In an interview snippet from Portzline (2014), Hartman stated that he started producing at an early age:“I started producing before I even joined the Legends—around 1962... I produced some local R&B, rock and gospel acts at Baldwin Sound in Mechanicsburg . People would hear what I'd done on someone else's record and call me up and ask if I'd produce them, too. I even wrote and recorded an advertising jingle for Sutliff Chevrolet out on Paxton Street when I was 16. So it's always been something that I could fall back on throughout my career--to keep my mind going, to keep me musically inspired, and to keep me moving without having to make statements of my own…”Upon launching a solo career in 1976, he released a promotional album titled "Who Is Dan Hartman and Why Is Everyone Saying Wonderful Things About Him?" It was a compilation disc including songs from Johnny Winter and the Edgar Winter Group. His second release, "Images", was his first true album and featured ex-Edgar Winter Group members Edgar Winter, Ronnie Montrose and Rick Derringer and guests Clarence Clemons and Randy Brecker.