![]() ![]() Out of 195 countries in the world today, only 16 have no military forces. War fills the pages of our history books the first war in recorded history took place in 2700 B.C, which means we have five thousand years of familiarity with war under our belts. Strangely enough, this stuck-in-neutral situation makes for a happy populace-not only because it helps to preserve the familiar, but because there are few things people enjoy as much as bitching about the government.Īlas, there are few things in human history as status quo as war. In democracies, this powerful bias towards the status quo leads to electing the same old farts year after year, who in turn do nothing to change failing policies or decrepit institutions. The flaw in the conservative design approach is that those in power have no interest in changing anything that would cause them to forfeit that power-which quirkily feeds into the desire of the masses for the familiar. There are good reasons for taking a conservative approach to government design-the shitshow referred to as the French Revolution conclusively proved that trying to change an entire system overnight is a guaranteed path to chaos. The collective effect of billions of change resisters is reflected in the institutions that govern society-institutions that are largely dedicated to preserving the status quo. Human beings cling to the familiar because they believe that sticking to the people, surroundings and traditions they know is the safer bet-and they continue to embrace the familiar even when presented with rock-solid evidence that doing so will lead to their demise. Here’s the thing: human progress is by its very nature glacially slow. So, why should songwriters waste so much time and effort fighting a hopeless battle? Given human history, the resurgence of the “strongman fetish” and the extreme political polarization engulfing many countries, I’d say the chances are pretty high that a fairly significant war will occur in our lifetimes and even the greatest anti-war song ever composed will be unable to stop it. Whether the cause is bellicose individuals, incompetent leaders, territorial pissing, religious differences or rabid patriotism, it’s highly unlikely that war will soon become a thing of the past. ![]() Most leaders try to avoid war, but there are many instances of bellicose individuals enthusiastically seeking out armed conflict. Wars usually begin due to a dispute between nations and break out because governmental leaders cannot solve their problems peacefully. Guess what? I don’t think Putin gives a shit. You’d think that after centuries of effort with nothing to show for it that songwriters would have abandoned the practice, but Wikipedia lists ten songs protesting the Russian invasion of Ukraine. I am not aware of any high-level confabs of top government officials where one of the participants said, “Hey, I was listening to Phil Ochs the other day and he made a pretty convincing case against going to war,” or “Hey, maybe John Lennon was right-maybe we should give peace a chance.” Wikipedia has a fairly comprehensive list, a little light on the traditional side, but enough to demonstrate the many attempts by songwriters to raise awareness of the evils of war through protest, satire or graphic descriptions of the human cost of armed conflict.īut none of them achieved the desired effect. Starr's biggest hit spent three weeks at # 1 in the summer of 1970 as more and more people began to turn against the United States' involvement in the war in Vietnam.Įdwin won a Grammy for Best R&B Vocal Performance for his outstanding recording of "War" - the only anti-war song to ever reach # 1. Edwin Starr's recording of "War" was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1999.Hundreds of anti-war songs have been written throughout the centuries and none have ever prevented or stopped a war. Edwin had a Top Ten single with "Twenty-Five Miles" the previous year for Motown before hitting the top spot in the Hot 100 with "War". Starr had four charting singles on the company's Ric-Tic label, including "Agent Double-O-Soul", before signing with Motown. Starr had come to Motown after Berry Gordy purchased Golden World Records and its subsidiaries in 1968. Instead, Norman Whitfield asked Edwin Starr if he would be interested in cutting a version of "War". Motown received hundreds of letters asking that the song be released as a single, but the Temptations already had "Ball Of Confusion" scheduled as their next record. "War" was written by Norman Whitfield and Barrett Strong and was first recorded by the Temptations on their "Psychedelic Shack" album. Strong) - Edwin Starr Gordy label, # 1 Billboard Hot 100, # 3 Billboard R&B - 1970. Artist Name: Edwin Starr Year Inducted: 2009 Details ![]()
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