Talk:Dave Kaplan (music executive)

Disclosure

I work for Surfdog Records, which was founded by the subject of this article. I will submit all proposed content for this article for independent review. Valhallalover1031 (talk) 19:27, 17 December 2021 (UTC)

Excerpt from paywalled sources with a substantial focus on Dave Kaplan (Part 1)

The following sources which help to establish Kaplan’s notability are either not accessible for free online or are paywalled: San Diego Business Journal 2013, North County Times 2001, San Diego Union-Tribune 2013. Here are relevant excerpts:

1. Lead section, first paragraph, first sentence: Dave Kaplan is a music industry executive.

North County Times 2001:

Dave Kaplan may have refused to get in harmony with traditional corporate culture, but but he’s found his own rhythm as owner of the multi-faceted music company Surfdog Inc.

San Diego Union-Tribune 2013:

Surfdog Records was founded by Kaplan as an outgrowth of his Dave Kaplan Management company. The record label and his management company have since been augmented by Surfdog Music Publishing & Licensing, Surfdog Entertainment Marketing, Surfdog Merchandising and Surfdog’s Java Hut, a “smoothies, coffee and grub” place on Highway 101 in Encinitas.

2. Lead section, second sentence: He has managed numerous musical artists, including UB-40, Glen Campbell, Brian Setzer, and The Butthole Surfers.

San Diego Business Journal 2013:

Kaplan is a certified public accountant who was raised in Arizona and graduated from UC Santa Barbara. He eventually found a niche in the music business. Among his first successes was co-managing the group UB40 during the mid-1980s. A highlight of that experience was UB40's trip to the Soviet Union — which was unusual for the time.

Kaplan also manages music acts, offers full record label services and works in related businesses, including music publishing. Kaplan's client base includes country artist Glen Campbell; rockabilly guitarist Brian Setzer and Setzer's band Stray Cats; as well as Dave Stewart, perhaps best known for being one half of the Eurythmics. One of Kaplan's newer clients is a San Diego band called The Burning of Rome.

3. Early Life and Education section, first and second sentences: Dave Kaplan was born in Phoenix, Arizona. He graduated from UC Santa Barbara, and later became a certified public accountant.

San Diego Union-Tribune 2013:

Phoenix-native Kaplan, 53, moved here from Los Angeles with his family in 1995, two years after he launched Surfdog in a Venice Beach garage.

North County Times 2001:

“I was suit and tie accountant guy” said Kaplan, who now comes to work wearing Polynesian-style shirts. He is still a state-authorized certified public accountant.

San Diego Business Journal 2013: Same excerpt as in #1 above.

4. Career section, first paragraph, first and second sentences: Kaplan joined the accounting firm Ernst & Whinney in Los Angeles as an auditor in 1981. Kaplan disliked the firm’s rigid work culture, and left in 1983 to join a company that sold t-shirts bearing licensed images of pop-stars.

North County Times 2001:

Kaplan felt business was taken too seriously when he worked as an auditor for the accounting firm Ernst & Whinney, now Ernst and Young, in Los Angeles in 1981. Kaplan worked at the firm after earning a bachelor’s degree in business economics at UC Santa Barbara.

“I was suit and tie accountant guy” said Kaplan, who now comes to work wearing Polynesian-style shirts. He is still a state-authorized certified public accountant. “I was taking runs during my lunchtime and was very unorthodox. I’d get a lot of looks from people in the office. I was even reprimanded for being too happy and excited with clients.”

Two years later, he decided to join friends in a t-shirt company that contracted for images of rock music stars such as Michael Jackson and Madonna.

5. Career section: second paragraph, first and second sentences: In 1985, he founded Dave Kaplan Management (DKM) to manage musicians. DKM’s first client was the reggae band UB-40.

San Diego Union-Tribune 2013:

1985: Dave Kaplan Management is launched; first client is UB-40.

6. Career section, third paragraph, first sentence: Kaplan became the manager for Brian Setzer and his Brian Setzer Orchestra in 1992.

North County Times 2001:

Kaplan took over management of the Brian Setzer Orchestra in 1992 and started Surfdog Inc. the next year.

7. Career section, fourth paragraph: Kaplan founded Surfdog Records in 1993.

San Diego Union-Tribune 2013:

Since being launched in 1993, the Encinitas company has released more than 100 albums by such diverse acts as Brian Setzer, Joss Stone, Glen Campbell, The Stray Cats, Jamaican reggae singer Pato Banton and such San Diego bands as The Burning of Rome, B-Side Players and Slightly Stoopid.

