This week the death of legendary musician Junie Morrison was announced. Walter “Junie” Morrison (1954 – February 2017) was an American musician and record producer. He was a member of the Ohio Players in the early 1970’s, and later became the musical director of P-Funk (Parliament-Funkadelic).
Born in Dayton, Ohio, Morrison was a producer, writer, keyboardist and vocalist for the funk band the Ohio Players in the early 1970s, where he was involved in some of their major hits and the albums Pain, Pleasure, and Ecstasy. He was largely responsible for writing and arranging the band’s 1973 hit single, “Funky Worm”. He left the band in 1974 to release three solo albums on Westbound Records, credited as Junie – When We Do, Freeze, and Suzie Supergroupie.
In 1977 Morrison joined George Clinton’s P-Funk (Parliament-Funkadelic) where he became musical director. He brought a unique sound to P-Funk and played a key role during the time of their greatest popularity from 1978 through 1980. In particular, he made prominent contributions to the platinum-selling Funkadelic album One Nation Under a Groove, the single “(Not Just) Knee Deep” (a #1 hit on the U.S. R&B charts in 1979), the gold-selling Parliament albums Motor Booty Affair, and Gloryhallastoopid. Morrison also played on and produced some P-Funk material under the pseudonym J.S. Theracon, apparently to avoid contractual difficulties. Morrison is a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, inducted in 1997 with fifteen other members of Parliament-Funkadelic. Clinton once described Morrison as “the most phenomenal musician on the planet.”
After his time with Parliament-Funkadelic, he recorded three solo albums in the eighties including 1980’s Bread Alone, 1981’s Junie 5, and 1984’s Evacuate Your Seats. Morrison produced other artists throughout the 90s and continued to contribute to P-Funk albums, most recently in 1996. He released his most recent solo album, When the City, on his own label Juniefunk in 2004.
Morrison died at the age of 62. His death was reported on February 16, 2017, but the precise date and other details were not made public