The Definitive Collection

Junior Walker, (Autry De Wait Mixon Jr), passed away in 1995, aged 64. He left his musical legacy for us all to listen to. His ‘screeching’ style of play on his tenor sax was very distinctive and brought him much success. His music is usually backed by an equally distinctive sweet chorus of backing singers. His career lasted 50 years. ‘Junior’ was from Arkansas - the same home State as Billy Bob Thornton and Bill Clinton.His main chart years were the 60’s & 70’s. He had two number 1’s in theR& B charts in the US, as well numerous entries in the Billboard, and the UK charts.Road Runner (12), How Sweet it is (22), What Does it Take 13), Take me Girl I’m Ready(16) , Way Back Home(35) & Walk in the Night(16), all charted here.I really enjoyed catching up with Junior - even after all these years, there’s still no one that sounds quite like him and he made some rollickingly good disco music.Had ‘What Does it Take’ been a minute or so longer, instead of a very short 2 minutes, 28 seconds, then this would have been one of the greatest Motown records ever. The last three tracks on this album are just great to listen to.

This is the best sax playing, combo singing and backing I have ever heard, if this music was cooking then this would be the best meal I have ever tasted. The late great Junior Walker certainly had the recipe and talent to make such deliciously great music, and as I listen to this album I believe it is the best of the best Motown can offer, because it's just so great.I'm currently listening to "Way Back Home" and it's so soulful that I cannot put into words how it makes me feel. This is a not just a 5 star album, it deserves 10 stars.

Road Runner got me into Junior Walker & the All Stars back in the sixties. When I discovered more tracks I was content to listen to them on scratchy vinyl, cassettes and early audio CD's through the intervening decades. This collection took me to a different planet in recording values- a superb digitally remastered sound. To me Road Runner is different class followed by Shotgun, Shake and Fingerpop and all their early hard-driving R&B tracks. Towards the end of their career they did get more commercial and a lttle smooth for my palate but the wonderful sax saved these records. In fact the sax here must be the most under-rated in any genre or sphere of music- its just epic. I suppose the Northen Soul fans will be disappointed that Cool Cool Baby & I Aint Going Nowhere are excluded- but trust me all the vital, indispensable tracks are here.

A decent enough compilation including 3 great instrumentals one being the excellent Cleos Mood I prefer the earlier junior walker tracks best as the seem more gutsy and less commercial

Along with Earl Bostic and King Curtis, Walker put up the signposts for guys like Clarence Clemmons. Cool rocking Daddies one and all

A Motown weekend for me to add . No complaints

Great music

If you like soulful sax music this is for you

I only knew a couple of Junior Walker's songs before this like What can it take but this collection turned me into an even bigger fan. He was a great sax player and underrated vocalist and some of his remakes here are classic. I was never partial to the Guess Who's These Eyes but Junior injects it with soul and brings it to life. Others have covered I'm a Roadrunner but none can touch the original made by Junior. I defy anyone to listen to it and not want to get up and dance.

Thanks.

Jr. Walker and the All Stars came barnstorming through the Motown assembly line with a hot, sizzling soul/pop dance craze, "Shotgun" and immediately demonstrated that not only could the label produce first class soul pop, but, also funky grooves for days.While The Supremes, The Temptations, The Miracles, Marvin Gaye, etc. all were graduates of Motown's Artist Development Department, Berry also knew to embrace the rawness of a Junior Walker or Shorty Long or Gladys Knight & The Pips. They were even assigned to the "Soul" emblem as their music and sound was decidedly so.Junior Walker was a talented brass player creating a distinct brand for himself that would become sought after by other labels.Hot dance grooves like "Shotgun ", "(I'm a) Roadrunner", "Pucker Up Buttercup" and "Hip City" was as much his/their signature as "What Does it Take" and "Walk in the Night" would become quiet storm classics as they ruled the pop and R&B charts. Clocking nearly 15/Top 10 R&B smashes, the group also posted a handful of pop/Top 5 hits (4).Their 1966 "Roadrunner" album remains a classic earning a Grammy Hall of Fame Award and still considered one of his finest hours."The Definitive Collection" is probably the best demonstration of Jr. Walker's label "All Star!!!"Junior had a great decade long career as an instrumentalist/vocalist. He was yet another symbol of how well rounded the Motown family of labels truly were!

