©Kyle Artist

Edwin

more unofficial biog info

Edwin was three years old when his family moved to Cleveland, Ohio. During study hall periods at Cunard Junior High School, he and several friends would sit in strategic places around the room and sing all the vocal parts to Frankie Lymon’s "Why Do Fools Fall In Love." The teachers weren’t happy about it, but Starr enjoyed singing so much, he got together with four of his friends after school to form a group called the Future Tones.

They entered a local talent contest on a TV show hosted by "Uncle Jake," and won five weeks in a row. First prize was a Sealy Posturpedic mattress, which the group somehow had to split five ways. Starr’s career plans were interrupted by military service. When he was discharged two-and-a-half years later, he found that the other group members had little interest in singing professionally. So Starr sang in local clubs, and was spotted by bandleader Bill Doggett ("Honky Tonk," 1956), who asked Edwin to tour with him. The gig lasted two years, beginning in 1963.

In 1965, Starr signed with the Detroit-based Ric-Tic label. His first hit, "Agent Double-O-Soul," reached #21 pop and #8 R&B that summer. It was followed in early 1966 by "Back Street" (#95 pop, #33 R&B) and "Stop Her On Sight (S.O.S.)" (#48 pop, #9 R&B). Starr also was responsible for three singles that entered the Billboard Hot 100 on May 7, 1966: the Shades of Blue’s "Oh How Happy," which he wrote and produced; his own recording of "Headline News"; and "I’ll Love You Forever," which the Golden World label released under the name of the Holidays.

On the strength of "Stop Her On Sight," Starr toured Great Britain in 1966. Upon the completion of his tour, he flew directly to New York to appear at the Apollo Theater with the Temptations. When he arrived, one of the Tempts welcomed Starr to the "family." When he asked what family he was being welcomed to, Starr was advised that he was now a Motown artist as Ric-Tic and its parent label, Golden World, had both been sold to Berry Gordy. Finding that hard to believe, Starr immediately telephoned the Golden World offices in Detroit, only to hear the receptionist answer, "Motown Records."

Unfortunately for Starr, he found himself in contract negotiations for the next two-and-a-half years, during which time he recorded nothing. Finally, in late 1968, he appeared on a local TV show called "20 Grand," and performed a song he had written three years earlier titled "25 Miles." Some people from Motown saw Starr on TV and asked if he would like to record the song. Released on Motown’s Gordy subsidiary, the single peaked at #6 on both the pop and R&B charts in the spring of 1969. Motown then released the 25 Miles album, which featured Starr’s follow-up single, "I’m Still A Struggling Man" (#80 pop, #27 R&B).

In early 1970, the Temptations released their Psychedelic Shack LP, which featured a protest song called "War." Motown received hundreds of letters, many from college students, urging the label to release "War" as a single. Since Motown had other plans for the Tempts, producer Norman Whitfield asked Starr to record the song. As he hadn’t waxed anything in six months, Starr was happy just to get back into the recording studio.

The song that music journalist Dave Marsh called "half soul, half psychedelic freak out" debuted on the Billboard Hot 100 on July 11, 1970, and entered the R&B chart a week later. By August 29^th, "War" was the #1 pop song in America. Interestingly, it never rose any higher than #3 R&B. Edwin Starr won a Grammy for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance. The follow-up was another Whitfield production, "Stop The War Now." Little more than a cynical attempt to cash in on the success of its predecessor, the single nonetheless managed #26 pop and #5 R&B in early 1971.

Starr remained with Motown through the mid-1970s, although he moved from Gordy to the Soul subsidiary, on which he charted with "There You Go" in 1973. On Motown itself, Starr made the R&B top thirty in 1975 with "Pain." Later that year, he moved on to the Granite label, and made the R&B charts three times through 1976. A subsequent move to 20^th Century produced the 1979 disco smash, "Contact," and its successful follow-up, "H.A.P.P.Y. Radio."

SOURCES: Fred Bronson, The Billboard Book of #1 Hits; Dave Marsh, The Heart of Rock and Soul