R.I.P. ALLEN KLEIN

[Ed Roach]

Former Beatles, Stones manager Allen Klein dies

Sat Jul 4, 2009 7:08pm BST
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Record label mogul Allen Klein, who handled the affairs of both the Beatles and the Rolling Stones, died in New York on Saturday after a battle with Alzheimer's disease, a spokesman said. He was 77.

During a career spanning more than 50 years, the former New Jersey accountant secured a fortune as one of the savviest and most infamous players in the music business.

He played a key role during the bitter demise of the Beatles, coming on board in 1969 at the behest of John Lennon, Ringo Starr and George Harrison. Paul McCartney was fiercely opposed to Klein, preferring the legal expertise of his high-powered father-in-law Lee Eastman. The feud set the scene for the court battle that led to the group's dissolution.

Klein later reunited with Harrison to organise the all-star Concert for Bangladesh show in 1971 concert. It took a decade for the funds to reach the refugees because of complex tax problems. He also continued to work with Lennon and Yoko Ono.

Klein also managed the Rolling Stones during the 1960s and ended up owning the rights to their recordings and copyrights from that decade -- to the eternal regret of Mick Jagger.

He first made his mark in the music industry by auditing record labels on behalf of clients such as Bobby Darin and Connie Francis. When he invariably found that they were owed royalties, he took a percentage of the difference as a fee. he also managed Sam Cooke, helping the R&B star set up his own label and publishing company.

Klein's family-owned ABKCO Music & Records also handled the recordings of such artists as the Animals, Herman's Hermits, Bobby Womack, Marianne Faithfull, the Kinks, Chubby Checker, Bobby Rydell and many others.

He is survived by his wife and three adult children. His funeral will take place in New York on Tuesday.


(I've got my share of Klein stories, but they'll have to wait until I get over the shock!  ER)

[Ed Roach]

O.K., now that I've spread the word on BB boards, and the shock is somewhat over, a quick anecdote, tying this in to The Boys:  (O.K., I'm stretching here.  Klein isn't actually a part of this story; but he is linked to it!)

My involvement with Klein began when he took over Bobby Womack, shortly after I had directed some memorable shows at The Roxy, with both Bobby & Sly Stone.  (Unreleased, but someday...)  Around the same time, I was doing some work with Walter Egan, (he of Magnets & Steel fame http://www.walteregan.net/ ), a legendary die-hard Brian/BB fan from childhood.  Walter's first work was produced by none other than Lindsey Buckingham, almost simultaneous with Mick discovering Mr. B & Stevie.  Walter kind of got lost in the shuffle of them becoming superstars.

Cut to summer in Hollywood, one of those nightmare shows at Universal Amphitheatre...  I was kind of on the outs with The Boys, (mainly for 'being there' for Dennis, but also for some artistic/financial reasons), and I wasn't really shooting them anymore.  I arrived in my own stretch limo, as Dennis' guests, with another couple, (also old friends of Dennis'), and Walter Egan & his wife.  (Shawn & Gage might have been with us, too.  Maybe too early, though)

Now, Walter was on a cloud; he was about to meet The Beach Boys!  (Think he might have previously met Brian with Lindsey, but Brian wasn't actually there that time...)  Dennis was pisssed that I was doing these other projects, without him having any involvement, and I'm certain what he did wasn't an accident; he walked up to Walter, in front of a whole crowd of people greeting us, and said, "Hey, Walter Womack!  How nice to meet you!", whereupon he briefly flirted with his wife, then went on his way.  Poor Walter; it wasn't until later in the evening, when Dennis was in full swing onstage, that he understood it was just Dennis being Dennis...

[Shady]

That sucks RIP 

[The Heartical Don]

He also owned the catalogue of Phil Spector, no? What will happen to that material now?

[Ed Roach]

Today ABKCO is overseen by Klein’s son, Jody, along with senior vice president Iris Keitel, as Klein has stepped away from an active role in daily office affairs. In contrast to the company’s fearsome reputation, Keitel and Klein are cordial, even gracious presences with a warm enthusiasm for the history that surrounds them. Clad in his monogrammed shirt, Klein is serious but casual, and only when a sensitive topic arises-such as the oft-debated question of why the company took so long to release masters from the Cameo-Parkway label, one of its biggest holdings-does he respond with a polite but firm, “That’s for another interview.”

By the way, I found this one below from the start of an article about ABKCO, and it's similar to the story I've told a million times, about first stepping off his elevator.  Except I've always told how the walls are lined, (at least they were, back then), with the gold records of the entire Liverpool invasion, sans his Stones or Beatles stuff.  And I'm talking everybody you could remember from back then; everything Mickie Most did 'back in the day', the Animals, Herman's Hermits, just about anybody from Liverpool. It was awe-inspiring

It’s impossible to walk into the offices of ABKCO Music & Records, Inc., on New York’s Broadway just north of Times Square, without feeling awestruck by a sense of history.  The lobby walls are covered floor to ceiling in BMI certificates, with titles that speak for themselves: “Be My Baby,” “You Send Me,” “Chain Gang,” “Let’s Spend the Night Together” and more.  Taken as a whole, the ABKCO catalogue-which encompasses songs by Sam Cooke, Phil Spector, The Rolling Stones, The Kinks and others-forms a stunning repository of popular music. Chances are you’ve already heard (or will hear) one of its copyrights in recent memory on the radio or in a TV commercial.

[Bicyclerider]

I never knew the Kinks were involved with Allen Klein - I don't remember any ABCKO titles on any of their CD's released here in the US or the UK.  What was the business connection between Allen and the Kinks?

[Jay]

O.K., now that I've spread the word on BB boards, and the shock is somewhat over, a quick anecdote, tying this in to The Boys:  (O.K., I'm stretching here.  Klein isn't actually a part of this story; but he is linked to it!)

My involvement with Klein began when he took over Bobby Womack, shortly after I had directed some memorable shows at The Roxy, with both Bobby & Sly Stone.  (Unreleased, but someday...)  Around the same time, I was doing some work with Walter Egan, (he of Magnets & Steel fame http://www.walteregan.net/ ), a legendary die-hard Brian/BB fan from childhood.  Walter's first work was produced by none other than Lindsey Buckingham, almost simultaneous with Mick discovering Mr. B & Stevie.  Walter kind of got lost in the shuffle of them becoming superstars.

Cut to summer in Hollywood, one of those nightmare shows at Universal Amphitheatre...  I was kind of on the outs with The Boys, (mainly for 'being there' for Dennis, but also for some artistic/financial reasons), and I wasn't really shooting them anymore.  I arrived in my own stretch limo, as Dennis' guests, with another couple, (also old friends of Dennis'), and Walter Egan & his wife.  (Shawn & Gage might have been with us, too.  Maybe too early, though)

Now, Walter was on a cloud; he was about to meet The Beach Boys!  (Think he might have previously met Brian with Lindsey, but Brian wasn't actually there that time...)  Dennis was pisssed that I was doing these other projects, without him having any involvement, and I'm certain what he did wasn't an accident; he walked up to Walter, in front of a whole crowd of people greeting us, and said, "Hey, Walter Womack!  How nice to meet you!", whereupon he briefly flirted with his wife, then went on his way.  Poor Walter; it wasn't until later in the evening, when Dennis was in full swing onstage, that he understood it was just Dennis being Dennis...

I've always been curios about what happened at the Universal Amphitheatre. Perhaps some time you can share your version of what happened? Or course, if it's not to touchy of a subject for you.