Edwin Starr was born in Nashville, Tennessee in 1942. He and his cousins (soul singers Roger and Willie Hatcher) moved to Cleveland, Ohio where they were raised.
In 1957 Starr formed a doo-wop group The Future Tones and began his singing career. Starr lived in Detroit, Michigan in the 1960s and recorded at first for the small record label Ric-Tic, and later for the famed Motown after it absorbed Ric-Tic in 1968.
The song which began his career was "Agent Double'O'Soul" (1965), a take-off on the James Bond films which were popular at the time.
He recorded more soul music for the next three years before having an international chart-topper in "25 Miles" (1968). As of 2005 it is one of only two Starr songs on oldies radio.
The biggest hit of his career, which cemented his reputation as a great soul artist, was the anti-Vietnam War protest song "War" (1970). A rousing tour-de-force, the vocals to "War" were - according to Starr - recorded in one take: an accomplishment which might make modern artists quail with apprehension. In explanation, Starr remained characteristically modest, explaining that he'd been allocated little studio time, so had to give each song his best shot.
Starr's intense vocals transformed a Temptations album track into a #1 chart success, which spent three weeks in that top position on the US Billboard charts, an anthem for the antiwar movement and a cultural milestone that continues to resound a generation later in movie soundtracks and hip hop music samples.
"War" appeared on both Starr's War and Peace LP and its follow-up, Involved. Involved also featured another song of very similar construction titled "Stop the War Now", which was a minor hit in its own right.
Moving to England in 1973, Starr continued to record music into the 1970s, most notably recording the song "Hell Up In Harlem" for the 1974 film, Hell Up In Harlem, which was the sequel to Black Caesar, an earlier hit with a soundtrack by James Brown.
In 1979 Starr reappeared on the charts with a pair of disco hits, titled "(Eye-To-Eye) Contact" and "H.A.P.P.Y. Radio". By now he had joined the well-established disco boom, and had further singles out on the record label 20th Century Records. Over the years he released tracks on many labels including Avatar, Calibre, 10 Records, Motown (a return to his former label for a 1989 remix of "25 Miles"), Streetwave and Hippodrome.
In 1985 Starr released "It Ain't Fair". Despite garnering the attention of many in the soul and dance clubs, it fell short of becoming the hit many felt it deserved to be.
In 1988 Starr teamed up with the popular and successful Stock, Aitken and Waterman production company for the club hit "Whatever Makes Our Love Grow".
In 1989, a number 17 uk hit by the Cookie Crew called "Got to Keep On" sampled a portion of "25 Miles" [1]. This track was then featured on a 1990 dance medley made for the BRIT Awards which made number 2 in the UK Singles Chart [2]. A club mix of various artists, it included the previous years remix of "25 Miles". Starr also appeared on the charity number one single "Let It Be" by Ferry Aid, again a various artist project.
Starr resurfaced briefly in 2000, to team up with the UK band Utah Saints to record a new version of his song "Funky Music Sho Nuff Turns Me On". He appeared again in 2002 to record a song with the British musician Jools Holland, singing "Snowflake Boogie" on Holland's compact disc More Friends; and to record another track with Utah Saints, a so far unreleased version of his number one hit "War" - his last ever recording.
Starr remained a hero on England's Northern Soul circuit - and also in Germany, where his energy and dedication to delivering a quality performance were greatly appreciated. He was affectionately renowned to be "The nicest man in Showbiz."
Edwin Starr died of a heart attack at the age of 61 in his home in Beeston near Nottingham.
You Beat Me To The Punch
Edwin Starr Lyrics
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I wanted to know your name but I was much too shy.
I was looking at you so hard until you must have had a hunch,
So you came up to me and asked me my name.
You Beat Me To The Punch, that time,
You Beat Me To The Punch. Oh!
You Beat Me To The Punch, Yeah!
I wanted to ask you would you please be mine.
When ever you came around, my heart would pound,
so you must have had a hunch,
So you came up to me and asked me to be yours.
You Beat Me To The Punch, that time,
You Beat Me To The Punch. Oh!
You Beat Me To The Punch, Yeah!
Since I loved you, I thought you would be true and love me tender,
So I let my heart surrender to you, yes I did
But I found out beyond a doubt, one day, boy,
you were a play boy who would go away and leave me blue.
So I ain't gonna wait around for you to put me down.
This time I'm gonna play my hunch, and walk away this very day,
And Beat You To The Punch this time,
And Beat You To The Punch,
And Beat You To The Punch, Yeah!
And Beat You To The Punch, Yeah!
The storyline of Edwin Starr's "You Beat Me To The Punch" is that of unrequited love. The song's narrator had seen a girl that he was interested in, but he was far too shy to say anything to her. She eventually noticed him, came up to him, and asked him his name. He felt like he had missed his chance. They started spending time together, but he still hadn't mustered up the courage to tell her how he felt. Eventually, she asked him to be hers, but it didn't turn out to be a happy ending. The singer found out that the girl was only playing him and ended up leaving him high and dry, heartbroken.
The song's title is a play on words. "You Beat Me To The Punch" can be interpreted as both "you made the first move" and "you got the upper hand." In this case, it's both. The girl made the first move by approaching the singer and asking his name. She also got the upper hand by crushing his heart and leaving him before he could do the same to her. The song conveys the painful emotions of unrequited love and highlights the importance of taking risks and not waiting too long to express your feelings.
Line by Line Meaning
One day I first saw you on passing by,
I saw you for the first time, while passing by
I wanted to know your name but I was much too shy.
I was shy and couldn't ask for your name
I was looking at you so hard until you must have had a hunch,
I was staring at you so much that you probably knew
So you came up to me and asked me my name.
You came to me and asked for my name
You Beat Me To The Punch, that time,
You acted before me, that time
You Beat Me To The Punch. Oh!
You acted before me, oh!
You Beat Me To The Punch, Yeah!
You acted before me, yeah!
After I had known you for, it seems, for long, long time,
After knowing you for a long time
I wanted to ask you would you please be mine.
I wanted to ask you to be mine
When ever you came around, my heart would pound,
My heart pounded whenever you were around
so you must have had a hunch,
You must have known
So you came up to me and asked me to be yours.
You came and asked me to be yours
Since I loved you, I thought you would be true and love me tender,
I thought you loved me back, and you would love me gently
So I let my heart surrender to you, yes I did
I surrendered my heart to you
But I found out beyond a doubt, one day, boy,
One day I found out for sure that you
you were a play boy who would go away and leave me blue.
You were a player, and you would leave me sad
So I ain't gonna wait around for you to put me down.
I'm not going to wait for you to hurt me
This time I'm gonna play my hunch, and walk away this very day,
This time I'll follow my instincts, and leave you today
And Beat You To The Punch this time,
I'll act before you, this time
And Beat You To The Punch,
I'll act before you
And Beat You To The Punch, Yeah!
I'll act before you, yeah!
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Ronald White, William Robinson Jr
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind