Edwin Starr

Edwin Starr was known for his gravelly, powerful voice and his song "War," which was a #1 hit in 1970. He also had a big hit with "Twenty-Five Miles" in 1969.

He was born in Nashville but moved with his family to Cleveland when he was young. He launched his career in Detroit, which had a music scene that was pulsing with life. Starr signed with the small label Ric-Tic Records, which released his first single, "Agent Double-O-Soul," in 1965 (it went to #21). In 1967 he joined Motown when they purchased Ric-Tic. This put him in the building with Motown's incredible songwriters and musicians, but it also paired him against the other Motown artists who were competing for songs. In 1968 he recorded a song called "Way Over There" written by Smokey Robinson, but it flopped. "Twenty-Five Miles" he co-wrote and became his first hit with the label. He got to record "War" after The Temptations released the original version. Motown didn't want The Tempts associated with the protest movement so they didn't put their version out as a single, but they had no problem pushing Starr's version.

His birth name was Charles Edwin Hatcher. He started using the name Edwin Starr around 1963 before he launched his solo career after the manager of the band he was in suggested he was bound for stardom. Ringo Starr (born Richard Starkey) had been using that name since 1959 but Edwin hadn't heard of him - Ringo is from England and his group The Beatles didn't break through in America until 1964.