Phil Flowers

Throughout his career, Washington-area singer/composer Phil Flowers Sr. penned hundreds of rock, blues, gospel, and ballad tunes. His break came when his song "Cry on My Shoulder" sold well on the East Coast, leading to a nationally televised appearance on the Dick Clark Show and a performance at the White House in 1968 during the Johnson administration. After the assassination of Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. in 1968, Flowers and his group were dispatched to sing in neighborhoods where riots had broken out to try and ease the tension. Flowers also later performed on the same bill as Martha & the Vandellas, and toured with his children and siblings (who supplied backup vocals). During the later years of his life, Flowers performed mostly on cruise ships, as well as in Bermuda, Saudi Arabia, Puerto Rico, and Europe. Several of Flowers' compositions have been covered by others; Glen Campbell covered "I May Never Pass This Way Again," while the British group the Chartbusters, recorded a version of the Flowers' composition "Slippin' Through Your Fingers." On January 22, 2001, Flowers died at the age of 66, after a bout with cancer.