8. Career section, ninth paragraph, first sentence: In 2013, Kaplan signed Eric Clapton to SurfDog Records and distributed his new album, Old Sock in North America.

San Diego Union-Tribune 2013:

The only musician to be inducted three times into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, guitar legend Eric Clapton has recorded for some of the world’s biggest record companies since launching his solo career in 1970. But for his new album — “Old Sock,” due out March 12 — he has teamed up with Surfdog Records of Encinitas to exclusively distribute the album in the United States and Canada.

San Diego Business Journal 2013:

The English-born guitarist has tapped Encinitas-based Surfdog Records to distribute his latest album in the United States and Canada. The compilation, called "Old Sock," goes on sale March 12.

Dave Kaplan, Surfdog's owner and chief executive, said he signed the deal with Clapton's business team early this year. Financial terms were not disclosed.

9. Personal Life section, first paragraph: Kaplan and his family live in southern California. He is a surfing enthusiast.

San Diego Union-Tribune 2013:

Phoenix-native Kaplan, 53, moved here from Los Angeles with his family in 1995, two years after he launched Surfdog in a Venice Beach garage.

[. . .]

"I was thrilled and surprised to have this opportunity," said Kaplan, a UC Santa Barbara graduate, who appears more comfortable talking about surfing. "We want all the artists we work with to say: 'Damn! Surfdog really kicked (butt) for us'."

Kaplan's love of surfing manifested itself back in the 1990s, when Surfdog released the first of several "Music for Our Mother Ocean" fundraising albums on behalf of the nonprofit Surfrider Foundation. Artists who contributed songs to those albums include Paul McCartney, James Taylor, The Ramones, Sublime, Rage Against the Machine, Snoop Dogg, No Doubt, Beastie Boys, Jimmy Buffett, former San Diegan Jewel and Pearl Jam (three of whose five members are also former San Diegans).

"What I call a 'royal flush' is when we get out every day to surf," Kaplan said. "We have a system where you get a star — and there’s a real competition in the Surfdog office — every time you go in the (ocean), whether or not your surf. If I'm away and call in, and someone isn't in the office because they're in the water, that’s a notch in their favor!"

North County Times 2001:

Although Kaplan moved his family to a 3-acre spread in Elfin Forest -- shared by three horses, three dogs, two goats and a pig -- he still considers Encinitas his hometown.

[...]

“A board meeting here means a little surf,” Kaplan said, referring to one of the high-energy outdoor activities he pursues, along with skateboarding and rock-climbing.

Thank you. Valhallalover1031 (talk) 19:32, 17 December 2021 (UTC)

References

Excerpt from inaccessible/paywalled sources to verify

The following sources are either not accessible online or are behind paywalls: Toronto Globe and Mail 1986, Billboard 1996, Billboard 1997, Los Angeles Times 1998, San Diego Union-Tribune 1999, Los Angeles Times 2000, Billboard 2011, Billboard 2012. (Please note some of these sentences are the same ones mentioned above in my previous post with sources for notability. Here are relevant excerpts:

1. Lead section, second sentence: He has managed numerous musical artists, including UB-40, Glen Campbell, Brian Setzer, and The Butthole Surfers.

Billboard 1999:

Having slogged through a morass of legal disputes for the past couple of years, the Butthole Surfers have found a new manager, negotiated their release from Capitol and signed a joint recording contract with Surfdog/Hollywood, become the center of an intense debate about ethics in the punk community, made a footnote in legal history by clarifying a gray area of copyright law, and reissued their back catalog on their own label, Latino Bugger Veil.

The new manager is Dave Kaplan, who also manages Brian Setzer and is president of Surfdog Records. "I met them in February or March," says Kaplan. "I don't know when it became official that we were working together. It was an evolutionary process. They don't easily welcome new people into their world, but I've always admired what they do. I think they're at a creative peak, on the verge of doing their greatest work. There's nobody else like them."

2. Lead section, first paragraph, fourth sentence: Kaplan’s producing credits include albums for Dave Stewart, Joss Stone, Glen Campbell, Brian Setzer, The Stray Cats, and Gary Hoey.

Billboard 2011:

Sometimes making an album doesn't have to be complicated, as Joss Stone discovered firsthand this spring. The British soul singer's fifth studio release - LPÌ, due in stores July 26 as the first release through her own Stone 'd Records and in partnership with indie Surfdog Records - was recorded in just one week at Blackbird Studios in Nashville.

3. Career section: second paragraph, first and second sentences: In 1985, he founded Dave Kaplan Management (DKM) to manage musicians. DKM’s first client was the reggae band UB-40.

