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Shotgun (Junior Walker & the All Stars song)

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For other media using the same title, see Shotgun (disambiguation).
"Shotgun"
Single by Junior Walker & the All Stars
from the album Shotgun
B-side"Hot Cha"
ReleasedFebruary 13, 1965 (1965-02-13)
Recorded1964
StudioHitsville U.S.A. (Studio A), Detroit, Michigan
Genre
Length2:54
LabelSoul
Songwriter(s)Autry DeWalt a.k.a. Junior Walker
Producer(s)Berry Gordy, Lawrence Horn
Junior Walker & the All Stars singles chronology
"Satan's Blues"
(1964) 		"Shotgun"
(1965) 		"Do the Boomerang"
(1965)

"Shotgun" is a song written and performed by American soul musician Junior Walker that the singer-songwriter recorded with his group the All Stars. Called a "dance tune",[2] it was produced by Berry Gordy Jr. and Lawrence Horn.[3] Gordy's Soul Records, a Motown Records subsidiary, issued it as a single in 1965. It reached number 1 on the U.S. R&B Singles chart for four non-consecutive weeks and peaked at number 4 on the Billboard Hot 100.[4] In Canada, the song reached number 26.[5]

In 2002, the 1964 recording of the song by credited to the full band Junior Walker & the All Stars on Soul Records was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.[6]

Recording

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"Shotgun" was Walker's debut as a vocalist – when the singer who was hired to perform at the recording session did not show up, Walker stood in.[2] Rather than re-record the vocal at a later date, producer Gordy decided to keep Walker's take, much to the latter's surprise.[2]

The song opens with the sound of a shotgun blast and a drum roll, with the verses alternating between Walker's vocals and tenor saxophone fills.[2] It does not employ the typical progression, but remains on one chord throughout.[7]

Personnel

Performances and renditions

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In his biography, Robbie Robertson recalled an early performance of the song:

Junior Walker and the All Stars were a very different Motown act—raw, sax-blowing energy in all league all its own. A four piece unit, they sounded like eight. When the guitar player fell to his knees on "Shotgun", Junior Walker tore the roof off the joint.[10]

In July 1965, Jimi Hendrix, who was then touring with Little Richard, made his first television appearance performing the song. With Richard's backup band and vocalists Buddy and Stacy, he was filmed for Nashville's Channel 5 Night Train show.[11] In 1966, the Norwegian R&B group Public Enemies performed the song in the film Hurra for Andersens. Their version reached number 7 on Radio Luxembourg's Top 20 Chart.[citation needed] A version by Vanilla Fudge reached number 59 in Canada in 1969.[12]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b Marsh, Dave (1989). The Heart of Rock & Soul: The 1001 Greatest Singles Ever Made. Plume. p. 382. ISBN 0-452-26305-0.
  2. ^ a b c d Huey, Steve; Hamilton, Andrew (2003). "Junior Walker". In Bogdanov, Vladimir; Bush, John; Woodstra, Chris; Erlewine, Stephen Thomas (eds.). All Music Guide to R&B and Soul. San Francisco: Backbeat Books. p. 721. ISBN 0-87930-744-7.
  3. ^ White, Adam; Bronson, Fred (1993). The Billboard Book of Number One Rhythm & Blues Hits. New York City: Billboard Books. p. 3.
  4. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004. Record Research. p. 607.
  5. ^ "RPM Top 40 Singles - March 15, 1965" (PDF).
  6. ^ https://www.grammy.com/awards/hall-of-fame-award#s [bare URL]
  7. ^ Ross, Alex (2007). The Rest Is Noise: Listening to the Twentieth Century. New York City: Picador. p. 553. ISBN 978-0-312-42771-9.
  8. ^ Schlueter, Brad (December 2007). "The Greatest Grooves of R&B and Soul". DRUM! Magazine. Archived from the original on 11 January 2014. Retrieved 19 August 2012.
  9. ^ Nicholls, Geoff (September 7, 1992). "Obituary: Larrie Londin". The Independent. Retrieved 19 August 2012.
  10. ^ Robertson, Robbie (2016). Testimony: A Memoir. New York City: Crown Archetype. eBook. ISBN 978-0307889805.
  11. ^ McDermott, John; Kramer, Eddie; Cox, Billy (2009). Ultimate Hendrix. San Francisco: Backbeat Books. p. 13. ISBN 978-0-87930-938-1.
  12. ^ "RPM Top 100 Singles - March 10, 1969" (PDF).
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