Within the California country music community, there's no arguing that
Bonnie Owens married well; her first husband was
Buck Owens, whom she married in 1948, and in 1965 she tied the knot again with
Merle Haggard.
Bonnie performed in the same band with
Buck for a brief period while they were first married, and she later enjoyed a few hits as
Haggard's duet partner; when
Just Between the Two of Us was released,
Hag's career as one of country's most dependable hitmakers was only just getting off the ground. However, while
Bonnie Owens was a good honky tonk singer, she was hardly a great one like
Haggard, who seems to be holding himself back a bit musically as he defers to his spouse. And while
Hag and his band the Strangers are in typically strong form, this set of love songs (and the occasional cheatin' weeper) lacks the flinty power of
Haggard's classic outlaw ballads. It's good to have
Just Between the Two of Us available again, but only
Haggard completists will really feel obligated to own it. ~ Mark Deming