The Jimmy Owens - Kenny Barron Quintet - You Had Better Listen (1967 Atlantic) -LP

cd cover

Biography by Scott Yanow

A fine hard bop soloist, Jimmy Owens has never achieved much fame. He started on trumpet when he was ten and later on studied trumpet with Donald Byrd. Owens has played as a sideman with many major players, including Lionel Hampton (1963-1964), Hank Crawford (1964-1965), Charles Mingus, Herbie Mann, Duke Ellington, Gerry Mulligan, Count Basie, the Thad Jones/Mel Lewis orchestra, and the Dizzy Gillespie reunion band (1968). He played on Billy Cobham's Spectrum album in 1973, worked extensively in Europe, was one of the founders of the Collective Black Artists, was closely involved with the Jazzmobile in New York and served on several arts commissions.

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The Jimmy Owens-Kenny Barron Quintet - You Had Better Listen

Issues:
Atlantic LP 12": SD 1491 - You Had Better Listen (1967)
Collectables CD: COL-CD-6170 - You Had Better Listen (2001)

Personnel:
Jimmy Owens -tp,flh; Bennie Maupin -ts,fl; Kenny Barron -p; Chris White -b; Freddie Waits (drums 1-2, 4) and Rudy Collins (drums 3-5)

Bennie Maupin (f) on "The Night We Called It A Day" only. Omit Bennie Maupin (ts) on "Love, Where Are You?".

Track list:
1 You Had Better Listen - 08:30 (Jimmy Owens)
2 The Night We Called It A Day - 05:08 (Matt Dennis, Tom Adair)
3 Gichi - 06:30 (Kenny Barron)
4 Love, Where Are You? - 06:51 (James Moody)
5 Carolina John - 08:07 (Kenny Barron)


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Review from http://www.dustygroove.com

LP (Item 3260) Atlantic, 1967

An oft-overlooked, and surprisingly soulful session on Atlantic! Trumpeter Jimmy Owens and pianist Kenny Barron co-lead a group that includes Benny Maupin on reeds and Freddy Waits on drums -- and the album swings with all the hip groove of a late 60s set on Blue Note by Hank Mobley or Lee Morgan. Tracks are longish, with interwoven modal grooves that show off the best of Barron's rhythmic approach to the piano, and which are nicely punctuated by Owens' fiercely blown solos. The whole thing's incredibly fresh -- one of those jazz albums that you'll hear on the radio, and turn it up, thinking "What the heck is that? I must own that record!" Titles include "You Had Better Listen", "Gichi", and "Carolina John". (Green & blue label pressing.)

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Review by Andrew Hamilton

Kenny Barron and Jimmy Owen's first recording was a solid debut. The exciting title cut, "You Had Better Listen," composed by Jimmy Owens, is good, basic, up-tempo jazz, nothing fancy, no frills. The Jimmy Owens-Kenny Barron Quintet (JOKBQ) doesn't condescend like some jazz artists tend to do; casuals can groove, relate, nod their heads in approval and feel righteous about it. Owens plays some beautiful trumpet scales, while Barron keeps busy banging chord progressions. The other members of the JOKBQ are Benny Maupin (tenor sax, flute), Chris White (bass), Freddie Waits (drums 1-2, 4) and Rudy Collins (drums 3-5). Owens' sparkling flugelhorn spices "The Night We Call It a Day." Barron composed the strutting "Gichi," Maupin and Owens blowing as one introduces the bebopper, White's bass is cool and steady and Collins' drum work is incredibly creative. Owens comes in later and spits a series of darting trumpet hits before rejoining Maupin near the conclusion for a cutting contest. Moody, and occasionally happy, but mostly maudlin, best describes "Love, Where Are You," an exercise in cool; Owens' gives a trumpet clinic, while White's walking basslines titillate the ears. "Carolina John," is Maupin's best showcase, his flute work is understated throughout the LP, but he plays a mad tenor on this cut, his attention-getting solo is followed by some remarkable hornwork by Owens.