BILL DARE
Bill has had a life long passion for music, playing guitar, drums and keyboards in various bands for many years. Once a member, songwriter, and producer of Family Rico signed to the late great Stiff Records.
He shares his time as a musician with his “day job” as a designer/illustrator and has been lucky enough to combine both music and design, having been commissioned by Paul McCartney, The Rolling Stones,
Barclay James Harvest and The Strawbs to produce design work.
Bill is also a very proud member of the show business charity organisation
The Grand Order Of Water Rats.
After originally training as an actor, Kaplan soon found himself appearing in major television, film and West End theatre productions such as “Oiver”, “Blitz” and “Bye Bye Birdie“, as well as playing the coveted role of ‘Puck’ at Covent Garden in Benjamin Britten’s opera “A Midsummer Night’s Dream”. Kaplan also appeared as ‘Henry’ in the original BBC television series “Just William”. Whilst appearing at Covent Garden and playing ‘Billy’ the Grandson in the radio series “Mrs Dales Diary”, Kaplan wrote and recorded ‘Do You Believe In Magic’, his first single that got into the lower end of the pop music charts. by now Kaplan had decided that the thing he most wanted to do was enter the music business, this he did by getting a job working for Dick James music, publishers of the Beatles and Elton john.
Kaplan worked at Dick James music for eight years starting as a dub-cutter in DJM studio’s before soon becoming an in house sound engineer and then A&R manager at DJM records. During this time Kaplan worked with many established acts including Elton John and Joe Cocker.
After leaving DJM, Kaplan concentrated on record production, music publishing, writing and management and was responsible for launching the successful career of ‘Judie Tzuke’ with the release of the major world hit, “Stay With Me Till Dawn”.
Kaplan had a hit as a performer with ‘Chalk Dust’ by ‘the brat’ a send up of tennis star John Mcenroe and as a producer with ‘Listen To The Buddha’ by reggae group ‘OZO’. as a writer Kaplan has had his songs recorded by ‘Lulu’, ‘Geno Washington’, ‘Lance Ellington’ and the Australian singing star ‘Karan Knowles'. and in 1994 Kaplan won the ‘British Academy of Song Writers Composers and Authors (BASCA) award for ‘Best British song at the Cavan International song festival with his song ‘You Will Find Me There, which he also performed. He has recently had his songs recorded by Wyclef Jean, and L.L. Cool J and 50 cents
Kaplan also produces show’s and still performs himself. in recent years he has produced and performed in three Royal Gala shows at the Theatre Royal Windsor for the Prince Philip trust fund in the presence of HRH The Duke Of Edinburgh.
Kaplan is also a very proud member of the show business charity organisation
The Grand Order Of Water Rats.
And honoured to have been The King Rat for 2006/2007 and 2008
KAPLAN KAYE