Biography
Los Angeles R&B outfit the Titans originated in 1956 when bassist Larry Green—an alumnus of such East Coast ensembles as the Four Dots and the Heartbreakers, per Marv Goldberg’s June 1977 Yesterday’s Memories profile—settled in Southern California intending to launch a solo career that included several contributions to Walt Disney soundtracks. Struck instead by the depth of local club talent, Green assembled a new vocal group whose roster comprised first tenor Charles Wright, second tenor Sam Barnett, tenor/baritone Alvin Branom, and baritone Curtis McNair. The singers initially performed as the Egyptians before renaming themselves the Titans after the U.S. Air Force’s newly introduced Titan missile.
After inking with Vita, they released the debut single “So Hard to Laugh, So Easy to Cry” in early 1957; when it failed to register, “G’wan Home Calypso” appeared that spring and earned the group a cameo in the rock & roll B-film Bop Girl Goes Calypso. Shifting to Specialty, the Titans resurfaced in fall 1957 with “Sweet Peach” and supplied backing vocals for Don & Dewey’s “Just a Little Lovin’.” Continued lack of commercial traction followed a cover of Huey Smith & the Clowns’ “Don’t You Just Know It,” prompting Branom’s departure in early 1958. The remaining quartet completed one last Specialty date with “Arlene.”
New manager Bob Gordon then combined the Titans with his other clients—the Nighthawks, Eddie “Rochester” Anderson, and Mikki Lynn—to form The Harlem Nocturne Revue, a variety show that played Lakewood, CA’s Squire’s Inn for two years. A January 1959 one-off single, “No Time,” appeared on Class, and “Everybody Happy” followed on Fidelity slightly more than a year later. McNair exited in mid-1960 to tend to his ailing father; after a short spell as a trio the group disbanded. Green later resumed performing at Squire’s Inn as the “Singing Chef,” preparing meals in tuxedo and apron while serenading diners. McNair adopted the name Curtis Knight and formed a band he called the Squires; in October 1965 he recruited guitarist Jimmy James, who recorded several sides with the unit before embarking on a solo career under his birth name, Jimi Hendrix.
After inking with Vita, they released the debut single “So Hard to Laugh, So Easy to Cry” in early 1957; when it failed to register, “G’wan Home Calypso” appeared that spring and earned the group a cameo in the rock & roll B-film Bop Girl Goes Calypso. Shifting to Specialty, the Titans resurfaced in fall 1957 with “Sweet Peach” and supplied backing vocals for Don & Dewey’s “Just a Little Lovin’.” Continued lack of commercial traction followed a cover of Huey Smith & the Clowns’ “Don’t You Just Know It,” prompting Branom’s departure in early 1958. The remaining quartet completed one last Specialty date with “Arlene.”
New manager Bob Gordon then combined the Titans with his other clients—the Nighthawks, Eddie “Rochester” Anderson, and Mikki Lynn—to form The Harlem Nocturne Revue, a variety show that played Lakewood, CA’s Squire’s Inn for two years. A January 1959 one-off single, “No Time,” appeared on Class, and “Everybody Happy” followed on Fidelity slightly more than a year later. McNair exited in mid-1960 to tend to his ailing father; after a short spell as a trio the group disbanded. Green later resumed performing at Squire’s Inn as the “Singing Chef,” preparing meals in tuxedo and apron while serenading diners. McNair adopted the name Curtis Knight and formed a band he called the Squires; in October 1965 he recruited guitarist Jimmy James, who recorded several sides with the unit before embarking on a solo career under his birth name, Jimi Hendrix.
Albums
