lead singer and co-founder of the British reggae band UB40. UB40 sold more than 70 million records worldwide and toured for 30 years with the original l ...

had moved into a new home in

Balsall Heath Balsall Heath is an inner-city area of Birmingham, West Midlands, England. It has a diverse cultural mix of people and is the location of the Balti Triangle. History The name is first found as Bordeshale in 1275, which is derived from the ...

, Birmingham and was troubled by rodents. When asked by Astro if he had any ideas for new songs he replied, "Oh God, I don't care about the album for a minute, I've got a rat in the kitchen!" Astro, who sings lead vocals on the song, wrote the track in response. The sleeve artwork is by Bob Linney.

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

References

1986 songs 1986 singles Songs about mice and rats UB40 songs {{1980s-single-stub