RIP Herbie Flowers

 

THE glam bassist.

"Oddity" might be the first time I registered the existence of the bass as an instrument - for those strange detonations 

(Although there was the B-line in "Summertime Blues")

Although I think he didn't actually play on the record, just mimed for TOTP

But he's in the band for Marc's last TV series. 

Some of his best work was Mr Essex and Jeff Wayne

He didn't just play on glam records though, Herb was in demand session bassman all over the first-half-70s shop.

Check out this amazing performance

Less salubriously, he wrote this monstrosity with Kenny Pickett

There is also this questionable song, as later interpolated by the Happy Mondays (and sung by Alan Partridge in one of his series, in an idle, mooching around sort of way). 

I mean, they meant well, I'm sure. 

At any rate, Herbie didn't write it, so that's okay.

Herbie was in a heavy rock band called Rumpelstiltskin.

And a blues-jazz collective alongside Alexis Korner, called Collective Consciousness Society - aka CCS.

The latter's version of "Whole Lotta Love" was the Top of the Pops intro theme when I was a kid. 

And post-glam, as Phil points out in the comments, he was a member of Sky - a classical rock supergroop also including Francis Monkman ex-Curved Air and the dude who did the triffic snazzy OST to The Long Good Friday. 

Talking about classical meets rock - Herbie played on Variations, the Andrew Lloyd-Weber and Julian Lloyd-Weber Paganini-rocked-up album. One of which ended up as this famous TV intro theme. I don't know if Herbie played on this track though as there was another bassist involved on the record.

Herbie Flowers also put out a solo album, Plant Life.

And another one called Potty.

Herbie Flowers - the name is quite close the gangster boss in Performance, Harry Flowers - was  also adept at playing the tuba. He did that as a bandsman in the RAF, during which he time he also picked up double bass.

Before he got involved in rock, he had been in trad jazz bands, then a more modern jazz band, and then switched to electric bass and started becoming an in-demand session man.

But let's remember Mr. Herbie Flowers this way