Toronto Globe and Mail 1986:

Band manager Dave Kaplan said in an interview that it was the same story in Leningrad.

We fought this incredible battle, he said. Eventually, the band reckons, it won, getting audiences to dance in their seats and even the aisles.

4. Career section, fifth paragraph: In 1999, Kaplan became the manager for The Butthole Surfers, and signed the act to a joint recording deal with Surfdog and Hollywood Records.

Billboard 19999: Same as #1 above.

5. Career section, sixth paragraph, first sentence: Kaplan signed recording deals with jazz-pop artist Dan Hicks in 2000 and British soul singer Joss Stone in 2011 to co-produce her album LP1.

LA Times 2000:

Elvis Costello, Bette Midler, Rickie Lee Jones and Tom Waits all have done duets with veteran pop-swing-jazz artist Dan Hicks for his first album in many years, with Brian Setzer as a guest on guitar. The project was put together by Setzer's manager Dave Kaplan, a longtime Hicks fan who's been working on the project for three years. It will come out June 27 on Kaplan's Surfdog Records.

Billboard 2011:

Sometimes making an album doesn't have to be complicated, as Joss Stone discovered firsthand this spring. The British soul singer's fifth studio release - LPÌ, due in stores July 26 as the first release through her own Stone 'd Records and in partnership with indie Surfdog Records - was recorded in just one week at Blackbird Studios in Nashville.

[. . .]

"She had a creative impulse for this collection of songs and it wasn't driven by the typical strategy of an album cycle and touring and that kind of thing," Surfdog Records founder Dave Kaplan says. "It's a lot of fun to see somebody so confident in her decisions and just help them facilitate it. It's more like a thrill ride than a strategic day-to-day game plan."

6. Career section, eighth paragraph, first sentence: In 2012, Kaplan became co-manager of country singer Glen Campbell, who had just been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s Disease, and was the executive producer of his final album Ghost on the Canvas.

Billboard 2012: {Talk quote block|Surfdog Records founder/CEO Dave Kaplan already had a working knowledge of Glen Campbell when producer Julian Raymond approached him about releasing Campbell's final album, Ghost on the Canvas.

"Like most people, I knew the big media events of Glen - the hits, the ["Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour" TV] show, that kind of thing," Kaplan says.

But Kaplan quickly learned he had signed on for much more than an album release. "It evolved into this mission to educate people, to work the legend Glen Campbell and the icon Glen Campbell, not just a new record," he says. "There's so much there to appreciate and to expose people to that I didn't realize at first."

Kaplan and Surfdog entered the realm of the Rhinestone Cowboy at an interesting and poignant time. As Campbell prepares to receive a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award and perform (with Blake Shelton and the Band Perry) at the 54th Grammy Awards on Feb. 12, his battle with Alzheimer's disease is forcing him to bring down the curtain on an incredible career.}}

7. Charitable Activities section, first paragraph, first, second, and third sentences: Kaplan produced an ocean-themed music album titled “Music for Our Mother Ocean” (MOM), to benefit the Surfrider Foundation, an environmental non-profit focused on cleaning up beaches and the ocean. The album, which was released in 1996, included tracks by 20 different artists, including Pearl Jam, Brian Setzer, The Beastie Boys, Porno for Pyros, and The Ramones. Kaplan executive-produced a sequel MOM album in 1997, which featured artists including The Beach Boys, The Mighty Mighty Bosstones, and Pennywise.

San Diego Union-Tribune 1999:

Five years ago, Dave Kaplan moved Surfdog to Encinitas and started working with Pierce Flynn, the Surfrider Foundation's director, on an ocean-themed album to benefit Surfrider's conservation programs.

MOM took off, thanks to the generosity of ocean-loving musicians, notably Pearl Jam's Eddie Vedder, a surfer and former San Diegan. Eventually, more than 20 acts, the likes of Brian Setzer, the Ramones and Porno for Pyros, contributed to the first MOM, or (in Flynn's loose translation) Music for Our Mother Ocean.

Billboard 1996:

"This album was essentially conceived by a bunch of impassioned surfers saddened by the beaches and waters here," says Dave Kaplan, one of the driving forces behind "MOM," owner of Surfdog Records, and manager of Brian Setzer. "I lived in Venice Beach, and it took an hour to go some where you can surf, and it's getting progressively worse."

Kaplan says he wanted to make sure that "MOM," which loosely stands for "music for our mother ocean," stood out from other benefit albums by ensuring it was an "honest, soulful record that wasn't just slapped together for commercial value."

