American progressive political activist, former record company executive
Klein in 1984.
Howard Klein (born February 20, 1948) is an American writer, political activist, media personality, and former record label executive, DJ, and producer. He was the President of Reprise Records from 1989 to 2001. He appears occasionally as himself in music and political related film documentaries and has received accolades for his stance against censorship and for his advocacy of free speech protection.
Klein moved to San Francisco, and from 1976 to 1978 hosted the first regular punk radio show The Outcastes on KSAN with co-hosts Norman Davis, and Chris Knab, then-owner of Aquarius Records on Castro Street.[10][11][12] The radio show allowed Klein to interview bands such as the Sex Pistols, Iggy Pop, Devo, The Cramps, The Dead Boys, The Nuns, and Roky Erickson.[13][14][15] While Klein lived in San Francisco, he also hosted, with Ian Kallen & Ron Quintana, Rampage Radio, a 6-hour Heavy Metal radio show, from 1982 to 2011 on KUSF, later, at Radio Valencia.[16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23]
During and after his work with Sire and Reprise, Klein distinguished himself as a stalwart opponent of censorship and a dedicated advocate of free speech. Reprise Records was started by Frank Sinatra in 1960, securing what he saw as artistic freedom from his former record label, Capitol Records. Klein carried Sinatra's tradition further, clearly articulating his even broader vision that creative freedom was not limited only to choosing one's business and music partners, but also encompassed the freedom to write, even about controversial topics, as one saw fit.[36]
The 1992 United States presidential election saw Bill Clinton choose Senator Al Gore as his vice presidential running mate. This decision disturbed many Democrats and music industry professionals, including Klein, because Gore's wife, Tipper Gore, with Susan Baker, had co-founded the Parents Music Resource Center. The PMRC had initiated Senate hearings in 1985 on "potentially harmful lyrics", spearheading a five-year effort that by 1990 had successfully forced the recording industry to implement a voluntary identification and labeling system to warn parents about music containing explicit lyrics. Tipper Gore's vocal and instrumental role in the PMRC was perceived by some as a campaign of outright censorship against musicians and the music industry itself. Klein took an active role in publicizing these concerns through speaking engagements and by becoming one of the most influential supporters of a very effective, multimillion-dollar, industry-wide campaign to register and educate young music-loving voters, called Rock the Vote.[37]
His anti-censorship efforts earned him one of two Spirit of Liberty Awards bestowed in 1999 by People for the American Way; co-honored that year was filmmaker and actor Rob Reiner. Klein created a CD for the awards ceremony, demonstrating his unflinching support for protection of the artistic freedom to convey important social and political ideas in ways that might scare the establishment. Fuck Censorship was a compilation of censored and off-color songs celebrating everything from cannabis to cross-dressing; the liner notes of which contained a pointed message from Klein, "Sometimes protecting freedom of speech isn't pretty."[36]
In 2000, the American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California honored him with its "Bill of Rights Award" for his activism in the protection of free speech.[38] He currently serves on the board of directors for People for the American Way.[9][39]
In early 2005, he was appointed to the board of directors of JamBase.com, a San Francisco-based internet search engine company focused on concert and tour date information, whose founder and CEO Andy Gadiel cited Klein's reputation as "a true artist's advocate".[7]
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 and on Firedoglake.com.[44] He is the Founder and Treasurer of Blue America PAC,[45] serves on the board of directors for the Progressive Congress Action Fund,[46] and is a member of the Drum Major Institute for Public Policy's Netroots Advisory Council.[47] He is also an adjunct professor of music at McGill University in Montreal, where he sometimes lectures.[30]
^ abKopp, Bill (24 November 2020). "415 Records: Pioneers of Punk Get Reissue Series". SF Weekly. Retrieved 10 July 2021. His musical omnivore qualities led Klein to host a program on KSAN-FM. "It started out as just a one-time thing," he says. But The Outcastes — the first punk radio show in the country — quickly found an audience. "There wasn't really enough music coming out of New York and London at the time," Klein explains. "We would play songs twice in one show!" To fill up the time, Klein started playing music from Bay Area bands.
^WRITER, MICHAEL SNYDER, CHRONICLE STAFF (February 12, 1995). "It's Klein Time at Reprise". SFGATE. Retrieved July 10, 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
