But Starr brought something more to the song: an anger, railing at the powers that be.Īt a time when black Americans were experiencing segregation in parts of America (despite the Civil Rights Act of 1964) and open hostility almost everywhere else, black families were expected to send their young sons to fight and die alongside their white peers in a grossly mismanaged and ill-considered war in Asia. Theirs is a superb rendition, notable for a "Hup, two, three four!" backing vocal that mocks the mindless drilling of the servants of war. Listening to the original recording by the Temptations, from the Psychedelic Shack album, the difference is the passion. "They say we must fight to keep our freedom / But Lord knows there's got to be a better way." War "ain't nothing but a heart breaker," wrote Barrett Strong, Motown's chief lyricist. And this isn't a song that makes any concessions to violence in a good cause. There's scarcely a line that isn't quotable and memorable. And with those few syllables, Starr injects a very believable sense of personal exasperation into a song that calls for the warmongers of the world to see sense.Ī US Billboard No.1 hit single in August 1970, War's lyrics are completely unambiguous. Is there a better vocal flourish in all of popular music than when Edwin Starr cries out "Hunh! Good Gawd, y'all!" in the timeless anti-Vietnam protest song War? It's the inflection of a maestro of the human voice.
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