Legendary Musician Herbie Flowers Dead at 86

Having mastered the double bass, tuba, and electric bass, Herbie Flowers used his love for music to help create a career in the music industry. Spending over 50 years in the industry, the musician collaborated with stars like Cat Stevens, Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, and even Elton John. With many singers wanting to work with Flowers, the musician apparently performed on 500 hit songs. Sadly, on September 5th, the legendary bass player passed away at 86 years old. 

Announcing the passing of Flowers, Kevin Conklin, who married his niece, shared a heartfelt message on Facebook. He wrote, “Lorraine’s beloved uncle, Herbie Flowers, passed on yesterday. While we knew and loved him as Uncle Herbie, his musical contributions have likely touched your lives as well. He played bass on many of the songs from the golden age of rock.”

Showcasing his many accomplishments throughout his career, Conklin ended his message with “Herbie’s musical contributions continued as he worked to involve children in music later in life. Herbie played a huge role in Lorraine’s life as a substitute father. Herbie walked her down the aisle at our wedding. She loved him dearly. I was blessed to have known him. We’ll miss you, Uncle Herbie! Rock on.”

David Bowie Remembers Herbie Flowers

While fans shared their love for Flowers, David Bowie also took a moment to remember the musician. His official Twitter account posted a picture of Bowie working in the studio, captioning the post, “We are very sad to learn of the passing of Herbie Flowers in the last couple of days. His work with Bowie and associates over the years is too long to list here. Aside from his incredible musicianship over many decades, he was a beautiful soul and a very funny man. He will be sorely missed.”

Bowie ended his message with love and support for his family. “Our thoughts are with his family and friends.” 

Once sitting down with Guitar World, Flowers discussed his contributions to Bowie’s “Space Oddity”
and how his time with the Royal Air Force helped. “I was a tuba and double bass player, and I wanted the strings to feel like a double bass. But there was no intention to be clever. We really didn’t know what we were doing!”

(Photo by Evening Standard/Hulton Archive/Getty Images)