Song:Don't Be Afraid Of Love
Album:Stax/Volt The Complete Singles Vol. 2
This obscure 1963 single from the Stax Records vault is of interest today because some believe R & B legend Otis Redding sang on it. I don't know if he did or not. It's certainly possible. So who was Oscar Mack? He was a singer very similar to Redding. He was Redding's opening act in the early 60s and also was a backup singer. But mainly Mack was Redding's valet and chauffeur. So it's not surprising that Mack recorded at Stax. Don't Be Afraid Of Love was his first single in 1963. It went nowhere but is considered by some to be a lost soul classic. Mack wrote the song with Redding's manager Phil Walden. Walden would go on to own Capricorn Records. Don't Be Afraid Of Love is available on the 9CD box set The Complete Stax/Volt Singles 1959-1968 but the CDs should be available individually from Rhino UK. Redding recorded his own version of Don't Be Afraid Of Love but it was not released until it appeared on the 1992 rarities CD Remember Me. It is also on the 4CD box set Otis!. Mack released a second single in 1964 called You Never Know How Much I Love You. Redding does sing on the B side Dream Girl. Oscar Mack recorded two other singles for smaller labels and it looks like he may have left the music business by the late 60s. He died in 1989. Here's a video for Don't Be Afraid Of Love by Oscar Mack. Thanks to Sir Shambling for the Oscar Mack bio.
No comments:
Post a Comment