The self-titled Libby Titus album from 1968
Libby Titus (born Elizabeth Jurist on July 6, 1947) died earlier this month at the age of 77. Titus was a singer-songwriter who largely stayed out of the spotlight, and was best known for her personal and musical associations. She married Donald Fagen of Steely Dan in 1993, and the couple remained together until Libby's passing. In 1970, she dated Levon Helm of The Band, with whom she had a daughter. (Their daughter Amy Helm is now a recording artist as well). Titus collaborated with numerous musicians over the years, including Burt Bacharach in the late '70's. She was the subject of her friend Carly Simon's 1976 song "Libby".
Titus recorded only two albums of her own, both of them self-titled. The second of those, Libby Titus from 1977 (Columbia PC 34152), is currently available. That album is a charming, tastefully arranged lounge-pop offering, which found Titus sharing songwriting credit with Carly Simon, Al Kooper, and Eric Kaz. The Titus/Kaz composition "Love Has No Pride" had previously been recorded by the likes of Bonnie Raitt, Linda Ronstadt, and Rita Coolidge.
The first of Titus' two self-titled albums was released a decade earlier, in 1968. That album has long been out of print. (The back cover of the album shows the heading "Libby Makes The World Go Round" -- which may or may not have been the intended album title). The 1968 Libby Titus album was what we now call a covers album, on which Titus sang three songs apiece from the Beatles and the Lovin' Spoonful, two from Tim Hardin, and one apiece from Petula Clark ("Fancy Dancing Man"), Joni Mitchell ("Michael From Mountains"), Simon & Garfunkel ("Cloudy"), and the pre-disco Bee Gees ("Holiday"). Titus sang these songs in a gentle voice, sounding similar to many of the folk singers of that time period (i.e. Judy Collins, Joan Baez, Joni Mitchell). The instrumentation also tended to be gentle (except maybe during that Bee Gees cover), and generally had an orchestral nature. The three Lovin' Spoonful covers are among the album's high points: "You Didn't Have To Be So Nice" and "Coconut Grove" foretell the lounge-pop sound of her later album from 1977, as does her rendition of Petula Clark's "Fancy Dancing Man". And it was a nice touch pairing the Spoonful's "Younger Generation" with Tim Hardin's "Baby Close Your Eyes" as a two-part tandem about parenthood. Titus' three Beatles covers are reminiscent of Mary Hopkin singing Paul McCartney's composition "Goodbye", although Titus does not come across as effectively as Hopkin; of the three Beatles tunes here, Titus does best with her rendition of "Strawberry Fields Forever", which has a whimsical charm. Her version of Joni Mitchell's "Michael From Mountains" is virtually the equal of Mitchell's version (also from 1968), and can also withstand comparison to the Judy Collins version (released the previous year). However, the album as a whole does not stand out among the works of her peers from the period. Sometimes Libby's voice is too gentle here, to the point of sounding distant -- which does not suit her style well. Also, her phrasing did not always work well for some of the selected songs (especially the Beatles' "Here, There, and Everywhere"). This 1968 Libby Titus album offers pleasant examples of the folk-pop and chamber pop music of its time, but the other Libby Titus album from 1977 is the one that better showcases Libby's showmanship.
Libby Titus "Libby Titus" (Hot Biscuit Disc Company ST-9101) 1968
Track Listing:
1. Cloudy -- (Paul Simon / Bruce Woodley)
2. The Fool On The Hill -- (John Lennon / Paul McCartney)
3. Fancy Dancing Man -- (Alan Gordon / Garry Bonner)
4. Coconut Grove -- (John B. Sebastian / Zal Yanovsky)
5. Younger Generation -- (John B. Sebastian)
6. Baby Close Its Eyes -- (Tim Hardin)
7. Michael From Mountains -- (Joni Mitchell)
8. Here, There, And Everywhere -- (John Lennon / Paul McCartney)
9. You Didn't Have To Be So Nice -- (John B. Sebastian / Steve Boone)
10. Holiday -- (Barry Gibb / Robin Gibb)
11. Strawberry Fields Forever -- (John Lennon / Paul McCartney)
12. It'll Never Happen Again -- (Tim Hardin)
Titus recorded only two albums of her own, both of them self-titled. The second of those, Libby Titus from 1977 (Columbia PC 34152), is currently available. That album is a charming, tastefully arranged lounge-pop offering, which found Titus sharing songwriting credit with Carly Simon, Al Kooper, and Eric Kaz. The Titus/Kaz composition "Love Has No Pride" had previously been recorded by the likes of Bonnie Raitt, Linda Ronstadt, and Rita Coolidge.
The first of Titus' two self-titled albums was released a decade earlier, in 1968. That album has long been out of print. (The back cover of the album shows the heading "Libby Makes The World Go Round" -- which may or may not have been the intended album title). The 1968 Libby Titus album was what we now call a covers album, on which Titus sang three songs apiece from the Beatles and the Lovin' Spoonful, two from Tim Hardin, and one apiece from Petula Clark ("Fancy Dancing Man"), Joni Mitchell ("Michael From Mountains"), Simon & Garfunkel ("Cloudy"), and the pre-disco Bee Gees ("Holiday"). Titus sang these songs in a gentle voice, sounding similar to many of the folk singers of that time period (i.e. Judy Collins, Joan Baez, Joni Mitchell). The instrumentation also tended to be gentle (except maybe during that Bee Gees cover), and generally had an orchestral nature. The three Lovin' Spoonful covers are among the album's high points: "You Didn't Have To Be So Nice" and "Coconut Grove" foretell the lounge-pop sound of her later album from 1977, as does her rendition of Petula Clark's "Fancy Dancing Man". And it was a nice touch pairing the Spoonful's "Younger Generation" with Tim Hardin's "Baby Close Your Eyes" as a two-part tandem about parenthood. Titus' three Beatles covers are reminiscent of Mary Hopkin singing Paul McCartney's composition "Goodbye", although Titus does not come across as effectively as Hopkin; of the three Beatles tunes here, Titus does best with her rendition of "Strawberry Fields Forever", which has a whimsical charm. Her version of Joni Mitchell's "Michael From Mountains" is virtually the equal of Mitchell's version (also from 1968), and can also withstand comparison to the Judy Collins version (released the previous year). However, the album as a whole does not stand out among the works of her peers from the period. Sometimes Libby's voice is too gentle here, to the point of sounding distant -- which does not suit her style well. Also, her phrasing did not always work well for some of the selected songs (especially the Beatles' "Here, There, and Everywhere"). This 1968 Libby Titus album offers pleasant examples of the folk-pop and chamber pop music of its time, but the other Libby Titus album from 1977 is the one that better showcases Libby's showmanship.
Libby Titus "Libby Titus" (Hot Biscuit Disc Company ST-9101) 1968
Track Listing:
1. Cloudy -- (Paul Simon / Bruce Woodley)
2. The Fool On The Hill -- (John Lennon / Paul McCartney)
3. Fancy Dancing Man -- (Alan Gordon / Garry Bonner)
4. Coconut Grove -- (John B. Sebastian / Zal Yanovsky)
5. Younger Generation -- (John B. Sebastian)
6. Baby Close Its Eyes -- (Tim Hardin)
7. Michael From Mountains -- (Joni Mitchell)
8. Here, There, And Everywhere -- (John Lennon / Paul McCartney)
9. You Didn't Have To Be So Nice -- (John B. Sebastian / Steve Boone)
10. Holiday -- (Barry Gibb / Robin Gibb)
11. Strawberry Fields Forever -- (John Lennon / Paul McCartney)
12. It'll Never Happen Again -- (Tim Hardin)
Comments