Legend bass player who has played all his life dies at 86

Herbie Flowers, a renowned British bass guitarist who collaborated with artists such as Sir Elton John, Paul McCartney, and David Bowie, passed away at the age of 86.
By the late 1970s, Flowers had played bass on more than 500 successful albums, including those by T. Rex and Blue Mink.
His 1972 album Transformer features the now-iconic bassline that was written by him for the song “Walk on the Wild Side” by Lou Reed.
On Saturday, members of his immediate family announced his passing on Facebook. Tributes from relatives and friends stated Flowers was a “beautiful soul” and his musical skills had impacted many people.

Born Brian Keith Flowers, he received his first taste for music in the Royal Air Force in the 1950s, where he served for nine years as a bandsman playing the tuba.
In 1969, Flowers became one of the founding members of the pop group Blue Mink. The band earned mainstream success with their debut single Melting Pot in 1969, and again with The Banner Man in 1971.

It was also in the 1960s that Flowers established his reputation as a session bass guitarist, working with record producers like as Shel Talmy, Steve Rowland and Tony Visconti.
He played bass guitar on David Bowie’s self-titled 1969 album and Diamond Dogs in 1974.
One of his greatest triumphs was to be the creator behind the renowned bassline for Lou Reed’s 1972 smash Walk on the Wild Side.
Flowers – who lived in Ditchling, East Sussex – later disclosed in a 2005 interview with the BBC that he had came up with the idea for the bassline as he would get paid twice as a session musician for playing two instruments.
In 1977, Flowers became a member of the final line up of T. Rex soon before Marc Bolan’s death, featuring on the band’s final album, 1977’s Dandy In The Underworld, and Bolan’s Marc TV show.
In the late 1970s, Flowers created the instrumental prog rock band, Sky, recording and playing with the band until 1995, producing seven albums.

Tributes came in at the news of Flowers’ death.

The Charlatans’ frontman Tim Burgess led the tributes, claiming Flowers “made the greats sound greater”.
David Bowie’s estate also paid tribute to the star’s former collaborator, saying: “His work with Bowie and associates over the years is too long to list here.”
“Aside from his great musicianship across many decades, he was a wonderful person and a very amusing man. He will be sadly missed.”
Suede bass player Mat Osman also joined in with tributes, saying: “RIP Herbie Flowers. So many fantastic basslines – image having played on Space Oddity, Walk on the Wild Side and Rock On.”