Daniel Lars was born and grew up in San Francisco the first 15 years of his life. Music was deeply rooted in his blood at the very young age of 4.
D Lars: "My dad was sometimes up till the middle of the night playing stacks of records from The Beatles, Big Band, Classical, Jazz, Elvis, odd Country artist. My oldest brothers were listening heavily to '60s Rock/Acid Rock, when that whole wave of music called Psychedelic hit the San Francisco Bay Area, back in late '65/ early '66."
One Saturday morning Daniel had the pleasure to see the very first cartoon episode of The Beatles Cartoon Series.
D Lars: "When I saw John Lennon playing and singing along with the other three lads, pointed to the t.v. (John Lennon) expressing to my dad, that's what I want to do when I grow up. Still find myself in total disbelief in regards to how John Lennon was murdered on December 8th 1980."
Daniel Lars had first picked up a very cheap guitar at the age of 14, but lost interest very fast.
D Lars: "Learning the guitar at that time was too tough for me because of the environment I was living in. I'd much rather be going to concerts with my best friend in the city back then, partying, escaping from reality."
Daniel Lars moved out of San Francisco 20 miles south along the coast (Pacifica, Ca.) with his family, when he turned 15. It gave him and his brothers a chance to slow down and enjoy a much better town. "The drugs and partying scene was still around, but it was much more safe and a better environment to grow up in. The people that were into
partying were much more mellower and more heavily into
Rock & Roll music/concerts. The freedom we all had growing up as teenagers back then...what an incredible fond memory!"
Two years later when Daniel Lars turned 17, he had bought another copy guitar to try and start really giving it a shot again. During that following year, he had
saved up enough money to buy a Gibson SG guitar a week before his 18th birthday. The next two years he again struggled, but stayed with it up until he turned 20.
"When I was 17, had given it another try. Two friends I met at school were really good, it pushed me to get into it initially. But the next three years were still a struggle until I turned 20, because I was a professional freelance photographer. A few months before I had turned 21, went through some heavy changes/events that lead me completely into obsession playing my guitar/music all the time.
That was also when I decided to do this the rest of my life, and things started to click. When I turned 23, completely gave up my photography career, sold all my camera gear. Had really progressed/advanced the following years to come, from all the devotion.
The guitar became an extension of my body, heart, & soul. Never looked back since."
From the ages of 21 - 24 Daniel Lars had formed a band with his musical brother Fred Lars, who plays bass and harmonica (one song) his debut cd; Long Gone - Beyond Time.
"Fred and I have been playing off and on for over 20 years, we have a good musical connection with each other. Back in the early days, we were pretty progressive, intense, original, & unique for a power trio called Monarch III." At the age of 25 Daniel Lars had formed a new power trio called "Third Eye," with William Mitchell (Bass...he's now the recording engineer for Neil Young), and Tony Cross (Drums), which went strong for a year. The following years he had short stints with various groups, and worked mainly on home / studio recordings the next 12 years. "I really love the creativity that comes out of working in the recording studio, also love the energy between the audience that happens at live shows. For a while really didn't miss performing when recording all the time."
Daniel Lars started working in a major recording studio from 1997 to 2000. From 2001 to 2003 Daniel had broken away from the producer he no longer works with, built his own 8 track analog recording studio in which he currently records and writes. "Right around the time I stopped working with my (ex) producer, had a year of some heavy lessons/ hard knocks I went through, as all people do in their own way. Went into a deep state of hibernating in my recording studio the following two years, in which the
Long Gone project had come about. It helped keep me focused on the things that really are important from the things that aren't really all that important in my life." Daniel Lars
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