When I met the Sussex musician who played on Bowie's Space Oddity and created the iconic Walk On The Wildside bassline

Yet the quietly spoken bass player, who lived in the South Downs at Ditchling, had played on an estimated 500 hit recordings by the end of the 1970’s alone, featuring on David Bowie’s Space Oddity and writing the bassline for Lou Reed's Walk On The Wildside.

He has written for and performed with big names including Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr, Elton John, , David Essex, Bryan Ferry, Harry Nilsson and Cat Stevens. He was a member of T-Rex and Sky and also played bass on Jeff Wayne's Musical Version of The War of the Worlds.

Yet when I spoke to Herbie back in 2012 he was more interested in telling me about the beautiful view he enjoyed from the windows of his Ditchling home rather than his many musical achievements.

I was interviewing him ahead of his appearance at the Rye Jazz Festival in East Sussex. The festival, in a small medieval town, was punching above its weight at the time and that year also included a performance by legendary Cream drummer Ginger Baker, with his band Jazz Confusion.

Herbie was charming and easy going. After chatting to him for ten minutes it felt like you were talking to a friend. He wanted to know as much about me as I did about him and after learning I was a Sussex boy, born in Hastings, all he wanted to talk about was how much he loved the county.

A musician who had played across the globe, was now established in a small Sussex village in a fold in the Downs, with a traditional pub and its own Morris Dance team, who Herbie admitted he enjoyed seeing perform.

He told me he was keen to be going to Rye as he could stop off in Hastings on the way – one of his favourite places for fish and chips. “I love the place,” he said.

He was performing at a Jazz Brunch at the Rye Festival, in the town’s historic George Hotel. For Herbie playing music seemed as natural as breathing and his rapport with the audience was instant.

I was happy to have met Herbie. It was one of the easiest and most natural interviews I have ever done. He was warm, genuine and an absolute gent, whose love of Sussex shone through.

Herbie Flowers died on September 5 at the age of 86 with David Bowie’s estate releasing a tribute to say “"Aside from his incredible musicianship over many decades, he was a beautiful soul and a very funny man."

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