BTM: Junior Walker & The All Stars

Ahh...the fame, the screaming girls, the Cheesy Poofs!

"What Does It Take (To Win Your Love)?"
Download Windows Media Player here if you are unable to hear music.

TITLE: "What Does It Take (To Win Your Love)?"

YEAR: 1969

ARTIST: Junior Walker & The All Stars

Hey, lads! Remember the Ed Sullivan Show? Boy, do I ever! The girls went crazy over us! I ended up marrying a beautiful model. So how did I end up with Yoko?

Junior Walker

Junior Walker & The All-Stars at the Apollo Theater in New York in 1966.

An early Junior Walker & The All-Stars Greatest Hits collection.

Walker became more lyrical in the late 1960s.

Aspiring saxophonists today attempt to duplicate Walker's sound.

ABOUT THE ARTIST:

Junior Walker was born Autry DeWalt II on June 14, 1931, in Blytheville, Arkansas. DeWalt grew up in South Bend, Indiana, and began playing the saxophone in high school. He was soon performing in local jazz and R&B clubs with his first band, The Jumping Jacks.

Walker next joined a group headed by drummer Billy Nicks, which also featured organist Fred Patton. Soone thereafter, they added backing vocalist and guitarist Willie Woods and played around northern Indiana and southern Michigan. Walker took over the group after Nicks joined the Army. In the late 1950s, he relocated to Battle Creek, Michigan and formed a band billed as Junior Walker & the All-Stars. Initially, they featured Patton, Woods, and drummer Tony Washington. Patton was later replaced by Victor Thomas, and Washington was removed in favor of Jack Douglas and later, James Graves.

The All-Stars played around the area and were discovered by singer Johnny Bristol, who recommended them to his friend, ex-Moonglow Harvey Fuqua. Fuqua signed the group to his label in 1961. The first recordings were made in 1962, and the following year Fuqua's labels were absorbed by Motown.

Walker & the All-Stars scored their first big hit in 1965 with the dance tune "Shotgun," which was highlighted by Walker's vocal debut. "Shotgun" topped the R&B charts and hit the pop Top Five. A steady flow of mostly instrumental R&B chart hits followed, including "Do the Boomerang," "Shake and Fingerpop," and "How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved by You)."

In 1966, Graves left and was replaced by old friend Billy Nicks, and Walker's hits continued with tunes such as "I'm a Road Runner" and "Pucker Up Buttercup." Toward the end of the 1960s, the All-Stars began recording more ballads, complete with string arrangements and Walker's vocals. That approach resulted in the group's second Top Five pop hit, the R&B Number One amd MIDI now playing, "What Does It Take (To Win Your Love)?" This smash helped refuel Walker's career. He landed several more R&B Top Ten hits over the next few years, with the last coming in 1972.

Walker resurfaced as a solo artist during the disco era, working with producer Brian Holland beginning in 1976 with the single "Hot Shot," and a pair of albums followed. In 1979, Walker joined up with another former Motown mainstay in 1979, signing with producer Norman Whitfield. Unfortunately, the pairing did not generate much success.

Walker returned to the spotlight in 1981 with a well-publicized guest solo on Foreigner's Top Five hit "Urgent." Two years later, he re-signed with Motown and recorded Blow the House Down.

Walker continued to tour through the 1980s and 1990s, sometimes with his son Autry DeWalt III playing drums. Unfortunately, Walker contracted cancer in 1993. He eventually died on November 23, 1995.

To honor the death of his friend, Billy Nicks continued to tour with a version of the All-Stars. Today, saxophonists also honor Walker by attempting to duplicate his sound.