Junie

Hailed by George Clinton himself as "the most phenomenal musician on the planet," Walter "Junie" Morrison not only issued multiple solo projects but also shaped landmark funk productions throughout the 1970s and 1980s. Among these were the Ohio Players' first number one R&B single, "The Funky Worm," Funkadelic's One Nation Under a Groove, and Clinton's Computer Games. A skilled multi-instrumentalist who also sang, wrote songs, produced, and arranged, Morrison hailed from Dayton, Ohio. He made his recorded debut alongside the Ohio Players on their 1971 album Pain, returned for 1973's Ecstacy, and essentially crafted the band's 1974 smash "The Funky Worm" single-handedly. Shortly afterward he secured a solo deal with Westbound, resulting in three albums over the next two years: When We Do and Freeze in 1975, followed by Suzie Super Groupie in 1976. He soon entered the P-Funk collective, contributing to most of its output between 1978 and 1981. Additional releases appeared on Columbia with 1980's Bread Alone and on Island with 1984's Evacuate Your Seats. Morrison remained a regular presence on Clinton's solo work and on projects by the P-Funk All Stars until his death in February 2017 at age 62.