Obie Burnett "O. B." McClinton (April 25, 1940 – September 23, 1987) was an American black

country music Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, ...

singer and songwriter. The second-youngest child born to Rev. G. A. McClinton, a clergyman and farmer who owned a ranch near

Memphis, Tennessee Memphis is a city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the seat of Shelby County in the southwest part of the state; it is situated along the Mississippi River. With a population of 633,104 at the 2020 U.S. census, Memphis is the second-mos ...

. Listening to

Hank Williams Hank Williams (born Hiram Williams; September 17, 1923 – January 1, 1953) was an American singer, songwriter, and musician. Regarded as one of the most significant and influential American singers and songwriters of the 20th century, he reco ...

as a child around the age of nine or 10 sparked his interest in performing country music. Before beginning his country music career, he tried to break into R&B. Although he was unable to secure a recording contract as a soul singer himself, he did pen several songs recorded by James Carr, including the title songs to Carr's albums '' You Got My Mind Messed Up'' and '' A Man Needs a Woman''. Known to refer to himself as the "Chocolate Cowboy", McClinton successfully marketed his album called ''The Only One'' on television long before the practice was commonplace. Featuring his first country chart single "Don't Let The Green Grass Fool You", a top 40 song in 1972, he considered it to be his finest work. He died on September 23, 1987, after a year-long battle with abdominal cancer.

Discography

Albums

Singles

† "Oboe"
± "Oboe with The Keys"
‡ "O.B. McClinton (The Chocolate Cowboy)"

References

External links

McClinton, O. B.
{{DEFAULTSORT:McClinton, O. B. 1940 births 1987 deaths People from Senatobia, Mississippi American country singer-songwriters African-American male singer-songwriters American male singer-songwriters Singer-songwriters from Mississippi Place of death missing Deaths from cancer African-American country musicians Country musicians from Mississippi 20th-century African-American male singers 20th-century American male singers 20th-century American singers Enterprise Records artists