1942–2003 · American soul singer · born Charles Edwin Hatcher, Nashville
Starr came up on Detroit’s Ric-Tic label with “Agent Double-O-Soul” in 1965 and moved to Motown when Berry Gordy bought Ric-Tic, scoring with “Twenty-Five Miles” in 1969. When Motown wanted “War” on a single but not under the Temptations’ name, Starr volunteered. His version, cut at Hitsville U.S.A. in May 1970, is one of the most ferocious vocal performances Motown ever released — the record is genuinely his, and the only error is chronological. It became the defining record of his career; he later lived and worked in England until his death in 2003.