Bob Flower on Rose

Bob Flower and his Star Dusters - Draw Three (Rose R110), ca. 1968

Country music singer Bob Flower had a couple of records out in the 1960s but my research has only turned up vague information on him. So I do what I usually do in those cases: hoping that someone passes by that knows more than I do and leaves a comment or an email!

Robert John "Bob" Flower was probably born on March 8, 1927, and hailed possibly from Arkansas, as a digital compilation entitled "Arkansas Country Boy" by Stomper Time and Smith & Co., suggests. However, comments on YouTube videos indicate that he lived in the Cuba, New York, area by the 1960s and worked as chief of the local police department while he also enjoyed his career as a singer. A search on ancestry.com revealed that he already lived in Caneadea, Allegany County, New York, by 1950. Flower had previously served in the US Army during Word War II and left in the rank of a corporal.

Promo sheet for Flower's Rose release

Flower was first associated with Nashville music personality Murray Nash and his Do-Ra-Me label, releasing a total of four singles and one album on the label between 1963 and 1965. Initially, his songs were published by Cotton Town Music, a company from West Memphis, Arkansas, and operated by radio and TV host Gene Williams. Among the songs Flower recorded was "It Was Sweet While It Lasted", written by Arkansas DJ and sales manager of Williams' Cotton Town Jubilee label Chuck Comer. The song was recorded around the same time by Cotton Town Jubilee recording artist Sonny Williams.

Probably his final release on Do-Ra-Me was a full-length and self-titled album that featured mostly cover versions of country standards. On all of his releases, he was backed by his band, the Star Dusters, which consisted of Jimmy Clemons on lead guitar, Jerry Steadman on rhythm guitar, Kenny Lee on steel guitar, and Ivan Wilson on bass with female singer Dody Lynn providing some of the vocals as well.

In the late 1960s, Flower had another release on another Nashville label, Rose Records. This imprint was possibly owned by Ray Petersen, who produced all of the releases. Flower recorded "Draw Three" b/w "Rainbows" and both titles were written or co-written by Roy Lowe, who had previously produced Flower's album on Do-Ra-Me.

Bob Flower died on September 11, 1992. 

If anyone out there has more information on Bob Flower, please feel free to share it!

See also
• The Do-Ra-Me label

Sources
• Find a Grave entry
• 45cat entry
• Discogs
• Praguefrank's Country Music Discographies entry
• Bob Flower & the Star Dusters - Draw Three (YouTube video; see comments)
• Ancestry.com