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121-506: The Ohio Express is an American bubblegum pop band formed in Mansfield, Ohio , in 1967. Though marketed as a band, it would be more accurate to say that the name "Ohio Express" served as a brand name used by Jerry Kasenetz 's and Jeffry Katz 's Super K Productions to release the music of a number of different musicians and acts. The best known songs of Ohio Express (including their best-scoring single, " Yummy Yummy Yummy ") were actually

242-456: A Certified Public Accountant , and Klein chose not to take the examination. He briefly attended law school but soon dropped out. Aided by his friendship with music publisher Don Kirshner , a fellow alumnus of Upsala College, Klein worked as an accountant for the next several years, assisted by Henry Newfeld, a CPA who was a friend from school and the Army, and Marty Weinberg, another CPA, under

363-453: A Hunter College student seven years his junior. The couple had three children. Klein acquired a reputation as a tough negotiator who could bring money to his clients. Two of them, rockabilly singers Knox and Bowen, were owed royalties by Roulette Records . Morris Levy , co-owner of Roulette, was feared because of his organized crime connections. He was known to pay artists as little as possible. Klein persuaded him to pay Knox and Bowen

484-558: A "20 Year Reunion Concert" at the Renaissance Theater in their Mansfield hometown. Two of the original touring group members have died: keyboardist/vocalist/songwriter Jim Pfahler died on March 10, 2003, at age 54, and rhythm guitarist Doug Grassel died of lung fibrosis on September 21, 2013, at age 64. Bassist Dean Kastran became a member of national act called The Cyrkle beginning in June 2021. He also plays bass and sings in

605-511: A 15-year period, ostensibly for tax purposes. Klein's company, ABKCO , continued to control the rights to publish the Stones' music and it was Klein who made a fortune off the band's all-time best-selling album, Hot Rocks 1964–1971 . In 1972, Klein alleged that some of the songs on their album Exile on Main Street had been composed while the Stones were still under contract with ABKCO. As

726-468: A 25 percent commission on the Stones' income. At Klein's insistence, Oldham increased the Stones' royalties to 7 percent and relinquished his commission. Klein offered the Stones a million-dollar minimum guarantee, paid over a 20-year period to reduce the Stones' tax liability, to let him become their music publisher, based on his faith in the Jagger-Richards songwriting team. He also arranged for

847-614: A biography of Klein, Allen Klein: The Man Who Bailed Out the Beatles, Made the Stones, and Transformed Rock & Roll . In the 1978 television mockumentary The Rutles: All You Need is Cash , which parodies the career of the Beatles, Allen Klein is portrayed as "Ron Decline", played by John Belushi . Introduced as "the most feared promoter in the world", Decline is so intimidating to his colleagues that they choose to throw themselves out of skyscraper windows rather than face him. In his book You Never Give Me Your Money: The Battle for

968-408: A consortium which would beat Grade's offer, but ultimately his efforts were derailed by infighting between McCartney and Lennon themselves. In September 1969, while Klein was in the midst of renegotiating the Beatles' unsatisfactory recording agreements with EMI , Lennon told him of his plans to quit the group. It was agreed that this was the wrong time to either make or announce such a move. EMI

1089-581: A dispute with Super K Productions and left the company, never to record again. The band's recording of "Beg, Borrow & Steal" was then re-mixed and re-issued in August 1967 on Cameo Parkway Records, now credited to the Ohio Express (a name to which Super K Productions controlled all rights). The record was a No. 1 single in Columbus, Ohio, by early September and gradually became a hit across Canada and

1210-548: A false statement on his 1972 tax return, for which, in 1980, he was jailed for two months. Klein was born in Newark, New Jersey , the fourth child and only son of Jewish immigrants. His mother died of cancer soon afterward, and Klein lived for a time with his grandparents, then subsequently in a Jewish orphanage , until his father remarried shortly before Klein's 10th birthday. An indifferent student, he graduated from Weequahic High School in 1950; fellow graduate Philip Roth

1331-667: A film called Without Each Other . He took it to the Cannes Film Festival and later claimed that it had won the "Best American Picture Award" there, though no such award existed. A distributor never materialized, but Klein's enthusiasm for film persisted. Starting in 1967 Klein produced four films in the Spaghetti Western genre, a lean-and-mean style of cowboy movie with taciturn heroes and explosive violence. Klein utilized actor Tony Anthony , whom he'd met on Force of Impulse , in all four. Their films included

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1452-477: A former singer who was the savvy producer of hits for the Animals and Herman's Hermits . Klein extended to Most a million-dollar promise, adding that if he failed to deliver in only one month, Most owed him nothing. Klein did deliver, through strategic re-negotiations of existing contracts and new producing opportunities for RCA, including offers for Most to produce for both Sam Cooke and Elvis Presley . Though

1573-430: A holding company, Tracey Ltd., which was named after Cooke's middle daughter. Klein, Cooke's manager, sneakily changed paperwork and listed himself as owner instead (and Sam Cooke as his employee). Sam Cooke trusted him to protect him against crooked music executives but Klein used that trust to his advantage. Tracey would manufacture Cooke's recordings and give exclusive rights to RCA to sell them for 30 years, after which

1694-467: A large number of the organization's employees, including Apple Records president Ron Kass , and replaced them with his own people. He closed Apple Electronics , which was headed by Alexis Mardas . Mardas resigned his directorship in May 1971. Klein's attempt to fire Neil Aspinall , a longtime confidant of the Beatles, was immediately thwarted by the band. Klein was hit with his first crisis in managing

1815-486: A legitimate precursor to bubblegum's avowedly ephemeral themes." He went on to list such "important antecedents" as " I'm Henery the Eighth, I Am " ( Herman's Hermits , 1965), " Snoopy Vs. The Red Baron " ( Royal Guardsmen , 1966), " Ding, Dong! The Witch is Dead " ( The Fifth Estate , 1967), and " Green Tambourine " ( Lemon Pipers , 1967). "American bubblegum pop was often like garage rock 's bouncy little brother: lacking

