War ( the Temptations song ) - wikipedia War ( the Temptations song ) This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. ( October 2016 ) `` War '' Song by The Temptations from the album Psychedelic Shack Released June 10, 1970 ( 1970 - 06 - 10 ) Recorded 1969 -- 1970 Studio Hitsville USA ( Studio A ), Detroit, Michigan Genre Psychedelic soul Length 3 : 11 Label Gordy Songwriter ( s ) Norman Whitfield, Barrett Strong Producer ( s ) Norman Whitfield `` War '' is a counterculture - era soul song written by Norman Whitfield and Barrett Strong for the Motown label in 1969. Whitfield first produced the song -- an obvious anti-Vietnam War protest -- with The Temptations as the original vocalists. After Motown began receiving repeated requests to release `` War '' as a single, Whitfield re-recorded the song with Edwin Starr as the vocalist, with the label deciding to withhold the Temptations ' version from single release so as not to alienate their more conservative fans. Starr 's version of `` War '' was a number - one hit on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in 1970, and is not only the most successful and well - known record of his career, but it is also one of the most popular protest songs ever recorded. It was one of 161 songs on the Clear Channel no - play list after September 11, 2001. The song 's power was reasserted when Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band took their rendition into the U.S. Top 10 in 1986. It was also covered by Frankie Goes to Hollywood in 1984 and more recently by the Rock band Black Stone Cherry on its 2016 album Kentucky. Contents 1 Temptations ' version and release debate 2 Edwin Starr version 2.1 Chart position 3 Frankie Goes to Hollywood version 4 Bruce Springsteen version 4.1 Charts 5 Personnel 5.1 Edwin Starr version 5.2 Temptations version 5.3 Frankie Goes to Hollywood version 5.4 Bruce Springsteen version 6 See also 7 References 8 External links Temptations ' version and release debate The Temptations ' version of `` War '', featuring Paul Williams and Dennis Edwards on lead vocals, was much less intense than the Edwin Starr version. Williams and Edwards deliver the song 's anti-war, pro-peace message over a stripped - down instrumental track, with bass singer Melvin Franklin chanting a repeated recruit training - like `` hup, two, three, four '' in the background during the verses. The song was included as a track on the March 1970 Psychedelic Shack album, which featured the title track as its only single. The track 's direct message, summarized by its chorus ( `` War, what is it good for ? Absolutely nothin ' ! '' ), struck a chord with the American public and resonated with growing public opposition to the war in Vietnam. Fans from across the nation, many of them college students and other young people, sent letters to Motown requesting the release of `` War '' as a single. The label did not want to risk the image of its most popular male group, and the Temptations themselves were also apprehensive about releasing such a potentially controversial song as a single. The label decided to withhold `` War '' 's release as a single, a decision that Whitfield fought until the label came up with a compromise : `` War '' would be released, but it would have to be re-recorded with a different act. Edwin Starr version `` War '' Single by Edwin Starr from the album War & Peace B - side `` He Who Picks a Rose '' Released June 10, 1970 ( 1970 - 06 - 10 ) Format 7 - inch single Recorded May 15, 1970 Studio Hitsville USA ( Studio A ), Detroit, Michigan Genre Psychedelic soul, funk Length 3 : 48 Label Gordy ( Gordy 7101 ) Songwriter ( s ) Norman Whitfield, Barrett Strong Producer ( s ) Norman Whitfield Edwin Starr singles chronology `` Time '' ( 1970 ) `` War '' ( 1970 ) `` Stop the War Now '' ( 1970 ) Edwin Starr sings War Sample of the song Problems playing this file ? See media help. Edwin Starr, who had become a Motown artist in 1968 after his former label, Ric - Tic, was purchased by Motown founder Berry Gordy, Jr., became `` War 's '' new vocalist. Considered among Motown 's `` second - string '' acts, Starr had only one major hit, 1968 's number - six hit `` Twenty - Five Miles '', to his name by this time. He heard about the conflict surrounding the debate of whether or not to release `` War '', and volunteered to re-record it. Whitfield re-created the song to match Starr 's James Brown - influenced soul shout : the single version of `` War '' was dramatic and intense, depicting the general anger and distaste the anti-war movement felt towards the war in Vietnam. Unlike the Temptations ' original, Starr 's `` War '' was a full - scale Whitfield production, with prominent electric guitar lines, clavinets, a heavily syncopated rhythm accented by a horn section, and with The Originals and Whitfield 's new act The Undisputed Truth on backing vocals. Upon its release in June 1970, Starr 's `` War '' became a runaway hit, and held the # 1 position on the Billboard Pop Singles chart for three weeks, in August and September 1970. It replaced `` Make It With You '' by Bread, and was replaced by another Motown single, `` Ai n't No Mountain High Enough '' by Diana Ross. Billboard ranked it as the No. 5 song of 1970. Notable as the most successful protest song to become a pop hit, earning compliments from contemporary protester John Lennon, `` War '' became Edwin Starr 's signature song. Rather than hindering his career ( as it might have done for the Temptations ), `` War '' buoyed Starr 's career, and he adopted the image of an outspoken liberal orator for many of his other early - 1970s releases, including the similarly themed `` Stop the War Now '' from 1971. It and another 1971 single, `` Funky Music Sho ' ' Nuff Turns Me On '', continued Starr 's string of Whitfield - produced psychedelic soul hits. After 1971, Starr 's career began to falter, and, citing Motown 's reliance on formulas, he departed the label in the mid-1970s. Later in his career, after moving to the United Kingdom, Starr re-recorded several of his hits with British band Utah Saints. Starr 's new version of `` War '' in 2003 was his final piece. He died on April 2 of the same year of a heart attack. Starr earned a Grammy nomination in 1971 for `` War '' for best R&B Male Vocal. In 1999, Starr 's recording of the song was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame. `` War '' was featured in the films Agent Cody Banks 2 : Destination London, Gulliver 's Travels, Small Soldiers as well as its soundtrack, Rush Hour, Rush Hour 3, and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles : Out of the Shadows, and in the TV spot to Tropic Thunder. The song is featured in The Simpsons episode `` Treehouse of Horror VIII, '' in the segment `` The Homega Man ''. After Springfield is attacked by a French nuclear weapon, Homer, seemingly the only person in the city not killed or mutated by the explosion, is seen dancing completely naked to the song in a church. The song was sung by Stewie Griffin in Family Guy episode `` Bigfat '' when he was helping Peter sing while grunting at the rhythm. Starr 's version of `` War '' is featured in a 2015 TV commercial for the Nissan Rogue. A truncated version of Starr 's original recording was used as the opening theme to the TV drama Family Law ( 1999 -- 2002 ). The song was referenced in the Seinfeld episode `` The Marine Biologist '' where Jerry convinces Elaine that Tolstoy 's original title for `` War and Peace '' was `` War, What Is It Good For ? '' Chart position Chart Peak position Belgium ( Ultratop 50 Flanders ) 16 Canada ( RPM 100 Singles ) Germany ( Official German Charts ) 9 Ireland ( IRMA ) 5 Netherlands ( Single Top 100 ) 14 Norway ( VG - lista ) 9 UK Singles ( Official Charts Company ) US Billboard Hot 100 Frankie Goes to Hollywood version `` War '' Single by Frankie Goes to Hollywood from the album Welcome to the Pleasuredome B - side `` Two Tribes ( Carnage ) '' `` One February Friday '' Released July 9, 1984 Format 12 - inch single Genre Hi - NRG dance synthpop new wave Length 8 : 33 Label ZTT ( WARTZ 3 ) Songwriter ( s ) Norman Whitfield Barrett Strong Producer ( s ) Trevor Horn Frankie Goes to Hollywood singles chronology `` Relax '' ( 1983 ) `` War '' ( 1984 ) `` The Power of Love '' ( 1984 ) Frankie Goes to Hollywood followed their debut 1983 UK number one single Relax with Two Tribes. The principal B - side for 12 - inch single was a cover version of `` War ''. To build on the chart success of `` Two Tribes '', `` War '' became the subject of an accomplished extended remix in its own right ( subtitled `` Hidden '' ) for the third version of single 's UK 12 - inch. For the release `` War '' was promoted as a double - A-side with the `` Carnage '' mix of `` Two Tribes '' on the reverse. The 12 - inch double - A-side single was released in standard and picture disc versions, both with the ZTT Records catalog number WARTZ 3. Versions of both `` Two Tribes '' and `` War '' would later appear on the group 's 1984 debut album Welcome to the Pleasuredome as well as numerous Frankie Goes to Hollywoood and ZTT Records compilation albums. The release of `` War '' / `` Two Tribes '' also coincided with an extensive and iconic t - shirt marketing campaign for the band during the summer of 1984, featuring such slogans as `` Frankie Say WAR ! Hide Yourself '', as pictured on the 12 '' single cover. Several lines of spoken dialogue were added to the Temptations / Edwin Starr version of the song. Impressionist Chris Barrie voiced the long soliloquy about war and love, while impersonating the American President Ronald Reagan ; a role he would later reprise in the hit UK TV Show Spitting Image. Born in Germany, Barrie translated and subversively quoted Adolf Hitler from his failed 1924 putsch trial, in the first new lines added to the song. Bruce Springsteen version `` War '' Single by Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band from the album Live / 1975 -- 85 B - side `` Merry Christmas Baby '' Released November 10, 1986 Format 7 - inch single Recorded September 30, 1985 Venue Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles Genre Hard rock, funk rock Length 5 : 10 Label Columbia Songwriter ( s ) Norman Whitfield Barrett Strong Producer ( s ) Bruce Springsteen Jon Landau Chuck Plotkin Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band singles chronology `` My Hometown '' ( 1985 ) `` War '' ( 1986 ) `` Fire '' ( 1987 ) `` War '' was performed in concert by Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band in 1985, added to the set list for the final few shows of their lengthy Born in the U.S.A. Tour. Springsteen and his manager Jon Landau were looking for a way to make these concluding shows, taking place at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, a little different and special, and Landau suggested playing `` War ''. A year earlier, he had suggested the same, as a loose protest against Reagan Administration foreign policy in Central America and elsewhere, but the band had been unable to come up with an effective arrangement. This time, however, they did. Springsteen taped the words of the song to his arm, prefaced the song with a spoken admonition not to blindly