LA Times 1998:

"MOM," or "Music for Our Mother Ocean," is the title of two albums that since 1996 have raised nearly $400,000 for Surfrider. A third is in the works. Help on those projects also came from another Flynn surfing buddy: Surfdog Records owner Dave Kaplan. The San Diego producer often has joined Flynn on trips to meet with musicians. "It's very difficult for an outsider who hasn't been around music to be comfortable speaking to musicians," Kaplan says. Not so with Flynn. When the Surfrider leader made his pitch to the musicians, Kaplan recalls, "it was almost a slam dunk. He's oozing with spirituality and goodness."

Billboard 1997:

"The support was so overwhelming for the first one," says Kaplan, who executive-produced "MOM" and "MOM II" with Pierce Flynn, executive director of the Surfrider Foundation. "We got so many votes of confidence and support from artists. That, and the fact that it allowed for the single-largest contribution in Surfrider's history, made it a tremendous success."

8. Charitable Activities section, second paragraph, first sentence: He has also served on the board of directors for the Surfrider Foundation.

Billboard 1996:

Among the music-industry notables on the Surfrider Foundation board of directors are Kaplan, Farrell, Eddie Vedder, MTV Beach House executive producer Michael Bloom, Midnight Oil's Peter Garrett, Chris Isaak, members of Seven Mary Three, and the Beach Boys' Bruce Johnston.

9. Personal Life section, first paragraph: Kaplan and his family live in southern California. He is a surfing enthusiast.

Billboard 1996:

”This album was essentially conceived by a bunch of impassioned surfers saddened by the beaches and waters here," says Dave Kaplan, one of the driving forces behind "MOM," owner of Surfdog Records, and manager of Brian Setzer. "I lived in Venice Beach, and it took an hour to go somewhere you can surf, and it's getting progressively worse."

Thank you. Valhallalover1031 (talk) 19:36, 17 December 2021 (UTC)

References

Request Edit April 2022

I work for the record label run by the subject of this article. Dave Kaplan, a record producer and music executive working with acts like Eric Clapton and Brian Setzer. I wrote the draft and submitted it at AfC, disclosing my COI. It was approved March 26 by User:Robertsky. [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Dave_Kaplan_(music_executive)&diff=prev&oldid=1079339979%7Canother

Three days later a maintenance template was placed on this article “This article reads like a press release or a news article and is largely based on routine coverage or sensationalism” and asks for an expansion of the content to meet Wikipedia guidelines.

I believe it is likely or possible that the user who placed this template was unable to review a substantial amount of the citations because the sources are behind paywalls or not on the internet. This includes profiles and stories featuring Kaplan over three decades. I left a comment on the top of the article while it was in AfC noting that I have provided relevant excerpts for unavailable sources here on Talk: Talk:Dave Kaplan (music executive)#Excerpt from paywalled sources with a substantial focus on Dave Kaplan (Part 1), Talk:Dave Kaplan (music executive)#Excerpt from inaccessible/paywalled sources to verify

Naturally, AfC comments were removed when the article was brought live. So someone just looking at the article now would not see the text of all these cited sources, which make it clear that Kaplan’s sourcing extends beyond “routine coverage or sensationalism.”

Furthermore, I have gone to great lengths to maintain a NPOV with language and relevant content, sticking only to reliably sourced, neutral statements. I left out many events in Kaplan’s career because the sourcing was not good enough. I believe this article’s tone and choice of content is very much like Good Articles such as Bob Muglia and David Bednar (general manager) and not the promotional tone and content of an advertisement. WP:PROMO.

I’d therefore request that the maintenance template be removed. Valhallalover1031 (talk) 20:08, 8 April 2022 (UTC)

Courtesy ping @Herpetogenesis.

I will leave it up to the other editors to determine if the template should be removed. – robertsky (talk) 22:34, 8 April 2022 (UTC)

 Not done: After assessing the article, I have determined that the issues raised by the tag are valid. As a result, the template will not be removed. Quetstar (talk) 23:55, 11 April 2022 (UTC)

Discussion about further improvements to this article

@Robertsky: @Eagleash: @Robert McClenon: @Dalmationrotary: You all reviewed, worked on and/or approved this draft at WP:AfC 29, 2022. Shortly afterwards @Herpetogenesis: placed the warning flag currently at the top of the article. I’d like to see if I can make suggestions to address the issues that led to the warning flag.

As disclosed before, I’m an employee of Dave Kaplan’s record label, Surfdog Records. I have very carefully reviewed policies such as WP: Notability (people), WP:NPOV and WP: Reliable Sources and WP:COI.

