by S. Victor Aaron
Another record by a jazz drummer? Heck yeah!
Ulysses Owens, Jr. isn’t just a young up-and-comer percussion specialist with a radiant smile. Behind the cheerful expression is a serious commitment to his craft. A graduate of the world renowned Julliard School, Owens has been touring with Christian McBride and recent Grammy winner Kurt Elling. Before that, he’s performed with the likes of Benny Golson, Wynton Marsalis, Dr. Lonnie Smith, and The Count Basie Jazz Orchestra. He’s also emerged as a composer, and the Washington D.C. Arts Council even commissioned him to write the opening piece for its 24th Annual Mayoral Arts.
But perhaps the culmination of his lifelong pursuit of percussion came last month with the release of his first album, It’s Time For U, which he credits to the “U.O. Project.” It’s not stated why he attributed the record to a project instead of himself, but the clues are contained in the music within. The songs are a tapestry of different threads of music, and Owens allows his fellow musicians to stretch out often times more than he does, making this more of a group project under his direction. Owens selected three disparate covers for this album, and added four songs of his own.
Of the covers, “Cyclic Episode” gets the nod. A old Sam Rivers that’s only been recorded by other artists a handful of times, it’s got a lively blues-drenched melody with some sophisticated harmonic underpinnings. Sullivan Fortner provides a fully chorded assault that seems to be egged on by Owens bombs and fills. So, we know the leader’s got hard bop down.
He’s got other styles locked down, too. His own “N’Awlins Greens” is a lively second-line beat fronted by the D.E.A. Horns, but Fortner’s B# adds a little soul to this Dirty Dozen Brass Band soundalike. The “Maestro ‘Blues'” puts U.O. in a piano trio setting with Fortner and bassist Ben Williams playing straight blues. It’s here where Owens finally takes an extended solo, one that’s patient beyond his years, in the pocket and swings mightily. For “T.I.”, the band is stripped down to just Owens and Tim Green’s alto sax. This is perhaps Owens best drumming work on the record, as he solos not behind Green but telepathically with Green.
The only primarily vocal tune is John Mayer’s “Stop This Train,” well sung by Alicia Olatuja, and the album concludes on a fusion-ish rendering of Victor Lin’s “Sing,” featuring Green’s EWI, and some gospel background vocals toward the end of the song. I think Owens wanted to make it a point to go out on an inspirational note, which is not a bad plan when you want to keep listeners engaged to the end.
All that alternating between traditional and contemporary forms of jazz could confuse or put off some listeners who are looking for a unifying signature sound. Since he tackles all styles he takes on so successfully, it really shouldn’t be much of a deterrent, though. It’s Time For U overall is an impressive introduction to an artist I think we’ll be hearing a lot more of in the years to come.
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