James Edward Rowser (April 18, 1926 in Philadelphia – June 24, 2004 in Teaneck)[1] was an American jazz double-bassist.
He played with the house band at Philadelphia's Blue Note club, accompanying touring musicians such as Charlie Parker, Sonny Clark, Hank Mobley, Kenny Dorham, Art Taylor, Cannonball Adderley, Miles Davis, Billie Holiday, J.J. Johnson, Anita O'Day and Kai Winding.
In the late 1950s, Rowser played with Dinah Washington, Maynard Ferguson, Lee Morgan, and Red Garland.
He was active in New York in the early 1960s with Junior Mance, Ray Bryant, Herb Ellis, and Illinois Jacquet, and toured internationally with Benny Goodman and Friedrich Gulda in 1963–1964.
Rowser returned to school in the 1980s, receiving a bachelor's and master's from Lehman College, and then taught music in New Jersey in the 1990s.