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Jazz Articles about Ulysses Owens, Jr.

About Ulysses Owens, Jr.

Album Review

Ulysses Owens, Jr. and Generation Y: Kind of Grunge

Read "Kind of Grunge" reviewed by Jack Bowers

by Jack Bowers
September 26, 2026

New York-based master drummer Ulysses Owens Jr. is back, Generation Y in tow, with another generous helping of so-called “grunge jazz" deftly transformed to straight-ahead patterns in a style similar to that of the legendary Art Blakey and The Jazz Messengers. This is not, however, precisely the same Generation Y that recorded the well-received album, Around the World with U, for the Cellar Music Group earlier in 2026. The lone holdover besides Owens is the versatile pianist Tyler ...

Album Review

Eli Howell: Steps Taken

Read "Steps Taken" reviewed by Jack Bowers

by Jack Bowers
June 4, 2026

Picture this: Having assembled a supporting cast, finalized the playlist and booked a studio, you are ready to make the debut recording as leader of your own ensemble, only to learn that, hours earlier, said studio in East Lansing, Michigan, had been devastated by a tornado. That is exactly what happened to trombonist Eli Howell in May 2025. Fortunately, thanks to some quick thinking and deft maneuvering by album producer Michael Dease and others, a room was found at Howell's ...

Album Review

Barry Greene: Giants

by Jack Bowers
May 8, 2026

The Giants singled out by guitarist Barry Greene on his recording of that name include a number of musicians who served as role models and helped shape his singular musical voice. Pat Martino is one, as are Grant Green, Wes Montgomery, Russell Malone and Pat Metheny, each one a stepping-stone on Greene's upward path toward self-identity and mastery of his instrument of choice. Greene paid it forward by teaching for more than thirty years at the University of North Florida ...

Album Review

Brian Lynch, featuring Charles McPherson: Torch Bearers

Read "Torch Bearers" reviewed by Jack Bowers

by Jack Bowers
April 13, 2026

Trumpeter Brian Lynch, who has been at the top of his game for more than three decades, shares the stage with another seasoned maestro, alto saxophonist Charles McPherson, on Torch Bearers, wherein Lynch, McPherson and their able companions not only carry the torch for their generation but offer an upcoming legion of eager young musicians a candid lesson in jazz/bop milieu and design and how best to properly safeguard those standards. They do this without pretense or embellishment, simply by ...

Album Review

Ulysses Owens, Jr. and Generation Y: Around the World with U

Read "Around the World with U" reviewed by Jack Bowers

by Jack Bowers
April 8, 2026

Drummer Ulysses Owens, Jr. has a keen eye and ear for talent, which is obvious from the first notes of Around the World with U, his second recording as leader of the Art Blakey-style quintet, Generation Y. When marshaling the ensemble, Owens chose his teammates with care, and they repay his confidence by producing a splendid album that pleases from start to finish. If the aspirants had to pass an exam before the hire, there could be no ...

Album Review

Nanami Haruta: The Vibe

Read "The Vibe" reviewed by Dan McClenaghan

by Dan McClenaghan
February 14, 2025

The news of a trombonist fronting a small jazz ensemble brings the name J.J. Johnson (1924-2001) to mind. He pioneered that form of jazz expression. Before he stepped onto the scene the big brass horn stayed mainly in the background, eclipsed by trumpets and saxophones. Many have followed in Johnson's footsteps: Curtis Fuller, Steve Turre, Michael Dease. The door opened, and a slew of talent stepped across the threshold. This brings us to Nanami Haruta, who ...

Liner Notes

Nanami Haruta: The Vibe

by Willard Jenkins
February 8, 2025

Unlike other members of the family of western instruments, the ranks of the trombone are a bit exclusive--perhaps even more exclusive in the art of the improvisers, the jazz landscape. Which is yet more reason to celebrate the arrival of a new trombone voice in jazz music. Her name is Nanami Haruta and she arrives at this debut recording moment from Sapporo in the Hokkaido prefecture, the northernmost of Japan's main islands. Hokkaido is known for its volcanoes--perhaps explaining Nanami's ...