James van Buren Fowler (June 29, 1959 – March 8, 2014) was an American rock and roll and

blues Blues is a music genre and musical form which originated in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues incorporated spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts, chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads from the Afr ...

guitar player from

Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

. He was the lead guitarist for

Southern rock Southern rock is a subgenre of rock music and a genre of Americana. It developed in the Southern United States from rock and roll, country music, and blues and is focused generally on electric guitars and vocals. Author Scott B. Bomar speculat ...

band Drivin' n' Cryin' from 1988 to 1993, and had previously toured with

R.E.M. R.E.M. was an American rock band from Athens, Georgia, formed in 1980 by drummer Bill Berry, guitarist Peter Buck, bassist Mike Mills, and lead vocalist Michael Stipe, who were students at the University of Georgia. One of the first alternative ...

Biography

Fowler toured with

in the mid-1980s, as a guitar technician for

Peter Buck Peter Lawrence Buck (born December 6, 1956) is an American musician and songwriter. He was a co-founder and the lead guitarist of the alternative rock band R.E.M. He also plays the banjo and mandolin on several R.E.M. songs. Throughout his car ...

, and later as a featured rhythm guitarist on the band's tours in 1986 and 1987. Fowler subsequently joined

Drivin N Cryin Drivin' n' Cryin' is an American Southern rock band from Atlanta, Georgia, United States. History The band was formed in 1985 in Atlanta when Kevin Kinney hooked up with Frank French at the latter's recording studio, Dragon Path Music, and beg ...

, a band that had frequently opened for and toured with R.E.M. Fowler stayed with Drivin' n' Cryin' until 1994, releasing three records and touring internationally. Fowler departed from the main lineup of Drivin' n' Cryin' when leader

Kevn Kinney Kevin Kinney, known professionally as Kevn Kinney (born March 12, 1961),"The Baseball Project at Wux ...

decided to scale down the group's

sound. Fowler, a lifelong, avid baseball fan, relocated to

Louisville, Kentucky Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border ...

to work with sports clients, including

Louisville Slugger Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border. ...

. Repairing, teaching "rock school" at Mom's Music, and building custom guitars, there, he began perfecting his trade craft. After nearly a decade, Fowler returned to Georgia. Back in the peach state he resumed guitar tech work and repair, while playing regionally in his own projects and also with other bands. In addition to teaching guitar. Fowler was succeeded by his children, Ian Fowler and Van Fowler, in 1992 and 1987 respectively. Fowler briefly reunited with his former bandmates when a 2012 documentary, ''Scarred but Smarter: Life 'n Times of Driving' n' Cryin','' was filmed about the band. Fowler joined them in being honored by the

Georgia General Assembly The Georgia General Assembly is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is bicameral, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. Each of the General Assembly's 236 members serve two-year terms and are directly ...

who publicly recognized the band for its contribution to the state's music heritage and community in 2011 with House Resolution 387. He also reunited, most recently, with R.E.M.'s

for some live dates when Buck returned to Georgia with his own band, late in 2013. After experiencing health problems stemming from multiple physical issues in the past two years, Fowler died in his sleep in the early hours of March 8, 2014.

Discography

With Drivin' n' Cryin': *''Whisper Tames the Lion'' (Jan 1988) U.S. No. 130 *''Mystery Road'' (March 1989) *''Fly Me Courageous'' (Jan 1991) U.S. No. 90 *''Live on Fire'' (EP) (1991; live tracks from

Six Flags Over Georgia Six Flags Over Georgia is a theme park located in Mableton, Georgia. Opened in 1967, it is the second park in the Six Flags chain following the original Six Flags Over Texas, which opened in 1961. Six Flags Over Georgia is one of three parks ...

March 1991) *''Smoke'' (Feb 1993) U.S. No. 95 *''Wrapped in Sky'' (Aug 1995) *''Ultimate Collection'' (Aug 2000) With

Kevn Kinney Kevin Kinney, known professionally as Kevn Kinney (born March 12, 1961),"The Baseball Project at Wux ...

: *'' MacDougal Blues'' (1990)

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Fowler, Buren 1959 births 2014 deaths R.E.M. personnel American rock guitarists American male guitarists Alternative rock guitarists Musicians from Athens, Georgia American country rock musicians Guitarists from Georgia (U.S. state) People from Decatur, Georgia 20th-century American guitarists 21st-century American guitarists