Howie Klein
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Howie Klein is an American DJ, music producer, record label founder, record label executive, and political blogger, who was president of Reprise Records from 1989 to 2001.
Born in Brooklyn, Klein was the founder of San Francisco independent label 415 Records and discovered Romeo Void, Translator and Wire Train among others. When he lived in San Francisco, he hosted a long-running Sunday night program on KUSF. He joined Sire Records in 1987 and was president of Reprise/Warner Bros. Records between 1989 and 2001. During his tenure he attracted artists such as Lou Reed, with whom he had worked while at Sire, to the upscale label.[1] After the Time Warner merger with AOL, Klein accepted a buyout.[2] As it happened, the day he retired was the day that the Reprise band Wilco turned in its disputed album Yankee Hotel Foxtrot, which the Washington Post observed marked a "seismic shift" from the label's former "artist-friendly" reputation.[3]
Klein received a Spirit of Liberty Award in 1999 from People for the American Way for his anti-censorship efforts.[4] Klein was honored by the American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California "Bill of Rights Award" for his activism in the area of free speech. [5]
Klein now lives in Los Angeles, where he writes the progressive political blog, DownWithTyranny! and regularly guest blogs on Crooks and Liars.com's Late Night Music Club feature.
[edit] References
- ^ "Lou Reed Signs With Reprise", Rolling Stone. Retrieved on 2007-09-09.
- ^ Greg Kot. "'A rock & roll swindle'", Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, July 24, 2004. Retrieved on 2007-09-09.
- ^ Richard Harrington. "And the Band Played On", The Washington Post, August 9, 2002. Retrieved on 2007-09-09.
- ^ James Sullivan. "Reprise's Klein Fights Censorship", San Francisco Chronicle, January 9, 2000. Retrieved on 2007-09-09.
- ^ Warner Bros. Records. "ACLU honors Reprise president Howie Klein". URL accessed February 10, 2007.
