Phil Flowers

Born: January 28, 1934, Longwood, North Carolina. Died: January 22, 2001, Rockville, Maryland. From www.soulwalking.co.uk: Phillip John Flowers was a Washington area singer and composer who performed in the United States and abroad since the 1950's. He was sometimes described as "The Black Elvis" and "Skip Manning." He recorded singles on the Hollywood label, during the late Fifties, under the name of Phil Flowers And The Batmen. These included the tunes 'Honey Chile', 'What It Means To Be Blue' and 'Lover Man'. Phil recorded several albums in the sixties notably 'Our Man In Washington', 'Rhythm And Blues', 'I Am The Greatest' and 'Phil Flowers Sings A Tribute To Nat King Cole'. Some of his single releases included 'Discontented', Where Did I Go Wrong?' ( both popular on the Northern Soul scene), 'Cleopatra, You Little Devil', 'I Saw Her Standing There', 'Man The Wife And The Little Baby', 'Nothing Lasts Forever', 'Like A Rolling Stone', 'Bingo, What Did I Do', 'Walking At Night' and 'Son Of Mine'. He was a member of the group Jebadiah and worked with Link Wray and Barry Darvell. Phil, and his group 'The Flower Shop', toured the U.S. in the late sixties and were involved in calming the race riots that followed Reverend Martin Luther King's assassination. Those of you who listen to, London and Manchester based, deejays such as Robbie Vincent, Richard Searling and Bob Jones, will be aware of a 12" single on Future Records (from the late Eighties) entitled 'Stay A While'. The track was produced by Phil, Al Johnson and Chuck Brown. The song was a fine independent release that was manufactured in very small quantities boasting some fine production input from the great Al Johnson. Phil, additionally, performed live with his family. Phil Flowers died of cancer on 22nd January 2001 at Shady Grove Adventist Hospital, after collapsing at his home in Rockville. He was 66 years old.

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