One of the best compilations I've ever heard. Well done. Junior Walker & The All Stars had a sound that was straight forward, in your face, and unapologetic. They were truly Motown originals, in the sense that their music recordings did not have the polished Motown Sound. Their sound was raw. Junior Walker & The All Stars are in that elite group of artists, who can cover a hit by someone else and make it sound like it was written just for them. Their cover versions are just as good as the hit versions. Even when Motown saw fit to sweeten their sound by downplaying the soul, r&b, jazz/funk of The All Stars, adding strings and female background singers, Junior Walker's saxophone playing/singing still remained gutsy. The only drawback is that I am left wanting to here more, e.g. rarities, alternate versions, never before released findings from the Motown vaults. Hopefully, HIP-OSelect will release a Junior Walker & The All Stars: Lost & Found in the near future.

Jr. Walker & the All Stars were one of Motown's Soul label's signature (and underrated) acts in the 1960s.CD collection beautifully reproduces excitement of group's sound. It is indeed an excellent but not great remastering effort. (that stirred a lot of fond memories for me, of happier times gone by)Dynamics, and Walker's sax remain at forefront but there is restricted depth of field to songs' presentations.

I began my lifelong obsession of collecting records in the Spring of 1965.There were so many amazing sounds emanating out of our little transistor radios in those days. There was folk, the British invasion, Motown and so much more. It was an exciting time to be a teen! Right around this time a phenomenal 23 year sax player burst onto the scene. His real name was Autry Dewalt II. His stage name was Junior Walker and his backup group was known as the All Stars. Junior Walker played a brand of sax that I never heard before and frankly have never heard since. The 2008 single disc compilation "Junior Walker and the All Stars: The Definitive Collection" offers up a total of 18 of the groups biggest and best hits. This is a collection that is long overdue.Junior Walker had signed on with Harvey Fuqua's Harvey label back in 1962. His earliest recordings were primarily blues instrumentals. When one of them, a tune called "Cleo's Mood" began to catch on, Fuqua realized that he did not have the wherewithal to promote and distribute the record properly. And so it was that Harvey records was folded into Berry Gordy Jr.'s Motown juggernaut. Junior Walker and the All Stars were on their way to becoming national recording stars. And so it was that in February of 1965 Motown released "Shotgun". The record was an instant smash and climbed all the way to #4 on the Billboard Hot 100 Singles chart. Not only was Junior Walker featured on sax on this record but he also sang lead. Over the next few years Junior Walker and the All Stars would amass an impressive total of 21 charted singles. And as you might expect they were even bigger on the R & B charts. You will find all of the groups biggest hits on "The Definitive Collection" including "(I'm A) Road Runner", "Do The Boomerang" as well as the 1966 hit recording of "How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved By You)". Although this tune was a hit for Marvin Gaye in 1964 and once again for James Taylor nearly a decade later I believe that the Junior Walker version is the better one by far.As time goes on tastes change and so it was that in 1969 Motown assigned a brand new producer to Junior Walker and the All Stars. Johnny Bristol correctly perceived that audiences were now looking for a bit of a softer sound. The results were a handful of terrific singles that included the group's biggest hit of all-time "What Does It Take (To Win Your Love)" from the summer of '69 as well as tunes like "Gotta Hold On To This Feeling" and a clever and pleasing reworking of the Guess Who's "These Eyes". Sadly, the groups last chart appearance was in 1972. There was only one more time that Junior Walker's classic sax could be found on a hit record. Foreigner's 1981 hit single "Urgent" featured a brief sax solo that was vintage Junior Walker.We lost Junior Walker to cancer in 1995. But he left us with an impressive body of work. Junior Walker and the All Stars: The Definitive Collection" is probably the best collection of this classic Motown group that I have ever seen. I enjoyed perusing the informative 12 page booklet that we included. Junior Walker ranks right up there with King Curtis and Earl Bostic as one of the greatest saxophone players in the history of rock and roll. If you love the sax as much as I do then I urge you to give this one a listen. Recommended!

Bought this as a gift for my Dad and he loved it. The music is timeless and amazing. We all enjoyed listening to it.

Love this CD. Is has so many hits on it. I didn't realize this group made so many songs that I love.

My favorite song in my teens. The whole album is just soul loving music that makes you dance even if you can't. You can't beat the sax!

My second favorie song is on this cd and i listen to it on "repeat disc" a hundred times a week !!!

if you are a music/oldies lover , this cd is just fabulous across the board in all ways possible. the listeners will truly love this one/

real good

Great thank you

fair price promptly delivered...

All time favorite CD, brought back many memories