Mojo - The Music Magazine

...SEE NUMBER 8

Junior Walker & The All Stars
Shotgun
(Motown, 1965)

All-wailing, barking, squeaking, quacking and hooting invitation to party. BYOB.

There could be no more complete an outsider artist at Motown than R&B saxophonist Junior Walker. Pretty much a straight-ahead instrumental soloist, he took an even more direct route as singer, aiming for visceral connection and power. This intuitive grasp of his own talent was never better illustrated than on 1965’s rip-roaring Shotgun. In old vinyl money, its first side is an absolute blast. After a slinky, subdued opener in Cleo’s Mood, Walker and his All Stars let rip with four uptempo, roadhouse rough dancers climaxing with the irresistible Shake And Fingerpop. Before it, Do The Boomerang, the title track and (I’m A) Road Runner have all shuddered the foundations, while after it Shoot Your Shot barely takes time for breath. In total, utterly effervescent small ensemble playing behind the Walker tenor sax, which is all-wailing, barking, squeaking, quacking and hooting. And his voice is every bit as blunt in its hollerin’. On side two Walker’s first choruses on Tally Ho reveal a soloist far nimbler than the rest of the album might suggest, while best of the five other tracks is an outstanding band workout, Tune Up – fast, swinging and punchy. The album’s final groover, Ain’t That The Truth, leads us directly back to the Motown Sound right down to the signature tambourine snappin’ on the offbeat. Irresistible.

Geoff Brown

MORE MOTOWN! Check out this month’s issue of MOJO magazine to discover the 100 Greatest Motown Tracks!