Career
Born in Greensboro, North Carolina, he started as a soloist with the Israelite Gospel Singers, the Baystate Gospel Singers and the Evangelist Singers, then joined a group known as the Nightingales (later the Sensational Nightingales, which featured Julius "June Cheeks") before moving to the Hummingbirds in 1948. Paired with Ira Tucker, Senior, they adopted a daring style, which they called "trickeration", in which they would mix melisma with intricate harmonies, sharing the lead while often improvising phrases. He later left them to join the Sensational Nightingales, for whom he sang as a baritone, then returned to the Hummingbirds in 1989.
Owens died aged 78.
