Biography:

Charles Edwin Hatcher (January 21, 1942 – April 2, 2003),^[2] known by his stage name Edwin Starr, was an American singer and songwriter. Starr was famous for his Norman Whitfield-produced Motown singles of the 1970s, most notably the number-one hit “War“.^[3]

Born in Nashville and raised in Cleveland, Ohio, he later lived in Detroit while singing for Ric-Tic and Motown Records.^[4] He was backed by the band that became known as “Black Merda“. Hawkins and Veasey of the group played on most of his early hits on the Ric Tic Label. Starr’s songs “Twenty-Five Miles” and “Stop the War Now” were also major successes, in 1969 and 1971 respectively. In the 1970s Starr’s base shifted to the United Kingdom, where he continued to produce music, and resided until his death.^[1]

Early life

Charles Edwin Hatcher was born in Nashville, Tennessee, on January 21, 1942.^[2] He and his cousins, soul singers Roger and Willie Hatcher, moved to Cleveland, Ohio, where they were raised.

In 1957, Hatcher formed a doo-wop group, the Future Tones, and began his singing career.^[2][4] However after just one single, he was called up for military service in the United States Army for three years, where he was posted to Europe, following the end of his service he decided to make music his career, and joined the musical group of Bill Doggett. Hatcher, adopted the name Edwin Starr at the suggestion of Doggett’s manager Don Briggs, and made his solo recording debut in 1965 for the Detroit record company Ric-Tic.^[2][5][4]

Credits: