Get on Ben's email list:

"Each solo was inspired and the crowd was continually applauding, solo after solo after great passage.  We were applauding the creativity, maybe even more than the capable musicianship...I found myself excitedly awaiting each new tune like a kid at Christmas.  This was such a perfectly matched quintet, with everyone standing out and no weak links, that I was truly impressed."

-- Steve Kullowatz, Oregon's JazzScene Magazine

View Full Article

"...The majority of Fowler's material evokes the soulful licks of Hank Crawford, with it's sustained notes and repeating figures supported by the heavy vibrato of Dave Fleschner's B-3 organ and the bluesy flights of Dan Gildea's guitar...A powerfully dramatic and heartfelt recording."

-- Lynn Darroch, The Oregonian

" Fowler’s deft use of harmonic underpinning to accent the contours of his melodic turns is simple, yet carefully crafted and set up the improvisations in ways many jazz and

R&B instrumental songs don’t."

-- Thomas Erdman, JazzReview.com

View Full Review

"...This Pilgrimage is worth taking, a fine debut from a promising contemporary saxophonist."

-- Kyle O'Brien, Oregon's Jazz Scene Magazine

View Full Review

"With tunes that can inspire listeners to raise their voices or lay back and smile, the album combines Fowler's rich jazz sound with the simple melodies of his childhood. "

-- Ritta Basu, In The Now Magazine

" Saxophonist Ben Fowler is a fantastic exponent of the original crossover genre: jazz/R&B meets gospel. Like both a fine wine and sax great Johnny Hodges, Fowler's tart tone gradually draws you as it opens to a big round, satisfying finish. For his new CD, The Pilgrimage, the Portland native dives headlong into the finger-poppin', sanctified soul tradition of Ray Charles, Brother Vernard Johnson, Stanley Turrentine and Harold Vick. While steeped in the fundamental values of jazz, Fowler and crew are guided by the gravity of blues, soul and gospel (especially traditional hymns and down-by-the-riverside rockers)—producing an effusive group dynamic."

-- Tim Duroche, Willamette Week