Shotgun featuring Jr Walker and the All Stars
December 2, 2008 by EditMotown50
Filed under Jr Walker, Motown 50 Disc 1
Reaching number 4 in the US in 1965, “Shotgun” was written by Walker and was their first hit with Motown. Originally signed to the Harvey label, they became members of the Motown family when Harvey Fuqua’s labels were taken over by Motown. they had a number of other hits including “I’m a Road Runner” and “Come see about me”.
Jr Walker’s was actually called Autry DeWalt Mixon – hence the stagename! Although a horn man by preference, “Shotgun” was also Walker’s singing debut (the booked session singer failed to turn up and he ended up belting it out on his own). It was inspired by a local dance craze and this proved a source of creativity for a number of future hits including “The Boomerang”.
One of his greatest hits “(I’m A) Roadrunner” was written specially for him by Motown’s Holland-Dozier-Holland trio supposedly as a consequence of his always running in and out of the studio!
Sample “Shotgun” on Motown 50 here: Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
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I love the tambourine refrain on this track. Funny how quirks of fate can change the careers of artists, but Jr Walker clearly had considerable talent and was able to parlay popular dance into successful records. That Shotgun beat is certainly an invitation to get up and boogie.