Once an extremely popular regional attraction, John Edwards moved from the chitlin circuit to the big time when he joined the Spinners. Born in St. Louis, Edwards began singing in men's clubs while stationed in Germany during his Army days. When he was discharged, Edwards came to Columbus, Georgia. He appeared once with Wilson Pickett and then did several dates in Chicago, where he met Curtis Mayfield in 1968. Mayfield got Edwards a session at Weis Records and Jo Armstead produced "If I Don't Lose My Head" in 1969. Armstead produced other singles for Weis and Twin Stacks before Edwards moved to Bell in 1972. Floyd Smith co-wrote and produced "The Look on Your Face," after which Edwards moved again to Aware, in 1973. Smith produced his LP John Edwards, and "Messing Up a Good Thing" generated some attention. But it was "Careful Man" in 1974 that got Edwards his first and only hit as a single act; it reached number eight. When Aware folded, Edwards did a few dates with the Spinners in 1973, but continued his solo career with Cotillion. His 1976 LP Life, Love & Living contained some excellent deep soul tunes, particularly "Baby, Hold on to Me," but didn't get much attention. Edwards joined the Spinners full-time in 1977 and remained with them until suffering a debilitating stroke in 2000. "Working My Way Back to You/Forgive Me, Girl" and "Cupid/I've Loved You for a Long Time" in 1980 were two of the biggest Spinners hits featuring Edwards on vocals. ~ Ron Wynn