I’ve always loved a great saxophone solo (who doesn’t?), and few did them better than Junior Walker, frontman of 1960s Motown powerhouse soul band Jr. Walker & the All Stars. And one of the finest examples of his virtuoso sax prowess is their 1965 hit song “Shotgun“. I remember being blown away the first time I heard the song as a kid, and have loved it ever since. With that opening shotgun blast, quickly followed by an explosive drum roll and wailing saxophone riff, you know you’re in for a wild and exciting ride! 

Born Autry DeWalt Mixon Jr. in 1931, Walker began playing saxophone in high school, and in his mid-20s, formed his own band called the Jumping Jacks. His music style was inspired by jump blues and early R&B, particularly jazz saxophonists like Louis Jordan, Earl Bostic, and Illinois Jacque. Walker later joined The Rhythm Rockers, a group started by longtime friend and drummer Billy Nicks. After a number of changes in lineup, the band name was changed to “The All Stars.” In 1961, the group was spotted by singer-songwriter and producer Johnny Bristol, who recommended them to singer-songwriter, producer and record label executive Harvey Fuqua. Once the group were signed with the Harvey label, their name was changed to Jr. Walker All Stars. The name was modified again, to Jr. Walker & the All Stars, when Fuqua’s record labels were taken over by Motown’s Berry Gordy, making the band part of the Motown family. (Wikipedia)

The recording of “Shotgun” was sort of a happy accident. When the vocalist who’d originally been hired to sing the song failed to show up for the recording session, Walker stepped in, with the intention of his vocal being re-recorded later. Much to his surprise, Berry Gordy decided to keep his vocal take, which was a smart move. His raw vocals were a perfect complement to his exuberant tenor saxophone riff, matching their ferocity note for note. In addition to Walker’s marvelous sax, the song features terrific Hammond organ fills played by Johnny Griffith, funky guitar notes by Willie Woods and a lively tambourine by Jack Ashford.

Written by Walker, “Shotgun” was the title track from Jr. Walker & the All Stars’ debut album, released in May 1965, and their first song to chart, reaching #1 on the Billboard R&B chart and #4 on the Hot 100. They would go on to have 11 more top 40 singles, including the gorgeous “What Does It Take (To Win Your Love)” (which I featured in 2019). Walker would later play a wonderful sax solo on Foreigner’s 1981 hit song “Urgent”.

Here’s the best audio version of the song I could find:

And here’s a video of a performance of the song on an unidentified TV show in 1965: