Junior Walker; Saxophonist, Head of All Stars

Junior Walker, one of popular music’s premier saxophonists and leader of the Motown group Junior Walker and the All Stars, died Thursday of cancer. He was in his 50s.

According to reference books, Walker was born Autry DeWalt Jr. in Blytheville, Ark., sometime in 1942.

He started out playing in local groups in Indiana in the mid-1950s before moving to Battle Creek and forming the All Stars. The group went on to record some of Motown’s most enduring hits, including “Shotgun,” “What Does It Take to Win Your Love,” “How Sweet It Is” and “These Eyes.”

“There isn’t a sax player out there who didn’t get something from him,” said Jimmy Vivino of the band Jimmy Vivino and the Black Italians.

The All Stars, which included guitarist Willie Woods, keyboard player Vic Thomas and drummer James Graves, were said to have gotten their name when an enthusiastic fan jumped to his feet during a show and shouted, “These guys are all stars!”

Walker continued to tour into the ‘90s, sometimes with his son, Autry DeWalt III, backing him on drums. Walker had recently returned from a tour with the Four Tops, the Temptations and other Motown stars, said Woods, his friend since school days.

“When he got back, he had lost the strength in his legs,” Woods said. “He never really came back to where he could walk again.”

Walker gained acclaim for his brilliant sax solos, and his style is credited with influencing jazz saxophonist David Sanborn, among others.

“He’s going to be missed,” said Steve Weitzman, promoter for the New York City club Tramps. “That era is over now. Sax has been replaced by horn synthesizer, and that’s such a shame. There’s not going to be another one like him.”

Vivino said Walker was known for “his command of what the sax players call the upper register--funky.”

From the mid-1960s into the ‘70s Walker produced a string of hits, including “Come See About Me,” “Hip City” and “Road Runner.”