Gene Barnett on Wheel

Gene Barnett - Sittin' in the Bathroom (Wheel No.#), 1971

Gene Barnett played bass in Bobby Lee Trammell's band in the early 1960s, then joined Kenny Owens' band around the mid of the decade. He also appeared on Owens' local Jonesboro TV show and recorded for his Owens' ORK record label.

Barnett was born in 1942 in Jonesboro, Arkansas, but spent his early childhood in Bay, a small town outside of Jonesboro. The family then moved to Searcy but Barnett eventually returned to Jonesboro, where he graduated from high school and then pursued a career as the city's street superintendent.

Musically inclined, Barnett had learned to play bass and was also a solid vocalist. He started out around 1962 working with Bobby Lee Trammel and became acquainted with Kenny Owens at some point in the 1960s. Owens was a popular entertainer in Jonesboro and by the late 1960s, Barnett was appearing at Owens' TV show on KAIT. When Owens set up ORK Records, Barnett was among the artists that recorded for the label.

His debut "The Right to Love" b/w "Hey, Come On Now" appeared in April 1969 on ORK. Kenny Owens moved to Nashville in the early 1970s and he might have had a hand in Barnett's next release as well, which was issued on the Nashville based Wheel label. It featured "Wrong Line", Barnett's take on an Owens standard, and the Larry Donn written "Sittin' in the Bathroom". The record appeared in 1971 and is a nice blend of country and rock/rock'n'roll with some great fuzz guitar taking the solo on "Wrong Line". "Sittin' in the Bathroom" stayed more on the country side, genre-wise.

Barnett continued to perform locally. He retired from his job with the City of Jonesboro in 2004 and passed away in 2021.

More info on Barnett is available in the booklet to Bear Family's double CD release of Kenny Owens, "Got the Bug!", which features Owens' complete recordings and in addition, many recordings from artists Owens worked with, including Barnett's cuts.

Recommended reading
• Dead Wax blog: Wrong Line

See also
• ORK Records discography

Sources
• Gene Barnett obituary
• 45cat entry