Phil Flowers - D.C. Rider: Washington Rhythm & Blues 1958-1962 [CD]

For over 30 years, and from the Rock 'n' Roll era onwards, Phil Flowers was the backbone - and the heartbeat - of the Washington DC R&B and soul scene. Between the mid-50s and the mid-80s, Phil released more than 30 45s. On labels occasionally big but mostly small. He also had over half a dozen album releases, the majority of which did little to further his career as they were released on budget labels and not sold in conventional record stores. Although he came close a couple of times in the late 60s, not one of Phil's 45s breached the R&B or pop charts. Not that this is in any way an indication of their quality, which was and is mostly very high. Indeed, several are now in the highest demand among collectors of 50s and early 60s black American music, and have been bootlegged as 'lookalike' 45s. Jasmine's new collection provides an easy and economical way to get almost all of Phil's early work in one place. "D C Rider" contains just about every Flowers single from 1958 to 1962 inclusive, plus all of his tracks from a budget album he 'shared' with Nat King Cole in '62. Backing Phil on most of these tracks are two of DC's most eminent R&B bands, led by two legendary R&B names in Thomas 'TNT' Tribble and Frank Motley, who also has his own excellent Jasmine CD "Go! Man! Go!" (JASMCD 3247)., Phil's formidable body of early work has been long overdue a retrospective like the one Jasmine offers here. It's a pleasure to be able to bring you such a comprehensive overview as "D C Rider" and, in doing so, to be able to turn the spotlight on an important but somewhat neglected artist.