War (band)
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War was an American funk band of the 1970s that had its roots in California. They had no specific genre, playing Jazz, Funk, Soul, Pop R'nB. In 1962 the initial roots of the band were laid down when Howard Scott and Harold Brown formed a group called "the Creators" in Compton, California. Within a few years, they had added Charles Miller, B.B. Dickerson and Lonnie Jordan to the lineup. They recorded several singles on Dore Records and worked with Jay Contreli from Love. In 1968, "the Creators" became "Nightshift" and started performing with Deacon Jones, a football player and singer. At a performance, producer Jerry Goldstein suggested they would start to work with Eric Burdon (of the disbanded Animals) and Lee Oskar (a Danish harmonica player).
The original WAR include: (Main instruments listed, they all sang and played various percussion instruments)
- Eric Burdon - Vocals
- BB Dickerson - Bass
- Lee Oskar - Harmonica
- Lonnie Jordan - Keyboards
- Papa Dee Allen - Percussion, Bongos
- Harold Brown - Drums
- Charles Miller - Saxophone, Flute, Clarinet
- Howard Scott - Guitar
Non-original WAR members:
- Sandro Albert - Guitar
- James Montgomery Baker - Guitar
- William Bergman - Saxophone
- John Berry - Trumpet
- Rick Braun - Trumpet
- Kerry Campbell - Saxophone
- James Coile - Saxophone
- Jason (J.B.) Eckl - Guitar
- Charles Green - Flute, Horn, Saxophone, Horn Arrangements
- Ricky Green - Bass
- Ronnie Hammond - Percussion, Drums, Vocals
- Fernando Harkless - Saxophone
- Kenny Alvin Hudson - Percussion
- Larry Klymas - Saxophone
- Willie Loya - Percussion
- Richard Marquez - Percussion
- Debbie Moman - Vocals (Background)
- Milton Myrick - Vocals (Background)
- Tetsuya Nakamura - Harmonica, Vocals (Background)
- Charles Owens - Saxophone
- Tiki Paccius - Percussion
- Donald Phillips - Bass
- Luther Rabb - Bass, Vocals
- Marcos Reyes - Percussion
- Pat Rizzo - Flute, Saxophone, Vocals
- Papo Rodriguez - Percussion
- Sal Rodriguez - Percussion, Drums, Vocals, (Background)
- Peter Rosen - Bass
- Sharon Scott - Vocals (Background)
- Alice Tweed Smith - Percussion, Vocals (Background)
- Lee Thornburg - Trumpet
- Francisco "Poncho" Tomaselli - Bass
- Rae Valentine - Organ, Percussion, Vocals (Background)
- Moses Wheelock - Conga
- Stewart Ziff - Guitar
Burdon changed the name to War and the new line-up, with Oskar, began recording in 1969 and released Eric Burdon Declares War in 1970. "Spill the Wine" became a hugely popular single, and the follow-up, The Black Man's Burdon," was almost as successful as the first. In 1971, Burdon left the group in the middle of a European tour, claiming he was too exhausted to go on (see 1971 in music). After a highly unsuccessful album, War," War's The World Is a Ghetto reestablished them at the forefront of popular funk and included the 1972 hit "The Cisco Kid." That was followed by the slightly disco influenced "Gypsy Man" from the 1973 album Deliver The Word. Why Can't We Be Friends (1975 in music) sold well, and included "Low Rider", the universal Low Rider anthem. A compilation of jams called Platinum Jazz was a surprise success in 1977.
Discography
(Alphabetical order)
- All Day Music
- Anthology (1970-1994)
- Best Of/Vol. 2
- Deliver The Word
- Eric Burdon Declares "WAR"
- Grooves & Messages: The Greatest Hits Of WAR
- Life (Is So Strange)
- Live
- Love Is All Around
- Peace Sign
- Platinum Jazz
- The Best Of Eric Burdon & WAR
- The Best Of WAR...And More
- The Black-Man’s Burdon
- The Music Band I & II
- The Very Best Of WAR
- The World Is A Ghetto
- WAR
- Why Can’t We Be Friends
- Youngblood (Soundtrack for the motion picture "Youngblood)
The line-up began to fall apart in 1978 when Dickerson quit and Charles Miller was murdered. After a few unsuccessful attempts at recouping, War's Outlaw was a moderate success, but the group was unable to keep any momentum as members came and went. By 1984, War was a touring band only. A comeback was attempted in 1994 with Peace Sign," but the album flopped (see 1994 in music).