Starr’s impassioned vocals and the song’s potent lyrics struck a chord with audiences, capturing the frustrations and concerns of a generation.īeyond “War,” Starr had a string of other successful singles, including “25 Miles,” “Stop Her on Sight (S.O.S.),” and “Agent Double-O Soul.” His energetic stage presence and electrifying performances made him a favorite among fans and earned him a reputation as a dynamic live performer. Starr rose to prominence in the late 1960s and early 1970s with his iconic hit song “War.” Released in 1970, the song became an anthem for the anti-war movement and remains one of the most recognizable protest songs of all time. Known for his powerful and dynamic vocal delivery, Starr’s music embodied the spirit of Motown and became synonymous with energetic and socially conscious soul anthems. Starr lived in a number of locations in the UK before sadly dying at just 61 in April 2003 - he was buried in Nottingham.Edwin Starr, born Charles Edwin Hatcher on January 21, 1942, in Nashville, Tennessee, was an American soul singer and songwriter. Motown had re-released a number of Starr's early recordings for Ric-Tic - to which the company owned the rights - because they were popular on the UK Northern Soul circuit. Starr continued to record with Motown into the 1970s, and later became one of a number of US soul stars who decided to move to the UK. This meant that Starr became a Motown act overnight, and through no action on his part. His solution was costly but effective - he bought out and absorbed both Golden World and Ric-Tic, acquiring their acts and recording facilities in one stroke. Much to Gordy's frustration, his studio musicians would frequently breach their contracts by visiting Golden World's studios and making recordings for them out of hours as a means of supplementing their income. Both this label and its associated company Golden World were competitors for Berry Gordy's rapidly growing Motown empire. Later, Starr moved to Detroit, Michigan and signed as a solo act with the small local label Ric-Tic. While the young Hatcher was born in one of the definitive centres of American music - Nashville, Tennessee - he mostly grew up in Ohio after his family moved there. That Starr was able to record it in the first place was the product of some very specific and unusual circumstances rooted in his particular background and career trajectory.Įdwin Starr was born Charles Edwin Hatcher in 1942. There are many reasons to be thankful for "War", one of the most wonderfully powerful anti-war songs ever made - but one of them is that without it, Edwin Starr might have languished in obscurity. The man himself died in 2003, but it's always a good time to delve into the discography of one of soul's more underrated stars. But Edwin Starr himself is hardly a household name, and while soul fans will readily remember him as the performer of "War", they won't neccesarily know a lot about him or about the rest of his career. Over 50 years later, Starr's version of "War" is one of the most recognisable and popular recordings from the glory years of soul and funk - thanks in part to frequent airplay and its use in movies like Rush Hour (1998). The single also benefited from its driving, psychedelic soul soundscape overseen by producer Norman Whitfield, and from the enormously powerful and furious vocal by Starr. The stridently anti-war song chimed strongly with the public mood, as opposition to the Vietnam War was growing rapidly on both sides of the Atlantic. It reached the #1 spot in both the US and Canada, and hit #3 on the UK singles chart. Released in June 1970, Edwin Starr's version of "War" was a tremendous success.
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