1936-549: A level of tour support and publicity far above anything the band had ever previously experienced for the Stones' 1965 American tour in support of the album December's Children . Jagger, who had studied at the London School of Economics , gradually became distrustful of Klein, particularly for the latter's ability to insert himself as a profit participant in the group's ever-growing financial affairs. For example, in 1968 Klein very profitably bought out Oldham's share in

2057-536: A mistrial because the jury was deadlocked. At his second trial in 1979, the jury found Klein not guilty of the felony charges, but guilty of a single misdemeanor charge for false statements on his 1972 tax return. Klein was fined $ 5,000 and sentenced to two months in jail, which he served in July–September ;1980. In 1988 Klein began managing Phil Spector 's business affairs, including his publishing and recording assets. Although Spector had not been active as

2178-470: A pattern for the Ohio Express. They released four LPs and a multitude of singles for Buddah between 1968 and 1970, but the "official" group that appeared on album sleeves and at live shows contributed not a single note to their hit singles. For the year following the release of "Yummy Yummy Yummy", all Ohio Express singles were co-written and sung by Levine, with musical accompaniment by anonymous New York session musicians. Under this arrangement, in 1968 and 1969

2299-559: A play for the US portion of Harrison's publishing company, Harrisongs , in late 1974, without success. He also attempted to influence the outcome of Lennon's arrangement with music publisher Morris Levy regarding an alleged copyright infringement (of the Chuck Berry song " You Can't Catch Me ") in Lennon's 1969 Beatles composition " Come Together ". Lennon's song " Steel and Glass " from

2420-466: A position in the post-breakup solo careers of Harrison, Starr, and Lennon, but was no longer in charge of their affairs as a partnership. For the first few years after the Beatles ' contentious break-up, George Harrison was widely seen as the most accomplished and artistically successful former Beatle. His November 1970 three-disc set, All Things Must Pass , was a sales triumph, and produced hit singles in " My Sweet Lord " and " What Is Life ". In

2541-556: A privately held company. In 1964 Klein approached the Beatles ' manager, Brian Epstein , with an offer for the Beatles to sign with RCA for $ 2 million but Epstein was not interested, saying that he was loyal to EMI . After Epstein died in August 1967, the group formed Apple Corps in January 1968. They hoped it would provide the means for correcting Epstein's unfortunate business decisions, which had both limited their incomes and ensured high tax burdens. Although " Hey Jude ",

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2662-420: A producer for several years, his early work was still frequently broadcast and also licensed for film soundtracks. Spector's publishing company, Mother Bertha Music, Inc, was controlled by Trio, a Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller company, which was in turn administered by Warner/Chappell Music . Warner/Chappell was making appropriate payments, but significant amounts were not being passed on to Spector. Klein's goal

2783-459: A result, ABKCO acquired ownership of the disputed songs and was able to publish another Rolling Stones album, More Hot Rocks (Big Hits and Fazed Cookies) . In 1974 negotiations over royalties led to a payment of $ 375,000 to the Stones and ABKCO's release of an additional Rolling Stones album, Metamorphosis . In 1975 more lawsuits and negotiations resulted in a $ 1 million payment to the Stones for non-payment by Klein of songwriting royalties, and

2904-547: A result, the proceeds were denied tax-exempt status in Britain and the US. The IRS attempted to tax the income, and $ 10 million of that amount was held back for years. Both Harrison and John Lennon soon became disenchanted with Klein. By mid 1972, Harrison was incensed at the outcome of Klein's handling of the Bangladesh relief effort. Aside from the question of its charity status, unwelcome attention had been drawn to

3025-582: A steady three-to-one majority against McCartney's proposals. The Eastmans convinced McCartney to file suit against his former bandmates for dissolution of the Beatles' partnership, which he did on December 31, 1970. The judge ruled in McCartney's favor in March 1971. He decided that the combined financial affairs of the former Beatles should be placed in the care of a receiver until mutually acceptable terms for their break-up could be found. Klein thereby retained

3146-420: A trilogy comprising A Stranger In Town , The Stranger Returns (1967), and The Silent Stranger (shot in 1968 but not released until 1975 by United Artists). Blindman (1970) featured Ringo Starr as a Mexican bandit, Anthony as its lead, and Klein as an extra. The first two "Stranger" films were released by MGM , the studio where Klein produced Mrs. Brown, You've Got a Lovely Daughter starring

3267-509: A way to invest his clients' money, Klein attempted to acquire Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer . His hopes were blunted when Edgar Bronfman, Sr. , heir to the Seagram fortune, instead took control of the firm. Klein then turned his attention to Cameo-Parkway Records , a Philadelphia-born, Los Angeles-based label which had enjoyed hits in the late 1950s and early 1960s, thanks to Chubby Checker , Bobby Rydell , Dee Dee Sharp and others, but which by 1967

3388-546: Is pop music in a catchy and upbeat style that is marketed for children and adolescents. The term also refers to a more specific rock and pop subgenre, originating in the United States in the late 1960s, that evolved from garage rock , novelty songs , and the Brill Building sound , and which was also defined by its target demographic of preteens and young teenagers. The Archies ' 1969 hit " Sugar, Sugar "

3509-625: Is an acronym for "The A llen and B etty K lein Co mpany." Fueled by speculation, the stock price increased from $ 1.75 a share in July 1967 to a peak of 76 + 3 ⁄ 8 in February 1968 before the SEC halted trading. The American Stock Exchange declined to reinstate the stock; instead, ABKCO continued to trade over the counter, and the stock price dropped to more realistic levels. In 1987, Klein made ABKCO

3630-482: Is like bubblegum music'." The term was then popularized by their boss, Buddah Records label executive Neil Bogart . It became often used as a pejorative for pop music that is perceived to be disposable and contrived. Most bubblegum acts were one-hit wonders (notable exceptions included The Cowsills , the Partridge Family and Tommy Roe ) and the sound remained a significant commercial force until