Part of the warning box says there is language that sounds like a press release. To help fix that, the suggested edits below will cut down on excessive details and change the wording of some statements to ensure that the language is appropriately neutral. Thanks!

1.

Replace the first paragraph in the Career section, which currently reads as follows:

Kaplan joined the accounting firm Ernst & Whinney in California as an auditor in 1981. Kaplan disliked the firm’s rigid work culture, and left in 1983 to join a company that sold t-shirts bearing licensed images of pop-stars.

Change this to:

Kaplan joined the accounting firm Ernst & Whinney in California as an auditor in 1981, but left in 1983 because he disliked the firm’s rigid work culture.

Why this should be changed: Since Ernst & Young (now Ernst & Whinney) is an important enough firm to merit its own Wiki article, a brief mention that he was an auditor for them seems reasonable. (The language about his departure is in a profile of him, so that is also arguably important enough to deserve mention as well.) The information that he left the firm to join an unnamed company which made t-shirts might seem overly detailed to some, so it can be cut.

2.

Replace the third paragraph in the Career section. Here’s the current version of it:

Kaplan became the manager for Brian Setzer in 1992. As of 2021, Kaplan had produced or been the executive producer on 13 albums by Setzer and his two related bands, Brian Setzer Orchestra and Stray Cats.

Change that to:

Kaplan became the manager for Brian Setzer in 1992, and as of 2021, Kaplan had also produced or co-produced more than a dozen albums involving Setzer.

Why this should be changed: The warning box at the top of the article says that the content looks too much like a press release, and this paragraph looked like it could be cut down to keep the important facts with fewer details that might look too “PR-ish”, such as the names of Setzer’s various bands.

3.

Remove the 7th paragraph in the present Career section, which reads as follows:

Kaplan co-wrote two songs with the band Sprung Monkey in 2001, “Get A Taste” and “So Cal Loco (Party Like A Rock Star)”.

Why this should be removed: Minor songwriting credits like these don’t need a full sentence in the career section. It’s not mentioned in press coverage.

4.

Replace the 8th paragraph of the Career section. Here’s what it looks like now:

Kaplan was also the executive producer for “See You There” and for 'Live from the Troubadour, a posthumous Campbell album released in 2021.

Change this to:

Kaplan was also the producer of Campbell’s penultimate studio album, See You There.

Why this should be changed: Removes the posthumous Campbell album, which unlike See You There does not have its own Wikipedia page.

5.

Replace the two current paragraphs in the Charitable Activities section. Here’s what they look like now:

Kaplan produced an ocean-themed music album titled MOM: Music for Our Mother Ocean to benefit the Surfrider Foundation, an environmental non-profit focused on cleaning up beaches and the ocean. The album, which was released in 1996, included tracks by 20 different artists, including Pearl Jam, Brian Setzer, The Beastie Boys, Porno for Pyros, and The Ramones. Kaplan executive-produced a sequel MOM album in 1997, which featured artists including The Beach Boys, The Mighty Mighty Bosstones, and Pennywise. Kaplan was also the executive producer for a third MOM album, released in 1999.

He has also served on the board of directors for the Surfrider Foundation.

Replace them with the following:

Kaplan served on the board of directors for an environmental non-profit called the Surfrider Foundation. From 1996 through 1999, he also produced or co-produced three ocean-themed music albums to benefit the foundation, which included contributions from bands such as The Beach Boys, The Beastie Boys, and Pearl Jam.

Why this should be changed: This new version of the section condenses it to focus on the main highlights of Kaplan’s charitable activities and remove less important details.

Thanks for considering these ideas, and I hope that we will have a fruitful discussion about them. Valhallalover1031 (talk) 19:04, 17 January 2023 (UTC) Valhallalover1031 (talk) 19:04, 17 January 2023 (UTC)

References

Go ahead: I have reviewed these proposed changes and suggest that you go ahead and make the proposed changes to the page. Johannes (Talk) (Contribs) (Articles) 05:43, 4 May 2023 (UTC)

Johannes Thank you so much for taking the time to look over my request! I really appreciate your willingness to help. I have implemented the changes as you authorized. Thanks again! Valhallalover1031 (talk) 18:06, 25 May 2023 (UTC)

@Johannes Maximilian: Now that I’ve made the changes you authorized, I feel like the issues that were highlighted in the warning box have been addressed to a point where it should be okay to remove it. Do you agree that this is now a reasonable next step, and if so are you by any chance willing to remove the box from the article? Thanks very much! Valhallalover1031 (talk) 18:13, 12 July 2023 (UTC)