trust the government, leaders or anything else, and then he and the band performed a rock rendition. Springsteen released the September 30, 1985 performance as a part of his 1986 box set, Live / 1975 -- 85. `` War '' was chosen as the first single from the set, and it was again a big hit, reaching # 8 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. The music video for the single was a straight concert filming of the same performance. Springsteen continued to perform `` War '' regularly through his 1988 Tunnel of Love Express and Human Rights Now ! Tours. He then retired it, until again performing it on his 2003 Rising Tour before and during the start of the Iraq War. Charts Chart Peak position Germany ( Official German Charts ) 27 Belgium ( Ultratop 50 Flanders ) 10 United States ( Billboard Hot 100 ) 8 Ireland ( IRMA ) Norway ( VG - lista ) New Zealand ( Recorded Music NZ ) 42 Netherlands ( Single Top 100 ) 8 UK ( UK Singles Chart ) 18 Sweden ( Sverigetopplistan ) Personnel Edwin Starr version Edwin Starr -- lead vocals The Originals ( Freddie Gorman, Walter Gaines, Hank Dixon, C.P. Spencer ) and The Undisputed Truth ( Joe Harris, Billie Rae Calvin, Brenda Joyce Evans ) -- background vocals The Funk Brothers -- instrumentation Temptations version Paul Williams and Dennis Edwards -- lead vocals Dennis Edwards, Melvin Franklin, Paul Williams, Eddie Kendricks, and Otis Williams -- background vocals The Funk Brothers -- instrumentation Frankie Goes to Hollywood version Holly Johnson -- lead vocals Paul Rutherford -- backing vocals Brian Nash -- guitar Mark O'Toole -- bass Peter Gill -- drums Trevor Horn -- producer Stuart Bruce, Steve Lipson -- engineers Ian Cooper -- mastering Bruce Springsteen version Bruce Springsteen -- lead vocals The E Street Band ( Roy Bittan, Clarence Clemons, Danny Federici, Nils Lofgren, Patti Scialfa, Garry Tallent ) -- background vocals The E Street Band -- instrumentation See also List of anti-war songs References Jump up ^ `` It 's the End of the World as Clear Channel Knows It ''. Slate.com. 2001 - 09 - 17. Retrieved 2014 - 07 - 19. Jump up ^ `` Grammy Award Nominees 1971 - Grammy Award Winners 1971 ''. Awardsandshows.com. 1971 - 03 - 16. Retrieved 2016 - 10 - 03. Jump up ^ `` Ultratop.be -- EDWIN STARR -- WAR '' ( in Dutch ). Ultratop 50. Jump up ^ `` Library and archives Canada ''. Collectionscanada.gc.ca. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 2015 - 12 - 30. Jump up ^ Hung, Steffen. `` germancharts.com - Edwin Starr - War ''. germancharts.de. Retrieved 21 March 2018. ^ Jump up to : `` The Irish Charts -- All there is to know ''. IRMA. Retrieved 2017 - 12 - 30. Jump up ^ `` Dutchcharts.nl -- Edwin Starr -- War '' ( in Dutch ). Single Top 100. Retrieved 2017 - 12 - 30. Jump up ^ `` Norwegiancharts.com -- EDWIN STARR -- WAR ''. VG - lista. Jump up ^ `` EDWIN STARR - full Official Chart History - Official Charts Company ''. www.officialcharts.com. Retrieved 21 March 2018. Jump up ^ `` EDWIN STARR Chart History ( Hot 100 ) ''. Billboard. Jump up ^ `` 25 Years On : Frankie Goes To Hollywood 's Welcome To The Pleasuredome ''. The Quietus.com. Retrieved 8 June 2018. Jump up ^ `` Musicline.de -- Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band Single - Chartverfolgung '' ( in German ). Media Control Charts. PhonoNet GmbH. Retrieved 2015 - 12 - 05. Jump up ^ `` Ultratop.be -- Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band -- War ( Live ) '' ( in Dutch ). