Shamblin was drafted into the Army in 1942, where he served for four years as a Captain in Patton's 3rd Army in the European Theater of War and was there at the Battle of the Bulge.
He returned to music in 1970 when he was called upon to help organize a tribute to Wills and played on Merle Haggard's album A Tribute to the Best Damn Fiddle Player in the World (or, My Salute to Bob Wills).