A Good Run
Ernie McClinton had a roaring good time as a guitarist for the band Shotgun.
The music ain’t over yet.
Words by Erin Shockey | Images by Blakeney Clouse
Dawn broke through the heather gray sky as a school bus trudged down old, familiar roads. Dust twirled into the crisp, morning air as light crept between the unsullied, Alabama trees. Aboard the bus were Ernie McClinton and his band Shotgun, weary from another long weekend of playing music on the road.
Their brotherhood and fiery passion for performing is what carried the band through long, music-filled weekends. Those days of living on the road have come and gone, but the memories have left an imprint on the life of Shotgun lead singer Ernie McClinton.
The proud son of a coal miner, Ernie grew up in a home where the rich aroma of mama’s homemade biscuits and the unapologetic burst of song was ordinary. “There were seven of us kids and all three of my brothers could sing,” Ernie says. “My sisters helped raise me because I was the youngest.”
As a young man, Ernie listened to the music of Elvis and Lynyrd Skynyrd. His dream of becoming a musician manifested itself after listening to an 8-track tape of Waylon Jennings on his way home from high school football practice. “When I heard Waylon Jennings on that 8-track, that was it,” Ernie says. “I decided I wanted to do that.”
After Ernie graduated high school, a friend taught him to how to play a few chords on the guitar. His friend began attending school at Walker College, now known as Bevill State Community College, where he met people with similar musical interests. It wasn’t long before this new group of friends decided to form a band. “We actually called the band Outlaw Family at first,” Ernie says. “We played like that a couple of years.”
Band members came and went as the years rolled by, but Ernie was there for the long haul. “There were actually 34 people who played in the band when you count everyone that cycled through,” Ernie says.
Eventually, Outlaw Family was renamed Shotgun. The band landed local gigs on the weekends and began to hit the road frequently, traveling to places like Eufaula, Camden, Greensboro and Tuscaloosa. Some of Ernie’s favorite memories include opening for Merle Haggard, Willie Nelson and the Marshall Tucker Band at Old York. “We used to have festivals and gun fights down there. It was a lot of fun,” Ernie grins.
When the band played clubs on the weekends, many nights ended with the bar becoming their stage. “We used to have all this wireless equipment, so when we played a lot of clubs we’d get up on the bar and walk across it. Everyone was wireless, so we’d be running all over the place. I can’t believe I’ve done stuff like that,” Ernie laughs.
After years of performing, traveling and living their dream, Shotgun’s brotherhood only grew stronger. “It was more than just a band. Over the years, we would cook out together and hang out together,” Ernie says.
Even after many nights of singing on stage, Ernie saw himself as a songwriter more than anything. When he signed with Tom Collins Music in Nashville in 1990, Ernie was the only writer on staff not living in Nashville. “I would go in once a month and they would pair me up with different song writers,” he recalls. “We would just sit in a room and write for hours.”
Several of the writers Ernie worked with had multiple number one songs. Out of all of the co-writing sessions in his career, some of the most memorable were with his wife, Denise. On their honeymoon 21 years ago, the newlyweds happened upon a giant United States map plastered on the wall of a New York pizza parlor. The map displayed what every state was known for.
“Of course, Tennessee had whiskey, guitars, and Elvis,” Ernie says matter-of-factly.
The map easily became the source of inspiration for one of the original songs they wrote together, Whiskey, Guitars and Elvis.
These days, Ernie enjoys watching his sons Dalton and Brady follow in his footsteps. Since teaching them the basic chords when they were small, they have grown to become exceptional guitarists. Denise, her daughter, Meci, and their granddaughters Maggie Ann and Madilynn, also keep him busy.
The days of Shotgun are now just a moment in time. Time has forged on, yet Ernie’s memories still endure. “We had a good run. Those guys were some of the best musicians I have ever been around, and they were all local,” he says proudly.
Ernie still takes opportunities to perform locally. It’s not uncommon to find him sporting his trademark midnight black hat, playing an acoustic set at a local restaurant or bar. Even today, after one strum on his guitar, it is clear to see this man is made of music. 78
You can find Ernie McClinton’s original music on YouTube.