Libby Titus

Singer/songwriter's influence was subtle but reverberated widely

"Libby is one third ingenue, one third socialite, one third hippie, with a head full of Medusa hair, like a thousand snakes. Not exactly difficult to promote."  That is how legendary rock writer Lilian Roxon described Libby Titus, who passed away October 13. This was on the strength of her first album, self titled, that she recorded in 1968. The label wasn't keen on releasing it because they claimed they'd have to promote it too heavily, inspiring Roxon's comment in the first edition of her Rock Encyclopedia.

In 1969 Titus (she kept the name from her first marriage) met drummer Levon Helm of The Band, beginning a relationship that would last until the late seventies. She is the mother of Amy Helm, who has become an accomplished songwriter and performer in her own right. Amy remembers Titus' contribution to her musical education: “She made sure to round out my musical education by turning me on to Laura Nyro and Brenda Russell and Joni Mitchell, the singer-songwriters whose poetry was so fierce and whose singing was so different from the soul music I had been listening to." (https://relix.com/articles/detail/amy-helm-wake-of-the-flood/)

During this period, Libby was around a lot of musicians and music industry people and got to know some of them. She became a friend and collaborator of Carly Simon, who she admired. According to photographer Lynn Goldsmith, "They had a friendship which to me was strange as Carly accepted Libby's jealousy of her success."  Certainly Carly did what she could to aid her friend's career--she contributed three songs to the album, co-wrote a song with Libby, co-produced the tracks with Phil Ramone, and sang on one of the tracks, along with then-husband James Taylor.

Titus sang, uncredited, on "The River Hymn," the last track of The Band's 1971 album Cahoots.She continued writing, co-writing her best known song, "Love Has No Pride" with Eric Kaz. Bonnie Raitt was the first to record it in 1972, followed by Linda Ronstadt in 1973. Ronstadt's version from her album Don't Cry Now reached #51 on Billboard's U.S. Hot 100 chart. Rita Coolidge recorded a version the following year, and the song has continued to be a country rock classic.

In 1977 Titus released her second (and final) album, also titled Libby Titus. This record was a star-studded affair, "produced by Phil Ramone with Paul Simon, Carly Simon, and Robbie Robertson," according to the back cover. Carly Simon wrote three songs as well as co-writing one with Titus. Libby co-wrote four of the songs on the record. The remaining tracks include a cover of Lieber/Stoller's "Kansas City" adapted by Paul Simon and Cole Porter's "Miss Otis Regrets," produced by Robbie Robertson, who also plays guitar on the track.

The first track, "Fool That I Am," was the first (and only) single released. Co-written by Titus and Al Kooper, the song is smooth, offering much the same quiet storm vibe as Michael Franks' Art of Tea. Titus performed the song that autumn on Saturday Night Live during the show's third season, but it didn't chart.

"Kansas City" gives an idea of what Titus' later appearances in New York City would be like. She isn't the strongest vocalist, but she has a real rapport and a cabaret style that is sly and sometimes cuttingly humorous. "They got some independent thinkers there/and I'm gonna get me one" she sings, perhaps foreshadowing her future marriage to Donald Fagen.

"Can This Be My Love Affair" is about past relationships--Levon Helm to be specific. Co-written by Titus and Carly Simon, it offers the directly confessional approach seen on Simon's first couple of albums: "Took me down to Tennessee/to meet his friends and family/I thought I was a big wheel/but all I got was three big meals/big deal." The song benefits from an orchestral arrangement by Jay Chattaway, who at the time was known as an arranger of big band charts for Maynard Ferguson.

"The Night You Took Me to Barbados In My Dream" is a frothy fantasy concoction that should have been an FM radio hit in the quiet storm genre. It skates along smoothly on the surf created by bassist Max Bennett and drummer John Guerin, both of L.A. Express. The lovely guitar work is played by Hirth Martinez, who co-wrote the song with Libby. Mike Melvoin is on piano. The track, produced by Robbie Robertson with Phil Ramone, also features Garth Hudson. It's amazing to listen to the instruments and realize that all the sounds not being created by bass, drums, guitar, are all coming from him. It helps make the track a winner.

Titus does an impressive job with "Yellow Beach Umbrella," written by Craig Doerge and Judy Henske. It was recorded the same year by Bette Midler on her third album, and Midler's is probably the standard version of the song, which has a cabaret singer dramatic flair to it. Libby does it wonderfully,  which raises the question--is she really a cabaret singer out of place in the pop world? Her jazzier instincts probably helped place her at odds with the more popular country/folk rock of contemporaries like Karla Bonoff and Wendy Waldman.

Titus includes her version of "Love Has No Pride" here, and while it is a reminder of what of gorgeous song it is, it's impossible not to compare it to Ronstadt's version. Still, the bad dreams and the heartache are all Libby’s, that she lived for real. It's a reminder, too, that Libby Titus was a talented and emotional songwriter, not merely a muse for her friends and lovers.

But she certainly was a muse at times, inspiring several tributes, including "Libby" by Carly Simon (Another Passenger), Wendy Waldman's "Long Hot Summer Nights" (Strange Company), and Dr. John's sumptuous instrumental ode "Pretty Libby" (Brightest Smile In Town). For Simon and Waldman, the tributes revolve around their experiences with Libby in a certain time (seventies) and place (L.A.) when, to borrow from the B-52s, they were wild girls, walkin' down the street.

Libby next collaborated with Burt Bacharach, contributing songwriting and a vocal on his symphonic album Woman. This album was recorded in a single afternoon of performances by Bacharach conducting the Houston Symphony. Titus wrote lyrics for and sang the achingly beautiful song 'Riverboat.' She also co-wrote "I Live In the Woods," with Carly Simon and Bacharach, which Simon sang on the album.

Recording and performance opportunities dried up considerably in the eighties, and there were hard times. Wendy Waldman recalls Libby working at Henri Bendel for a time. By the end of the decade she was putting together intimate evenings of musical performances at clubs and restaurants in and around New York City. "One night it would be, say, Dr. John plus Carly Simon, and it was by invitation only." These informal shows led to the development of the New York Rock and Soul Revue, a musical project that coalesced around bandleader Donald Fagan from 1989-93 and included performers such as Michael McDonald, Phoebe Snow, and Boz Scaggs. The Revue also brought Steely Dan guitarist Walter Becker back to New York and back into Fagan's orbit. Libby produced these shows and Fagan has maintained that the project reignited his interest in playing live music again, something he had basically abandoned. He and Becker began to write together again, resulting in the resurrection of Steely Dan at the turn of the century.

In 1993 Libby and Donald were married and remained so until her death. That same year saw the release of Fagan's second solo record, Kamakiriad, which Becker produced. Libby contributed her talent to co-writing the track "Florida Room" with her new husband.

Fagan wrote what seems like a tribute to the domestic life they shared in the Big Apple, “The Great Pagoda of Funn”:

You and I
Know the world can't be like this
It's our love that makes it shine

Girl
Whatever trouble waits outside
these doors
We're safe inside this house of light
We make up our own storyline

Titus carved out a place for herself in the world of rock music as well as the cultural milieu of New York City. A songwriter and performer who never seemed all that interested in the recording industry herself, she possessed a solid understanding of the musical styles of her time, and she seems to have brought a lot of joy to those who knew and worked with her.

New Directions in Music is written by a single real person. It is not generated by AI. Please help spread good content by reading (Thank you!) and sharing this post with a music loving friend. If you like what you see, please sign up for a free subscription so you don’t miss a thing, or sign up for a paid subscription if you can