The first three 45s I ever owned were "Joy to the World" by Three Dog Night, "Power to the People" by John Lennon, and "War" by Edwin Starr. I'd like to tell you I was quite the politically inclined twelve-year-old, but the truth of the matter is that I brought the three of them because so many of the kids in my school thought they were cool, and I wanted to be cool, too. Alas, that dream died a quick death, but the influence on me of "Power to the People" and "War" would be profound.
Written by Motown greats Norman Whitfield and Barrett Strong (click on either link--the list of hit songs they wrote is quite impressive), the song was originally recorded by The Temptations. Fans clamored for it to be released as a single, but The Temptations were afraid of alienating their core fans so Edwin Starr stepped up and offered to record it. And when he did, he recorded a song that could arguably be called the greatest protest song ever.
Good God, y'all....
Edwin Starr's career began in the early 1960s (and right here in Detroit, Michigan, home of one Motown records). His first hit was "Agent Double-O-Soul" (and what a cool title that is, and also the epitaph on his gravestone). His biggest hit prior to "War" was "25 Miles" (fans of the movie Adventures in Babysitting may recall it). Released in 1970 on his War and Peace (if you're going to borrow a title, borrow it from the best), the song would go on to reach #1 (with a bullet!) on the Billboard Hot 100 and stay there for three weeks. Starr would eventually leave the U.S. in 1973 for greener pastures in England where he recorded and toured until his all too early death from a heart attack in 2002. The influence of "War" is still felt far and wide on televison shows, movies, and various other media as the quintessential anti-war song (Springsteen took a cover version of "War" to #8 in 1986, as well), For those counting at home, that's six uses of parentheses in a single paragraph which may be a Friday Night Jukebox record....
The thing that amazes me most about "War" is how much it sounds like, well, war. From the beginning drum roll that leads into an explosion of horns and percussion right before Starr's vocals thunder the words "War, huh yeah/What is it good for?/Absolutely nothing!" all the way to the end where Starr clamors again and again at the injustice of war (and if you listen closely you can hear the drums mimicking marching boots), the song reminds us of the hell that is war. Even when you listen to the music behind Starr's singing of the verses there's a cacophony to it that recalls helicopters and bombs exploding and gunfire and young men screaming in terror. The song is literally an aural music video (if that makes any sense) playing out the horrors of war. And Starr gives a truly great vocal performance with grunts and howls and an urgency that conveys the pain and heartache as well as the all too often utter senselessness of settling our disputes with guns. "...(W)ho wants to die?" he asks at the end, lamenting the age old existential quandary of watching too many young men and women die in battle and wondering what the hell for.
"Good God, y'all" indeed.
Enjoy:
Peace,
emaycee
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