Posts Tagged: The Temptations
Edwin Starr: War and 25 Miles
The beginning of War is one of the signature musical moments of the Vietnam War era. It’s nice to learn that Edwin Starr contributed much more than that. Here is the beginning of the profile at his website:
Edwin Starr was an integral part of the soul and dance floor scene since the mid-fifties and the formation of his first band The Future Tones in 1956. He was on the road right to the end.
Born Charles Edwin Hatcher on January 21st, 1942 in Nashville, Tennessee, Edwin was raised and educated in Cleveland, Ohio. In 1962, after completing two years of military service in the USA and Germany he moved to Detroit, the automobile city. By the middle of the decade he was a member of the artistes on the up-and-coming RicTic label under Ed Wingate. Together they released one immortal Northern Soul hymn after another. Songs like “Agent 00 Soul”, S.O.S (Stop her On Sight)” and “Headline News” laid the foundations for Edwins’ continuing world-wide fame. (Continue Reading…)
War, it turns out, was recorded by The Temptations before Starr’s version. The Motown‘s timidness turned out to be the most important moment in Starr’s career:
“War” is a soul song written by Norman Whitfield and Barrett Strong for the Motown label in 1969. Whitfield first produced the song – a blatant anti-Vietnam War protest – with The Temptations as the original vocalists. After Motown began receiving repeated requests to release “War” as a single, Whitfield re-recorded the song with Edwin Starr as the vocalist, deciding to withhold the Temptations’ version so as not to alienate their more conservative fans. (Continue Reading…)
Above is War, which has to be the lead song in any discussion of Starr. Two observations: He is wearing the greatest shirt ever made and seems very happy for a guy singing about the horrors of war. Below is 25 Miles, which is terrific. It’s clearly a relatively recent clip. The band leader is Jools Holland and this presumably is his BBC television show. Holland was a co-founder of Squeeze. Starr passed away in 2003.
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The Great Music of Detroit
The Detroit Metro Times lists more than 100 top songs from in and around the city. Here are its top ten:
- Marvin Gaye, 1971: What’s Goin’ On
- Stevie Wonder, 1973: Living for the City
- Question Mark & the Mysterians, 1966: 96 Tears
- The Stooges, 1969: No Fun
- John Lee Hooker, 1948: Boogie Chllen
- Del Shannon, 1961: Runaway
- Alice Cooper, 1971: I’m Eighteen
- McKinney’s Cotton Pickers, 1929: Will You, Won’t You, Be My Babe?
- The Supremes, 1968: Love Child
- MC5, 1969: Kick Out the Jams
Of course, great Detroit area acts such as Gladys Knight & the Pips, The Temptations, Eminem and Bob Seeger and the Silver Bullet Band are represented on the long and interesting list.
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It Must Have Been Some Show
This is from the listing in This Day in Music for Sept. 12, 1964.
The Supremes, The Shangri-La’s, Marvin Gaye, Dusty Springfield, The Ronettes, Millie Small, The Temptations, The Miracles and Little Anthony and the Imperials all appeared at The Fox Theatre, Brooklyn, New York.
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Bob Babbitt, Nov. 26, 1937-July 16, 2012
It’s sad to continually have to commemorate the passing of members of any community, and the community of musicians is no exception. Yesterday, it was announced that country star Kitty Wells passed away. Today comes word that Bob Babbitt also died yesterday. He passed away in Nashville at the age of 74. Babbitt, a bass player, isn’t a household name. But, perhaps, he should be:
Mr. Babbitt’s gymnastic, groove-rooted bass work bolsters classic recordings including Smokey Robinson’s “Tears Of A Clown,” Stevie Wonder’s “Signed, Sealed, Delivered,” The Temptations’ “Ball of Confusion,” Marvin Gaye’s “Mercy, Mercy Me (The Ecology),” Edwin Starr’s “War,” Gladys Knight & The Pips’ “Midnight Train To Georgia” and The Capitols’ “Cool Jerk.”
War is above. Here is Cool Jerk.
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