3751-569: Is merely bubblegum by another name and that since bubblegum is "dance music for pre-teen girls", the genre's scope must therefore include dance-pop and such associated figures as Stock Aitken Waterman and Kylie Minogue , but "Not all dance-pop is aimed at kids and shouldn't be presumed to be disposable anymore than bubblegum." According to music historian Carl Caferelli, "You could conceivably think of virtually every cute novelty hit, from pre-rock ditties like "How Much Is That Doggie In The Window" to transcendent rock-era staples like " Iko Iko ," as

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3872-466: The 1910 Fruitgum Company and " Yummy Yummy Yummy " by the Ohio Express . Tommy James of the Shondells claims to have unknowingly invented bubblegum music in 1967 with the hit song " I Think We're Alone Now ". Producers Jerry Kasenetz and Jeffry Katz have claimed credit for coining "bubblegum" for this music, saying that when they discussed their target audience, they decided it was "teenagers,

3993-582: The Apollo Theater in Harlem , and formed a partnership with Klein to begin doing the same in Philadelphia. As Henderson's partner, Klein was introduced to Sam Cooke , a pre-eminent talent who was equally adept at writing, producing, and performing his numerous hit records. Cooke had scored four top ten hits between 1957 and 1963, including his number one hit, " You Send Me ," among 33 records in

4114-718: The Beg, Borrow and Steal LP, "I Find I Think of You" and "And It's True", were actually recorded by the Kent, Ohio, band the Measles, led by Joe Walsh , later of the James Gang and the Eagles . In addition, the Measles recorded an instrumental version of "And It's True" (retitled "Maybe") which was placed on the B-side of the "Beg, Borrow and Steal" single. The Ohio Express then moved to

4235-602: The Songbirds Guitar Museum in Chattanooga. The guitar museum would close its doors in 2020 due to the Covid Pandemic. Irv would then go on to produce an Emmy Award winning documentary of the museum called "Songbirds" with Director Dagan Beckett and producer David Davidson in 2022. Years later Tim Corwin revised another version of the band and began performing nationally and overseas. Corwin kept

4356-492: The earning potential of money over time to "make money from the money." According to the 2019 documentary Lady You Shot Me: The Life and Death of Sam Cooke , Klein was a predator in his relationship with the singer. As of 2019, Cooke's family received no royalties or benefits from his music. All royalties and publishing profits go to Klein's corporation. In 1964, Klein became the American business manager of Mickie Most ,

4477-411: The melodic metal comes out of that too. Bubblegum was based in melody; it was all about the song. It was all about getting the message across in two and a half minutes. [...] And it was the perfect antidote to everything that was going on [in the late 1960s]. The term "bubblegum dance" has sometimes been used to describe music. The 1971 Osmonds song " One Bad Apple " is an early example, modeled after

4598-538: The $ 587,000 that it had cost Klein to purchase the company. The multi- Academy Award -winning 1955 film Marty , an independently produced movie that undercut the Hollywood studio system, provided a business template which Allen Klein closely studied and later adapted to the recording industry. In the late 1950s Klein shared an office with press agent Bernie Kamber, who represented Burt Lancaster , one of Marty 's producers. Klein absorbed much from Kamber on how

4719-438: The 1974 album Walls and Bridges was his thinly veiled dig at Klein. Klein's 1973 lawsuit against the Beatles was settled out of court in January 1977, with Ono representing the former bandmates. Klein received a lump sum payment of approximately $ 5 million in lieu of future royalties and as repayment of the loans that ABKCO had made to the Beatles. Harrison had been sued for copyright infringement in 1971 because of

4840-568: The 1978 film The Greek Tycoon , in which Anthony Quinn and Jacqueline Bisset played characters based on Aristotle Onassis and Jacqueline Kennedy . In the early 1980s Klein produced two Broadway plays. It Had to be You , a romantic comedy starring Renée Taylor and Joseph Bologna , ran for barely a month. Next Klein produced The Man Who Had Three Arms , written by Edward Albee . Although Albee had also written big successes in The Zoo Story and Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? ,

4961-475: The Bangladeshi refugees. Klein hustled to get the invited artists, including Bob Dylan and Eric Clapton , to play for free while donating their shares of royalties to charity, and convinced Capitol Records to grant an unprecedented 50% royalty rate. The Concert for Bangladesh live album and film raised over $ 15 million. Klein had failed to register the shows as a UNICEF charity event, however; as

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5082-533: The Beatles and the Rolling Stones would lead to years of litigation and, specifically for the Rolling Stones, accusations from the group that Klein had withheld royalty payments, stolen the publishing rights to their songs, and neglected to pay their taxes for five years; thus had necessitated their French "exile" in 1971. After years of pursuit by the IRS , Klein was convicted of the misdemeanor charge of making

5203-403: The Beatles when Clive Epstein, brother of Brian Epstein and chief heir to NEMS, the management company his brother had founded, sold NEMS to Triumph, a British investment group managed by Leonard Richenberg. NEMS held a 25% stake in the Beatles' earnings, which Klein as well as the Beatles themselves desperately wanted to buy out. This led to tough negotiations with Triumph. Klein ultimately secured

5324-406: The Beatles' first Apple release, was an enormous success, the label itself was a financial mess, with little accountability for how money was being spent. Klein contacted John Lennon after reading his press comment that the Beatles would be "broke in six months" if things continued as they were. On January 26, 1969, he met with Lennon, who retained Klein as his financial representative, and

5445-501: The Beatles' manager on an interim basis, with the Eastmans being appointed as their attorneys. Continued conflict between Klein and the Eastmans made this arrangement unworkable. The Eastmans were dismissed as the Beatles' attorneys, and on May 8 Klein was given a three-year contract as business manager of the Beatles. McCartney refused to sign the contract but was outvoted by the other Beatles. Once in charge of Apple, Klein fired

5566-503: The Beatles' rights in their previous work for just four annual payments amounting to 5% of their earnings. However, in the lead-up to those negotiations Richenberg commissioned a hostile investigative report on Klein, which The Sunday Times ran under the headline "The Toughest Wheeler-Dealer in the Pop Jungle". An even more important battle to secure the Beatles a financial situation commensurate with their worldwide popular acclaim

5687-848: The Bronx, New York. With no group available to promote the single by playing live dates, Super K Productions hired a Mansfield, Ohio band known as Sir Timothy & the Royals and renamed them the Ohio Express. The lineup consisted of Dale Powers (born June 22, 1948; vocals, lead guitar), Doug Grassel (born Douglas Martin Grassel in Mansfield, Ohio; July 5, 1949 – September 21, 2013; rhythm guitar), Dean Kastran (born October 22, 1948; bass), Jim Pfahler (born James William Pfahler in Mansfield, Ohio; August 12, 1948 – March 10, 2003; keyboards) and Tim Corwin (born July 26, 1948; drums). This group toured as

5808-673: The Builder and Mr Blobby until the explosion in kids' music, fuelled by the cross-promotional opportunities offered by the multiplicity of kids' TV channels, led by the Wiggles and the Disney stable. Many musicians who grew up with the genre later incorporated bubblegum influences in their work. Although it is rarely acknowledged by music critics, who typically dismissed the genre, bubblegum's simple song structures, upbeat tempos, and catchy hooks were carried into punk rock . The Ramones were

5929-728: The Eggerton-Kastran Group (a.k.a., EKG), an acoustic duo with vocalist/guitarist Denny Eggerton, and the five-piece band the Caffiends, both based in Mansfield, Ohio . Dale Powers is now a Christian music evangelist based in Mansfield, Ohio, and founded his own record label as well as website for his ministry. Dean Kastran plays bass in the Race Ministries Band and recorded tracks with Dale on his album of original songs titled "The Journey Within!". Bubblegum pop Bubblegum (also called bubblegum pop )

6050-662: The Kinks , Lulu , Donovan , and Pete Townshend of the Who . However, Klein's help came at a price. To shelter his clients' money from Britain's high taxation rate on income earned abroad, Klein held the money for them at the Chemical Bank in New York City and paid it to them over periods of time of up to 20 years. Klein invested that money, which earned far more than Klein was obligated to pay to his clients, and he kept

6171-470: The Music Explosion and the 1970 album track "Shake", originally issued by Kasenetz Katz Super Circus. As well, "Zig Zag," the B-side to "Yummy Yummy Yummy", was the instrumental track of 1910 Fruitgum Company 's "(Poor Old) Mr. Jensen" cut to play backwards. After five straight singles co-written and sung by Joey Levine (four of which made the US and Canadian Top 40), Levine grew dissatisfied with

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6292-570: The Naked Truth rules out teen pop or boy bands as inherently bubblegum and defines the term as: The artists were typically singles acts, with songs commonly featuring sing-along choruses, seemingly childlike themes and a contrived innocence, occasionally combined with an undercurrent of sexual double entendre . Comparing bubblegum to power pop , Mojo writer Dawn Eden said: "Power pop aims for your heart and your feet. Bubblegum aims for any part of your body it can get, as long as you buy

6413-516: The Naked Truth , Chuck Eddy offered that bubblegum evolved to be "more an attitude than a genre" during the 1970s. In the UK, bubblegum caught on in the early 1970s and fell out of popular favor by the end of the decade. In 2010, author and musician Bob Stanley summarized: While some more confrontational music would become popular with kids – some of the more colourful rave anthems, for example – kids' music became synonymous with novelty tie-ins like Bob

6534-688: The Ohio Express, and their touring commitments (and Ohio home base) made it difficult for them to head into the New York-based Super K offices to record a follow-up single to "Beg, Borrow and Steal". Of the "official" group members, only Dale Powers (lead vocals) appeared on the second single credited to Ohio Express, "Try It", later covered by the Standells . The single stalled well outside the US Top 40, peaking at No. 83. The group soon recorded an album called Beg, Borrow and Steal . It mixed

6655-531: The Soul of the Beatles , Peter Doggett says that Klein has come to be seen as one of the controversial "intruders" in the Beatles' story. Doggett writes: Suspected for their motives, hated for their disruptive power, they all arrived from America and were all regarded as suspects for the crime of breaking up the Beatles, on the assumption that without them the group would have continued happily in each other's company until their dying days. The first of these intruders

6776-461: The Stones. In 2002, the Stones' album Forty Licks and the Licks Tour , celebrating the band's 40th anniversary, incorporated songs owned by ABKCO. The Stones agreed to a five-year payment plan suggested by Klein's son, Jody. In 2003, Klein negotiated with Steve Jobs to make ABKCO's Rolling Stones songs available on iTunes . In February 1967, with an eye toward producing films and finding

6897-605: The US through the following months. The otherwise exhaustively annotated Nuggets box set (which includes "Beg, Borrow and Steal") suggests the Rare Breed were from New York or New Jersey, but offers no other data. However, a 2003 interview and a 2009 YouTube post of a performance of "Beg, Borrow and Steal" identifies the members of the Rare Breed as John Freno (vocals, guitar), Barry Stolnick (keyboards), Joel Feigenbaum (rhythm guitar), Alexander "Bots" Narbut (vocals, bass) and Tony Cambria (drums), all originally from Brooklyn and

7018-595: The Verve sampled a 1965 orchestral version of the Rolling Stones song " The Last Time " by the Andrew Oldham Orchestra . Klein, who owned the copyrights to the Rolling Stones' early work, refused clearance for the sample; following a lawsuit, the Verve ceded the songwriting credits and royalties. In 2019, Klein's son and the Rolling Stones returned the credits and royalties to Richard Ashcroft of

7139-487: The Verve. The song became a hit, popular for use at sporting events, and it was a big money-maker for ABKCO, which licensed its use for commercials advertising Nike shoes and Opel automobiles. Klein was diagnosed with diabetes at age 40. He suffered several heart attacks over the years, of varying severity. In 2004, the same year that ABKCO collected a Grammy Award for a Sam Cooke documentary, Legend , Klein fell and broke bones in his foot, requiring surgery. He

7260-486: The alleged similarity of his song "My Sweet Lord" to " He's So Fine ", which had been recorded by the Chiffons in 1963 and was owned by Bright Tunes Music . The case was still pending in 1976; as an alternate strategy to access Harrison's US publishing, Klein now purchased Bright Tunes and thus became the plaintiff in the lawsuit against Harrison. The judge ruled that Harrison had infringed on Bright Tunes' copyright, and

7381-523: The amount of money he was receiving from his production deal, and left Super K Productions in early 1969. The company then turned to other hands to write, produce and perform Ohio Express singles. The Ohio touring quintet was not among them. Buddy Bengert (1949 – February 14, 1998) was added as the new lead singer and keyboardist in 1969. After Levine left, The Ohio Express never again made the top 40 in North America, although three 1969 singles made

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7502-491: The artists who created the profit-generating music, paying them less than what Klein thought they should. Klein enlisted in the US Army in 1951, where he served as a clerk typist on Governors Island , New York. After military service, and with the assistance of the G.I. Bill , Klein majored in accounting at Upsala College , graduating in June 1957, and was hired by a Manhattan accounting firm, Joseph Fenton and Company. He

7623-495: The band active, and filed for a service mark for the name Ohio Express, in 1999 without the consent of the record labels that own the rights to the name with the various master recordings. The Ohio Express recently has performed in Las Vegas, other casinos and most recently (2012) Corwin made an appearance on Cologne Television, performing "Yummy Yummy Yummy". In the mid-1970s, Mansfield guitarist Mike Brumm, joined and remained in

7744-402: The band for $ 750,000. By 1968 the Stones were so concerned with how their finances were being handled by Klein that they hired a London law firm, Berger Oliver & Co, to look into their financial situation and Jagger hired the titled merchant banker Prince Rupert Loewenstein to be his personal financial adviser. Another possible factor in the Stones' dissatisfaction with Klein was that when

7865-464: The client. Although Klein greatly increased his clients' incomes, he also enriched himself, sometimes without his clients' knowledge. The Rolling Stones' $ 1.25 million advance from the Decca Records label in 1965, for example, was deposited into a company that Klein had established, and the fine print of the contract did not require Klein to release it for 20 years. Klein's involvement with both

7986-468: The contract re-negotiation when Cooke was killed in 1964 and his widow sold Cooke's remaining rights to Klein. Klein's successful negotiations on behalf of Cooke brought him new clients, including Bobby Vinton and the Dave Clark Five . As with Cooke, Klein arranged for his clients to be paid over a period of time to reduce their tax liability. This also benefited Klein, who took advantage of

8107-472: The couple's 1972 album Some Time in New York City . In early 1973 Lennon, Harrison and Starr served notice that they would not be renewing Klein's management contract when it expired in March. Early the following month, Lennon told an interviewer: "Let's say possibly Paul's suspicions were right … and the timing was right." Klein responded by suing the Beatles and Apple in New York, in order to recoup

8228-569: The damn record." Music critic Lester Bangs described the style as "the basic sound of rock 'n' roll – minus the rage, fear, violence and anomie". There is debate concerning which artists fit the genre, especially for cases such as the Monkees . In the opinion of music historian Bill Pitzonka: "The whole thing that really makes a record bubblegum is just an inherently contrived innocence that somehow transcends that. [...] It has to sound like they mean it." Music critic David Smay argued that disco

8349-472: The deal one year later, Easton having been removed as co-manager, the Stones were guaranteed $ 2.6 million—more than the Beatles were making. When Klein examined the Stones' management contract with Easton and Oldham he found that the two were receiving a disproportionate share of the group's income: not only did Easton and Oldham receive an 8 percent royalty on sales of the Stones' singles—the Stones themselves received only 6 percent—but they also received

8470-433: The development of the Stones' image, and in initiating the songwriting partnership of Keith Richards and Mick Jagger . After some management mishaps, blame for which fell at Easton's feet, and Jagger's ascension in the band's hierarchy following " (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction ", the Stones' first number one record in the United States, Oldham sought and received Jagger's blessing to bring Klein aboard for re-negotiation of

8591-467: The difference in the accounts, thereby maintaining control over the money. In the spring of 1965 Andrew Loog Oldham , co-manager of the Rolling Stones , saw in Klein a terrific business adviser and ally, one who could help him win an incipient power struggle with Eric Easton , a music business veteran who was then the other half of the band's management team. Barely 21, Oldham was profoundly important in

8712-465: The early 1970s. Commentators often debate the scope of the genre and have variously argued for the exclusion or inclusion of dance-pop , disco , teen pop , boy bands , and especially the Monkees . During the 1970s, the original bubblegum sound was a formative influence on punk rock , new wave , and melodic metal . Occasionally invoked as a pejorative , the "bubblegum" descriptor has several different applications. The 2001 book Bubblegum Music Is

8833-486: The film and put it in American release. He then produced and financed Jodorowsky's next film, The Holy Mountain , an allegorical journey with psychedelic overtones. Later the producer and the director's planned collaboration on a proposed film version of Story of O was halted when Jodorowsky refused to make the film and to return substantial advance monies. Klein retaliated by withdrawing both El Topo and The Holy Mountain from distribution. In 2008 Jodorowsky released

8954-460: The films in Europe and was sued by Klein. After a face-to-face reconciliation between the two men Klein dropped his lawsuit and ABKCO released the films on video, paying Jodorowsky to remaster them. Klein's legs appeared in Lennon and Yoko Ono 's 1971 film Up Your Legs Forever . With George Harrison , Klein co-produced the 1972 concert film The Concert for Bangladesh . Klein also produced

9075-574: The gap between the poppier end of the mid-60s beat boom and glam rock ". Most bubblegum acts were one hit wonders (notable exceptions included the Partridge Family and Tommy Roe ) and the genre remained a significant commercial force until the early 1970s. Bubblegum failed to maintain its chart presence after the early 1970s due in part to changing trends in the industry. Producers such as Kasenetz and Katz subsequently pursued different musical avenues. Writing in Bubblegum Music Is

9196-437: The group scored three further top 40 hits in the US, Canada and Australia with "Down at Lulu's", " Chewy Chewy " and "Mercy". "Chewy Chewy" was the group's second million seller by March 1969. Also around this time, the group name lost the definite article, becoming "Ohio Express" for most releases from this point forward. There are no known occasions of Levine performing with the "official" Ohio Express quintet, either live or in

9317-445: The group until the late 2000s. A new touring version of The Ohio Express was convened in the 1980s. Today, a line-up led by original drummer Tim Corwin on lead vocals, John Baker (Lead guitar), Stan Rust (Bass), Bill Hutchman (Drums), Jeff Burgess (Keyboard) and Warren Sawyer (Rhythm guitar and Keyboards) tours the oldies circuit. On July 23, 1988, the original touring quintet of Powers, Kastran, Grassel, Pfahler and Corwin reunited for

9438-418: The group's contract with Decca Records . The label offered the band the opportunity to make $ 300,000 if their records continued to sell. Klein countered with, and quickly secured, an arrangement paying the Stones twice as much, in the form of an advance. He also forced London Records , Decca's American subsidiary, to sign a separate contract. It too was for $ 600,000. By the time Klein subsequently re-negotiated

9559-429: The home label of bubblegum pop , Buddah Records . At the same time, Joey Levine (who had co-written "Try It") was coming up with new material for the Ohio Express at the behest of Super K Productions. He recorded a demo version of the track " Yummy Yummy Yummy " with Super K staff musicians and his own guide vocal for the Ohio Express to record over. However, Buddah head Neil Bogart liked the demo enough that he released

9680-417: The latter began to manage the Beatles he focused more of his attention on that band's affairs than on the concerns of the Stones. In 1970, on the occasion of needing to negotiate a new contract with Decca, Jagger announced that Klein would be replaced as manager by Loewenstein. The split between Klein and the Stones led to years of litigation. In 1971 the Stones sued Klein over U.S. publishing rights. The suit

9801-481: The latter two prospects did not materialize, Most was suddenly one of the most talked-about and financially gratified figures in the English recording industry, and Klein was a step closer to eventual agreements with both the Beatles and the Rolling Stones . His victories for Most won Klein access to several key English musicians. He eventually negotiated vastly improved deals for The Animals , Herman's Hermits ,

9922-518: The loans he had made to his three former clients and other costs owing to ABKCO. They then sued him in the London courts, citing excessive commission fees, the mishandling of the Concert for Bangladesh, his misrepresentation of their individual financial standings, and his failure to ensure that the roster of artists at Apple Records prospered under his control. While the suits were ongoing, Klein made

10043-548: The lower reaches of the US and Canadian singles charts. One later minor hit single, "Sausalito (is the Place to Go)" was co-written and sung by Graham Gouldman , and performed by the four musicians who would later make up 10cc . Another late single, "Cowboy Convention", sneaked into the Australian top 40, peaking at No. 38. By 1970, with the hits having stopped, the group name Ohio Express was then quietly retired in 1972 (there

10164-463: The marketing person he was, just crammed it down the throats of people. That's really the point at which bubblegum took off." The Archies ' " Sugar, Sugar " became the best-selling hit of 1969 and inspired a wave of artists to adopt the bubblegum style. The song's success led to "cartoon rock", a short-lived trend of Saturday morning cartoon series that heavily featured pop-rock songs in the bubblegum vein. However, none of these songs had showings on

10285-421: The moodiness and sex appeal, but you could see the shared DNA. British bubblegum was born out of the same talent glut of session musicians and songwriters and shared a sweet tooth, but it was quite different in approach, owing rock almost nothing and rarely placing much of a premium on kid energy." —Tom Ewing, Freaky Trigger Bubblegum is generally traced to the success of the 1968 songs " Simon Says " by

10406-425: The most prominent of the bubblegum-influenced punk bands, adopting cartoon personae and later covering two bubblegum standards " Little Bit O' Soul " and " Indian Giver ". Pitzonka stated of bubblegum's legacy: Bubblegum really did lay a deeper foundation than anybody's willing to give it credit for. Yes, it is responsible for Take That and New Kids On The Block , but it's also responsible for The Ramones. A lot of

10527-470: The music industry at the time—without declaring the sales on their tax returns. Klein was alleged to have received over $ 200,000. Bennett pleaded guilty to a single misdemeanor charge and became a witness against Klein. Klein testified that he had not instructed Bennett to sell promotional copies of albums and that although he'd received cash payments from Bennett the payments were a return of cash advances which Bennett had been given. Klein's first trial ended in

10648-451: The name Allen Klein and Company . Klein's clients included Ersel Hickey , Dimitri Tiomkin , Steve Lawrence , Eydie Gormé , Sam Cooke , Buddy Knox , Jimmy Bowen , Lloyd Price , Neil Sedaka , Bobby Darin , Bobby Vinton , Scepter Records , and the estate of Mike Todd . A key early contact was attorney Marty Machat, who frequently performed legal work for Klein over the years. In June 1958, Klein married Betty Rosenblum,

10769-458: The next day met with the other Beatles. Paul McCartney preferred to be represented by Lee and John Eastman, the father and brother respectively of McCartney's girlfriend Linda , whom he married on March 12. Given a choice between Klein and the Eastmans, George Harrison and Ringo Starr preferred Klein. Following rancorous London meetings with both Eastmans, in April, Klein was appointed as

10890-486: The original Rare Breed title track with tracks recorded by the Ohio Express touring group, as well as tracks recorded by the Super K staff musicians with vocals by Powers. The LP came out on Cameo-Parkway Records of Philadelphia in the autumn of 1967. Unfortunately, the record label went into bankruptcy shortly after that and was purchased by music business mogul Allen Klein , who owns the masters to this day. Two songs on

11011-570: The other Beatles did. This proved to be McCartney and Klein's last face-to-face meeting. However, Apple made $ 6 million in the first month following the May 1970 release of the record and the film . Unhappy with production decisions on the Let It Be album and the other Beatles' decision to hire Klein as their manager, McCartney went public with his plans to leave the Beatles in April 1970. He wanted to be released from his partnership with Lennon, Starr, and Harrison, who had in recent months proved

11132-529: The play Klein produced had an even shorter run than his previous attempt. In 1977, Klein and ABKCO 's former head of promotion, Pete Bennett , were each charged with three felony counts of income tax evasion for 1970, 1971, and 1972, and related misdemeanor counts of making false statement on their income tax returns for each of those years. The IRS , which had been investigating Klein for several years, claimed that Klein and Bennett had sold promotional copies of Beatles and post-Beatles albums—common practice in

11253-732: The pop charts when released as singles, except for a record early in the year, The Banana Splits theme song " The Tra La La Song (One Banana, Two Banana) ", which managed a number 96 peak on the Billboard Top 100 and number 94 on the RPM charts. Robin Carmody of Freaky Trigger writes that British bubblegum from 1968 to 1972 was distinct from the "more worldly and sophisticated American equivalent" by being "simplistic, childish, over-excited, innocent, full of absolute certainties and safe knowledges", while noting that it "essentially bridged

11374-455: The popular Herman's Hermits . Klein, who had tried to purchase MGM in the mid '60s, became involved with a lawsuit against MGM with each accusing the other of not performing on their contracts with each other. In 1971, John Lennon directed Klein's attention to El Topo , a surrealistic western by the Chilean director Alejandro Jodorowsky . Inspired by Lennon's enthusiasm, Klein bought

11495-479: The producers had structured their business model, a paradigm whose strength derived from the fact that artists, not film studios or record labels, drove marketplace success and that intense preparation and canny negotiation could lavishly reward artists and their representatives. In 1961 Klein did accountancy work for an independent film, Force of Impulse , where he formed lasting relationships that he would turn to for many film projects of his own. In 1962 Klein produced

11616-459: The project after an article published in New York magazine accused Klein of pocketing $ 1.14 on each copy of the live album (priced at $ 10) —allegations that raised suspicions among the three former Beatles with regard to his conduct in their business affairs. Lennon also felt betrayed by Klein's lack of support for his and Yoko Ono 's increasingly politically focused work, which was typified by

11737-468: The record "as is", with Levine's vocals intact and no input at all from the touring version of the Ohio Express. The song became an international smash hit, peaking at #4 US, #5 UK, #5 Ireland, #7 Australia and #1 Canada. Two months after its issue it had sold over one million copies, and was granted gold disc status by the R.I.A.A. in June 1968. The success of the Levine-led "Yummy Yummy Yummy" set

11858-460: The release of four Rolling Stones albums including Rock and Roll Circus and Rolled Gold: The Very Best of the Rolling Stones . In 1984 Jagger and Richards sued to break their publishing agreement with ABKCO because of non-payment of royalties. The judge encouraged the two sides to reach a settlement. Starting in 1986, when the introduction of compact discs brought great profits to the music industry, relations began to improve between Klein and

11979-482: The rights would revert to Tracey. Cooke would receive a cash advance of $ 100,000 per year for three years, followed by $ 75,000 for each of two option years. Instead of being paid the first $ 100,000 in cash, Cooke was paid in Tracey preferred stock, which would be taxed only when he sold it. While the deal benefited Cooke, it also greatly benefited Klein, who ended up owning the rights to all of Cooke's recordings made since

12100-459: The royalties they were owed over a four-year period. Klein's success with the Knox and Bowen negotiation brought him new clients, and he and Levy became lifelong friends. In 1963, Klein began a business partnership with Jocko Henderson , an urbane black disc jockey who had daily radio shows in both Philadelphia and New York City. Henderson hosted lavish, profitable live rhythm and blues shows at

12221-426: The ruling was upheld on appeal. The judge initially assessed damages of $ 2,133,316, which Harrison would have to pay to Klein, then reduced the figure to $ 1,599,987, but finally ruled in 1981 that Klein still had a fiduciary responsibility to Harrison and should not be allowed to profit from his acquisition of Bright Tunes. Klein was ordered to hold "He's So Fine" in trust for Harrison provided that Harrison reimburse him

12342-598: The same record had been issued by the Rare Breed in early 1966 on Attack Records. This failed nationally, though it did see regional chart action in New Hampshire and Utah. The Rare Breed issued one more single in 1966 on Attack, "Come and Take a Ride in My Boat", which was a minor chart hit in the US southwest though also failed to chart nationally (the song hit No. 6 a year later for Every Mother's Son as " Come On Down to My Boat "). The Rare Breed then apparently had

12463-466: The same recording under two different band names. In addition to the Ohio Express hit "Beg, Borrow and Steal" (initially credited to the Rare Breed), fans have noted that various Ohio Express B-sides and album tracks were in fact initially issued and credited to other Super K acts. Examples include the B-side of the "Sausalito" single, "Make Love Not War", which was originally issued as "Road Runner" by

12584-584: The splintered group while also fulfilling their obligation to provide one more film to United Artists , the studio that had previously released both A Hard Day's Night and Help! Phil Spector , the producer famous for his " wall of sound " recordings with artists such as the Ronettes and the Righteous Brothers , was eager to sign on as producer for the album, which was eventually titled Let It Be . McCartney did not approve of Spector, but

12705-480: The spring of 1971, Harrison learned from his friend and mentor, Ravi Shankar , about the desperate people of Bangladesh , who had been devastated both by military violence and a vicious cyclone . Harrison immediately set about organizing an event which would take place in Madison Square Garden within just five weeks— the Concert for Bangladesh —from which a live album could raise further funds for

