It exemplifies their distinct reggae/pop sound and uses programmed rhythms as the basis for songs; the incorporation of the latter caused friction within the band and singer Ali Campbell later criticised the production style.

[4] Some tracks have been described as "surprises", including "Something More Than This", which has been compared to the music of Roni Size, and the gritty "Write Off the Debt", which saw UB40 return to the political focus of their early work.

[8][9] It debuted and peaked at number 29 on the UK Albums Chart,[9] and dropped off after three weeks, which Vulture writer Larry Filtzmaurice felt was evidence of UB40's diminishing profile.

He added: "They did at least write the title track [of Cover Up]; its line about 'sitting in the shade of my family tree' serves only to inspire hopes that they might deploy their songwriting more regularly.

"[11] According to journalist Andrew Perry, airplay of the group had become increasingly grudging over the decades, which reached a nadir when the "excellent" lead single was shunned by BBC Radio 1.

[17] The group also played several shows in South Africa during the period, where they adapted the album's title track into a protest against how, according to Ali and Robin, president Thabo Mbeki and his government's ongoing practice of HIV/AIDS denialism had led to widespread infection and the loss of over five million lives.

[3] The opening concert at Cape Town was dedicated to the country's recently deceased child AIDS victim Nkosi Johnson; the group also appeared in a South African television advertisement encouraging safe sex.

[3] David Cheal of The Daily Telegraph wrote that while, as a reggae band, UB40's lack of radical change in direction is understandable and should not be held against them, he found Cover Up to be largely lacklustre and unmemorable, adding: "It has moments, but they are far too few and much too far between."

"[4] Sunday Life reviewer Neil McKay wrote that UB40 had been constantly "oblivious to fashion and fads" and, thus, Cover Up eschews "surprises or radical new directions" for variations on the group's reggae/pop style.

[5] In her review for The Telegraph & Argus, Lucy Quinton wrote that although UB40 create "great pop-reggae", Cover Up arrived at a time "when the autumn leaves appear to be falling on the band's career", and this explains why the album, while easily showcasing the group's sound, dispenses with the pop hooks of their biggest hits.

"[7] In The Rough Guide to Rock (2003), Matthew Grant considered Cover Up to be as "equally lacklustre" as the group's preceding albums Guns in the Ghetto (1997) and Labour of Love III (1998).