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 2015 - 12 - 05. Jump up ^ `` Bruce Springsteen Chart History ''. Billboard.com. Billboard. Retrieved 2015 - 12 - 05. Jump up ^ `` Norwegiancharts.com -- Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band -- War ( Live ) ''. VG - lista. Retrieved 2015 - 12 - 05. Jump up ^ `` Charts.nz -- Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band -- War ( Live ) ''. Top 40 Singles. Retrieved 2015 - 12 - 05. Jump up ^ `` Dutchcharts.nl -- Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band -- War ( Live ) '' ( in Dutch ). Single Top 100. Retrieved 2015 - 12 - 05. Jump up ^ `` Bruce Springsteen Artist Official Charts ''. Official Charts Company. Retrieved 2015 - 12 - 05. Jump up ^ `` Swedishcharts.com -- Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band -- War ( Live ) ''. Singles Top 100. Retrieved 2015 - 12 - 05. External links Edwin Starr, `` War '' -- Superseventies.com Edwin Starr interview by Pete Lewis, ' Blues & Soul ' 10 / 92 Andrew Hamilton, All Music Guide review Lyrics of this song at MetroLyrics Peace movement / Anti-war movement Peace advocates Anti-nuclear organizations Anti-war movement Anti-war organizations Bed - In Central Park be-ins Conscientious objectors Counterculture Culture of peace Draft evasion Human Be-In List of peace activists Peace and conflict studies Peace camp Peace churches Peace commission Peace education Peace movement Peace walk Teach - in War resisters War tax resisters Ideologies Ahimsa Anarchism Anarcho - pacifism Anarcho - punks Christian anarchism Anti-imperialism Anti-nuclear movement Antimilitarism Appeasement Direct action Finvenkismo Hippie Isolationism Non-interventionism Nonkilling Nonviolence Pacificism Pacifism Peace Satyagraha Simple living Socialism Soviet influence on the peace movement Media and cultural Art Books Films International Day of Non-Violence International Day of Peace Dialogue Among Civilizations List of places named Peace `` Make love, not war '' Monuments and memorials Museums Peace journalism Peace News Plays Promoting Enduring Peace Songs Symbols World Game Opposition to specific wars or their aspects Afghan War American Civil War Iraq War Landmines Military action in Iran Military intervention in Libya Military taxation Nuclear armament Second Boer War Sri Lankan Civil War Vietnam War War of 1812 War on Terror World War I World War II Countries Canada Germany Israel Netherlands Spain United Kingdom United States Edwin Starr Studio albums War & Peace Singles `` Way Over There '' `` Twenty - Five Miles '' `` War '' `` Contact '' `` H.A.P.P.Y. Radio '' Related articles Angelo Starr Blinky Williams Ferry Aid Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band Bruce Springsteen Garry Tallent Roy Bittan Max Weinberg Steven Van Zandt Nils Lofgren Patti Scialfa Jake Clemons Charles Giordano Soozie Tyrell Former members Ernest Carter Clarence Clemons Danny Federici Vini Lopez David Sancious Former touring musicians Everett Bradley Barry Danielian Clark Gayton Curtis King Suki Lahav Ed Manion The Miami Horns Cindy Mizelle Michelle Moore Tom Morello Curt Ramm Jay Weinberg Studio albums Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J. ( 1973 ) The Wild, the Innocent & the E Street Shuffle ( 1973 ) Born to Run ( 1975 ) Darkness on the Edge of Town ( 1978 ) The River ( 1980 ) Nebraska ( 1982 ) Born in the U.S.A. ( 1984 ) Tunnel of Love ( 1987 ) Human Touch ( 1992 ) Lucky Town ( 1992 ) The Ghost of Tom Joad ( 1995 ) The Rising ( 2002 ) Devils & Dust ( 2005 ) We Shall Overcome : The Seeger Sessions ( 2006 ) Magic ( 2007 ) Working on a Dream ( 2009 ) Wrecking Ball ( 2012 ) High Hopes ( 2014 ) Live albums & Bruce Springsteen Archives Live 1975 -- 85 ( 1986 ) In Concert / MTV Plugged ( 1993 ) Live in New York City ( 2001 ) Hammersmith Odeon London ' 75 ( 2006 ) Live in Dublin ( 2007 ) Live from the Carousel ( 2011 ) Apollo Theater 3 / 09 / 12 ( 2014 ) The Agora, Cleveland 1978 ( 2015 ) Tower Theater, Philadelphia 1975 ( 2015 ) Nassau Coliseum, New York 1980 ( 2015 ) Brendan Byrne Arena, New Jersey 1984 ( 2015 ) LA Sports Arena, California 1988 ( 2015 ) Schottenstein Center, Ohio 2005 ( 2015 ) Ippodromo delle Capannelle, Rome 2013 ( 2015 ) Arizona State University, Tempe 1980 ( 2015 ) The Christic Shows 1990 ( 2016 ) HSBC Arena, Buffalo, NY, 11 / 22 / 09 ( 2016 ) Scottrade Center, St. Louis, MO, 8 / 23 / 08 ( 2017 ) Olympiastadion, Helsinki, July 31, 2012 ( 2017 ) Wachovia Spectrum, Philadelphia, PA 10 / 20 / 09 ( 2017 ) Palace Theatre, Albany 1977 ( 2017 ) Auditorium Theatre, Rochester, NY 1977 ( 2017 ) King 's Hall, Belfast March 19, 1996 ( 2017 ) The Summit, Houston, TX December 8, 1978 ( 2017 ) Compilations Greatest Hits ( 1995 ) 18 Tracks ( 1999 ) The Essential Bruce Springsteen ( 2003 ) Greatest Hits ( 2009 ) The Promise ( 2010 ) Collection : 1973 -- 2012 ( 2013 ) Chapter and Verse ( 2016 ) Box sets The Born in the U.S.A. 12 '' Single Collection ( 1985 ) Tracks ( 1998 ) The Collection ( 2004 ) Born to Run : 30th Anniversary Edition ( 2005 ) The Collection 1973 -- 1984 ( 2010 ) The Promise : The Darkness on the Edge of Town Story ( 2010 ) The Album Collection Vol. 1 1973 -- 1984 ( 2014 ) The Ties That Bind : The River Collection ( 2015 ) EPs Live Collection ( 1987 ) Chimes of Freedom ( 1988 ) Blood Brothers ( 1996 ) PBS Exclusive ( 2007 ) Magic Tour Highlights ( 2008 ) American Beauty ( 2014 ) Singles `` Blinded by the Light '' ( 1973 ) `` Spirit in the Night '' ( 1973 ) `` 4th of July, Asbury Park ( Sandy ) '' ( 1974 ) `` Born to Run '' ( 1975 ) `` Tenth Avenue Freeze - Out '' ( 1976 ) `` Prove It All Night '' ( 1978 ) `` Badlands '' ( 1978 ) `` The Promised Land '' ( 1978 ) `` Rosalita ( Come Out Tonight ) '' ( 1979 ) `` Hungry Heart '' ( 1980 ) `` Fade Away '' ( 1981 ) `` Sherry Darling '' ( 1981 ) `` The River '' ( 1981 ) `` Cadillac Ranch '' ( 1981 ) `` Point Blank '' ( 1981 ) `` Atlantic City '' ( 1982 ) `` Open All Night '' ( 1982 ) `` Dancing in the Dark '' ( 1984 ) `` Cover Me '' ( 1984 ) `` Born in the U.S.A. '' ( 1984 ) `` I 'm on Fire '' ( 1985 ) `` Glory Days '' ( 1985 ) `` I 'm Goin ' Down '' ( 1985 ) `` My Hometown '' ( 1985 ) `` Santa Claus Is Comin ' to Town '' ( 1985 ) `` War '' ( 1986 ) `` Fire '' ( 1987 ) `` Brilliant Disguise '' ( 1987 ) `` Tunnel of Love '' ( 1987 ) `` One Step Up '' ( 1988 ) `` Tougher Than the Rest '' ( 1988 ) `` Spare Parts '' ( 1988 ) `` Human Touch '' ( 1992 ) `` 57 Channels ( And Nothin ' On ) '' ( 1992 ) `` Better Days '' ( 1992 ) `` Streets of Philadelphia '' ( 1994 ) `` Secret Garden '' ( 1995 ) `` The Ghost of Tom Joad '' ( 1996 ) `` Sad Eyes '' ( 1999 ) `` The Rising '' ( 2002 ) `` Lonesome Day '' ( 2002 ) `` Waitin ' on a Sunny Day '' ( 2003 ) `` Devils & Dust '' ( 2005 ) `` All The Way Home '' ( 2005 ) `` Radio Nowhere '' ( 2007 ) `` Girls in Their Summer Clothes '' ( 2008 ) `` Working on a Dream '' ( 2008 ) `` My Lucky Day '' ( 2008 ) `` The Wrestler '' ( 2009 ) `` We Take Care of Our Own '' ( 2012 ) `` Death to My Hometown '' ( 2012 ) `` High Hopes '' ( 2013 ) `` Just Like Fire Would '' ( 2014 ) Charting songs `` Be True '' ( 1981 ) `` Ramrod '' ( 1981 ) `` Nebraska '' ( 1982 ) `` Johnny 99 '' ( 1982 ) `` No Surrender '' ( 1984 ) `` Stand on It '' ( 1985 ) `` Trapped '' ( live ) ( 1985 ) `` Because the Night '' ( live ) ( 1986 ) `` Chimes of Freedom '' ( live ) ( 1988 ) `` Youngstown '' ( 1995 ) `` American Skin ( 41 Shots ) '' ( 2001 ) `` Pay Me My Money Down '' ( 2006 ) `` Long Walk Home '' ( 2006 ) `` My City of Ruins '' ( 2011 ) `` Rocky Ground '' ( 2012 ) Other notable songs `` Growin ' Up '' ( 1973 ) `` For You '' ( 1973 ) `` Incident on 57th Street '' ( 1973 ) `` The Fever '' ( 1973 ) `` Thunder Road '' ( 1975 ) `` Night '' ( 1975 ) `` Backstreets '' ( 1975 ) `` She 's the One '' ( 1975 ) `` Meeting Across the River '' ( 1975 ) `` Jungleland '' ( 1975 ) `` Adam Raised a Cain '' ( 1978 ) `` Racing in the Street '' ( 1978 ) `` Darkness on the Edge of Town '' ( 1978 ) `` Stay '' ( 1979 ) `` The Ties That Bind '' ( 1980 ) `` Independence Day '' ( 1980 ) `` Out in the Street '' ( 1980 ) `` Stolen Car '' ( 1980 ) `` Wreck on the Highway '' ( 1980 ) `` Highway Patrolman '' ( 1982 ) `` Darlington County '' ( 1984 ) `` Working on the Highway '' ( 1984 ) `` Downbound Train '' ( 1984 ) `` Bobby Jean '' ( 1984 ) `` Pink Cadillac '' ( 1984 ) `` Jersey Girl '' ( 1986 ) `` Light of Day '' ( 1993 ) `` The New Timer '' ( 1995 ) `` Land of Hope and Dreams '' ( 2012 ) `` Hunter of Invisible Game '' ( 2014 ) Video releases Video Anthology / 1978 -- 88 ( 1989 ) In Concert / MTV Plugged ( 1992 ) Blood Brothers ( 1996 ) The Complete Video Anthology / 1978 -- 2000 ( 2001 ) Live in New York City ( 2001 ) Live in Barcelona ( 2003 ) VH1 Storytellers ( 2005 ) Wings For Wheels ( 2005 ) Hammersmith Odeon London ' 75 ( 2005 ) Live in Dublin ( 2007 ) Magic Tour Highlights ( 2008 ) London Calling : Live in Hyde Park ( 2010 ) The Promise : The Making of Darkness on the Edge of Town ( 2010 ) Springsteen & I ( 2013 ) Born in the U.S.A. Live : London 2013 ( 2014 ) A MusiCares Tribute to Bruce Springsteen ( 2014 ) Bruce Springsteen 's High Hopes ( 2014 ) High Hopes in South Africa ( 2014 ) Hunter of Invisible Game ( 2014 ) Concerts Born to Run tours ( 1974 -- 77 ) Darkness Tour ( 1978 ) The River Tour ( 1980 -- 81 ) Born in the U.S.A. Tour ( 1984 -- 85 ) Tunnel of Love Express ( 1988 ) Human Rights Now ! ( 1988 ) Bruce Springsteen 1992 -- 1993 World Tour ( 1992 -- 93 ) Ghost of Tom Joad Tour ( 1995 -- 97 ) Reunion Tour ( 1999 -- 2000 ) Rising Tour ( 2002 -- 03 ) Vote for Change ( 2004 ) Devils & Dust Tour ( 2005 ) Seeger Sessions Band Tour ( 2006 ) Magic Tour ( 2007 -- 08 ) Working on a Dream Tour ( 2009 ) Wrecking Ball Tour ( 2012 - 13 ) High Hopes Tour ( 2014 ) The River Tour 2016 ( 2016 ) Summer ' 17 ( 2017 ) Springsteen on Broadway ( 2017 - 18 ) Related Discography E Street Band Steel Mill The Sessions Band The Miami Horns Born to Run autobiography E Street Radio Little Steven 's Underground Garage Outlaw Pete Mike Appel Jon Landau Brendan O'Brien Bob Clearmountain The Max Weinberg 7 Southside Johnny Joe Grushecky Badlands : A Tribute to Bruce Springsteen 's Nebraska Greetings from E Street Book Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=War_(The_Temptations_song)&oldid=854695348 '' Categories : 1970 songs 1970 singles 1986 singles Anti-war songs Billboard Hot 100 number - one singles Bruce Springsteen songs Columbia Records singles Counterculture of the 1960s Edwin Starr songs Grammy Hall of Fame Award recipients Motown singles Gordy Records singles ZTT Records singles Island Records singles Psychedelic soul songs Song recordings produced by Norman Whitfield Songs of the Vietnam War Songs written by Barrett Strong Songs written by Norman Whitfield The Temptations songs RPM Top Singles number - one singles Hidden categories : Articles needing additional references from October 2016 All articles needing additional references Articles with hAudio microformats Singlechart usages for Flanders Singlechart usages for Dutch100 Singlechart usages for Norway Singlechart usages for Billboardhot100 Singlechart usages for Germany Singlechart usages for New Zealand Singlechart usages for Sweden Talk Contents About Wikipedia Deutsch Español Français Latina Simple English Slovenčina Svenska Edit links This page was last edited on 13 August 2018, at 04 : 26 ( UTC ). 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Question: who wrote war what is it good for absolutely nothing
Answer: Norman Whitfield and Barrett Strong