12826-405: The studio. The five lads from Ohio, meanwhile, could only be heard on a few of the album tracks. Allegedly, the touring group was not even informed of the existence of "Chewy Chewy", the new single that had come out under their name — and when fans requested it at a live show, they were consequently unable to play it. Super K Productions often recycled tracks from one act to another, issuing exactly

12947-552: The style of the Jackson 5 . Allen Klein Rather than offering financial advice and maximizing his clients' income as a business manager normally would, Klein set up what he called "buy/sell agreements" where a company that Klein owned became an intermediary between his client and the record label, owning the rights to the music, manufacturing the records, selling them to the record label, and paying royalties and cash advances to

13068-432: The top 100 in that period. Although Cooke was clearly making his label, RCA Records , a great deal of money, label executives nonetheless repeatedly refused to honor his many requests for a review of his accounts. Klein forced the reluctant label to open its books for a thorough audit. Shortly afterward, RCA agreed to re-negotiate Cooke's contract. Klein secured for his client a genuinely groundbreaking deal. Cooke created

13189-405: The work of an assemblage of studio musicians working in New York, including singer/songwriter Joey Levine . Other recorded "Ohio Express" work included material recorded by an early group of Joe Walsh , as well as a later single written and sung by Graham Gouldman (which was performed by the four musicians who would later be known as 10cc ). A band previously known as Sir Timothy and the Royals

13310-403: The young kids. And at the time we used to be chewing bubblegum, and my partner and I used to look at it and laugh and say, 'Ah, this is like bubblegum music'." The term was seized upon by Buddah Records label executive Neil Bogart , as Pitzonka added: "Kasenetz and Katz really crystallized [the scene] when they came up with the term themselves and that nice little analogy. And Neil Bogart, being

13431-496: Was a one-shot 1973 Buddah release credited to Ohio Ltd. ). In 1975, Kasanetz and Katz briefly put together a new live band using the name the Ohio Express. The band performed at clubs on Long Island for a short while, and featured John Visconti on lead vocals and rhythm guitar, Irv Berner on lead guitar and vocals, Elliot Schwartz on keys and vocals and Angie on bass guitar. Len Napolitano filled in on drums for several performances. In 2017 Irv Berner would go on to help open and manage

13552-462: Was a representative example that led to cartoon rock , a short-lived trend of Saturday-morning cartoon series that heavily featured pop rock songs in the bubblegum vein. Producer Jeffry Katz claimed credit for coining "bubblegum", saying that when they discussed their target audience, they decided it was "teenagers, the young kids. And at the time we used to be chewing bubblegum, and my partner and I used to look at it and laugh and say, 'Ah, this

13673-536: Was assigned to assist Joe Fenton in an audit of a music publishers' organization, the Harry Fox Agency , and several record companies, including Dot Records , Liberty Records , and Monarch Records . In an early setback to Klein's career, he was fired by Joseph Fenton and Company after four months because of chronic lateness. The company wrote to the State of New Jersey urging officials not to approve him as

13794-473: Was loath to re-negotiate, but their American subsidiary, Capitol Records , was so impressed by Abbey Road that they agreed to vastly improved royalty terms. McCartney joined his bandmates in endorsing the deal Klein had secured. Abbey Road proved to be the Beatles' last true collaboration, but Klein recognised an opportunity in the band's shelved January 1969 album and related documentary project, both titled Get Back , to get another album release out of

13915-416: Was no longer prospering. It was one of the first publicly traded record companies, making it ideal for a financial maneuver Klein had in mind, known as a reverse acquisition. It was meant to take Allen Klein and Company public via its being acquired on paper by Cameo-Parkway. By July 1967, Klein and his associate Abbey Butler had acquired a controlling interest and filed to rename Cameo-Parkway as ABKCO , which

14036-417: Was renamed "The Ohio Express" and hired to promote the singles by appearing at all live performances. This is the same group photographed on the record covers. The question of who is the "real" Ohio Express is difficult to answer. The first record credited to The Ohio Express was "Beg, Borrow and Steal", a " Louie Louie " derivation which became a top 40 hit in the US and Canada in late 1967. However, exactly

14157-424: Was settled the following year, with the Stones receiving $ 1.2 million as a settlement of all American royalties earned up to that point (and was essentially the $ 1.25 million advance that Decca had paid the Stones in 1965 that Klein had been withholding since August 1965). However, the Stones were unable to break their contract with Klein, who held an additional $ 2 million of the Stones' money to be paid over

14278-403: Was subsequently diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease . He died on July 4, 2009 in New York City. The cause of his death was respiratory failure. Yoko Ono and Sean Ono Lennon attended Klein's funeral. Andrew Loog Oldham commented at a subsequent memorial service that Klein had greatly magnified the success of the Rolling Stones . In June 2015, American journalist Fred Goodman published

14399-411: Was the only classmate to sign his yearbook. In early work experience with a magazine and newspaper distribution company he showed skill with numbers, and learned about how profits were often concealed from those who had been crucial in generating them. Eventually he would realize that much the same situation existed in popular music, where labels routinely took much profit from the transitory careers of

14520-407: Was to get Spector all the money owed him, and also to wrest a concession allowing Spector to co-administer the future licensing of his music. Klein and Spector brought suit in federal court, where a courtroom win would secure the first goal but not the second. Klein accordingly then advised a settlement strategy which proved successful. On their 1997 single " Bitter Sweet Symphony ", the English band

14641-687: Was with Northern Songs Ltd. , the publishing company. Northern Songs was managed by Dick James , whom Brian Epstein had rewarded with the Beatles' publishing rights in return for his helping them get placed on a TV show, Thank Your Lucky Stars , early in their career. But James had constructed a contract that gave him an outsized share, and Epstein had not understood its implications. James knew that Klein would soon eliminate his perks, so he quickly offered to sell Northern Songs to ATV , run by entertainment mogul Lew Grade , rather than allow Lennon and McCartney an opportunity to buy back publishing rights to their own songs. Klein worked feverishly to pull together

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