The members of the band changed after the acquisition of the Harvey label. The drummer, Tony Washington quit the group, and James Graves followed the group into the Motown family. Their first and signature hit was "Shotgun", written by Junior Walker and produced by Berry Gordy. "Shotgun" reached #4 on the Billboard Hot 100, aka as the Pop chart, and #1 on the R&B chart in 1965, and was followed by many other hits, such as "(I'm A) Road Runner", "Shake and Fingerpop" and covers of the Motown tracks, "Come See About Me" and "How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved By You)". In 1966, Graves left and was replaced by old cohort Billy "Stix" Nicks, and Walker's hits continued apace with tunes like "I'm a Road Runner" and "Pucker Up Buttercup."[1]
In 1969 the group had another hit enter the top 5, "What Does It Take (To Win Your Love)?".[1] A Motown quality control meeting rejected this song for single release but radio station DJs made the track popular, forcing Motown to release it as a single, whereupon it reached #4 on the Pop chart and #1 on the R&B chart. From that time on Walker sang more on the records than earlier in their career. He landed several more R&B Top Ten hits over the next few years, with the last coming in 1972.[1]
In 1979, Junior Walker went solo and was signed to Norman Whitfield's Whitfield Records label.[1] He was not as successful as he had been with the All Stars in his Motown period. Walker also played the sax on the group Foreigner's "Urgent" in 1981.[1] The solo was actually cobbled together from tapes that he had made with the band. He later recorded his own version of the Foreigner song.
In 1983, Walker was re-signed with Motown.[1] He died on November 23, 1995 in Battle Creek, Michigan of cancer at the age of 64.[1] He had been inducted into the Rhythm and Blues Foundation that year. Drummer James Graves died in 1967 in a car accident, and guitarist Willie Woods in 1997 at age 60.
Jr. Walker's All Star Band is currently touring around the world with with original members Tony Washington and Acklee King.
Walker's "Shotgun" was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2002.
Roadrunner
Jr Walker & The All Stars Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Let me live a life free and easy
Put a toothbrush in my hand
Let me be a travelling man
I'm a roadrunner, baby
Roadrunner
Roadrunner
I'm a road runner baby,
I'm a road runner,
You might look at me
And I'll be gone
Well you can love me if you wanna
But I do declare
When I get restless
I got to move somewhere
Yes, I'm a road runner baby,
Anywhere is my home
And I love the life I live
And I'm gonna live the life I love
Roadrunner baby
Roadrunner Roadrunner
Don't want no woman to tie me down
Gotta be free baby to roam around
All my life I've been like this
You can love me at your own risk
When the dust hits my shoes
I got the urge to move
'Cause I'm a road runner baby,
Gotta keep on, keepin' on
And I live the life I love
And I'm gonna love the life I live
Roadrunner baby
Roadrunner Roadrunner
The lyrics to Jr Walker & The All Stars's "Roadrunner" reflect the spirit of a fast-paced, wandering lifestyle that prioritizes freedom and adventure over material possessions. The singer expresses a desire for a simple, unencumbered existence, one in which he can travel without restraint and let the wind take him where it will. He wants to live on the road, going from place to place without staying in one spot for too long. And he doesn't want anyone to tie him down, preferring the company of the open road to that of a lover.
Line by Line Meaning
Money, who needs it
I don't care about money, I just want to live an easy life.
Let me live a life free and easy
I want to live a carefree life without any worries.
Put a toothbrush in my hand
Give me the essentials so I can travel light.
Let me be a travelling man
I want to travel and see new places constantly.
I'm a roadrunner, baby
I am always on the move like a roadrunner.
Can't stay in one place too long
I can't settle down in one place for too long, I need to keep moving.
You might look at me And I'll be gone
If you try to catch me, I'll already be on my way somewhere else.
Well you can love me if you wanna
You can love me, but you have to understand that I will never stay in one place.
But I do declare When I get restless I got to move somewhere
When I feel restless, I have to go somewhere else.
Anywhere is my home
I feel at home wherever I go.
And I love the life I live And I'm gonna live the life I love
I love my lifestyle of constant travel and I will continue to live that way.
Don't want no woman to tie me down
I don't want a woman to make me stay in one place.
Gotta be free baby to roam around
I need to be free to travel wherever I want.
All my life I've been like this
I have been living this way my entire life.
You can love me at your own risk
If you want to love me, you have to accept that I will always be on the move.
When the dust hits my shoes I got the urge to move
Whenever I feel the urge to move, I can't resist it.
Gotta keep on, keepin' on And I live the life I love
I need to keep moving forward and living my preferred lifestyle of traveling.
And I'm gonna love the life I live Roadrunner baby Roadrunner Roadrunner
I will continue to love my fast-paced, traveling lifestyle like a roadrunner.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Lamont Dozier, Brian Holland, Edward Holland
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@barbarasmith403
Well I'm almost 70 now, and this is, and always has been my all-time favourite record. I just love it and that sax still sounds as good now as it ever did. Makes me wish I still had the energy to get up and dance to it!!
@moonlightlady6126
Do it anyway, Barbara. Just don't break a hip, lol
@sheilaognissanti1803
Mine too....At 71 I'm just bopping around my room to it right now!🤣
@sondrasmith2691
Ah...get up and "get on down" Barbara! I'll dance with ya!! 😂😂
@sondrasmith2691
This is a good az it gets yawl!
@sondrasmith2691
Listen to that sax and piano!
@peterkeiser-nielsen4674
I am 67, live in Denmark and heard this wonderful piece on the radio one late night in the sixties and it blew me away. It took me years to be connected with this tune again, but now I am with 2 new hips and dancing all along with this Roadrunner.
@amberseashellrehling2850
That's really great :) glad you were able to find the song again!
@jameswhitney2450
Great to hear Peter!
@dalesheffield7097
Im 73 and grew up with all this great music. It made you want to dance and that's what it's meant to do. And I can still dance.