Daniel Earl "Dan" Hartman (December 8, 1950—March 22, 1994) was an American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 singer, songwriter

Songwriter

A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...

 and record producer

Record producer

A record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...

, best known for such songs as: "Free Ride

Free Ride (song)

Free Ride is a song written by Dan Hartman and performed by The Edgar Winter Group. The single, engineered by Jim Reeves, was a top 20 U.S. hit in 1973, hitting number 14 on the Billboard Hot 100 Chart. The song is sometimes mistakenly attributed to The Doobie Brothers or Boston, perhaps because of...

", "I Can Dream About You

I Can Dream About You

"I Can Dream About You" is a song performed by Dan Hartman on the soundtrack album Streets of Fire from the movie of the same name. Originally released in 1984 as a single off Hartman's album I Can Dream About You, it reached #6 on the Billboard Hot 100. The song was performed by Winston Ford in...

", "Instant Replay

Instant Replay (song)

"Instant Replay" is a disco song performed by Dan Hartman from the album of the same name. All the tracks on Hartman's album topped the US Dance Chart for five weeks. It reached number 29 on the Billboard Hot 100 pop singles chart, while topping out on the R&B chart at number 44. In the UK, the...

", "Love Sensation

Love Sensation

"Love Sensation" is the title of a 1980 song performed by American R&B singer Loleatta Holloway, taken from her album of the same name. The song was produced and written by Dan Hartman, arranged by Norman Harris, and mixed by Tom Moulton. It was a hit on the U.S...

", and "Relight My Fire

Relight My Fire

"Relight My Fire" is a popular song which was written and released by Dan Hartman in 1979, when it topped the U.S. dance-music charts for six weeks...

", all of which had world-wide success.
Born in Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania

The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...

's capital, Harrisburg, Dan Hartman joined, with his brother Dave, his first band, The Legends, at the age of 13. He played keyboards and wrote much of the band's music, but despite the release of a number of recordings, none turned out to be hits.