David Haerle grew up surrounded by music and the music business. His father, Martin, emigrated from Germany to pursue a dream of working in the country music industry and co-founded the independent label CMH Records, setting up shop in the garage and side room of the family home in Los Angeles. David’s maternal grandparents owned the first full time country music radio station in Nashville, WENO, with their partner Cal Young. The King of Country Music himself, Roy Acuff, took David onstage at the Grand Ole’ Opry before a full house when he was 9 years of age.
As David’s own tastes developed, he and his dad would have “listening sessions” where they’d play each other their favorite records on the family’s Hi Fi. Martin’s were usually country. For David, it was rock, captivated by David Bowie and by guitar heroes he wanted to emulate. Players such as Toni Iommi, Eddie Van Halen, Ted Nugent, Frank Zappa and Jimi Hendrix.
He got his first guitar, a Fender Stratocaster, around age 13, along with a Fender Deluxe Reverb amp. David played lead guitar in the rock band Four Dudes Jammin’ followed by a stint in Paradise Drive, an all original alternative rock/new wave band which played some of the noted clubs of ‘80’s Los Angeles, such as Club Lingerie and Club 88.
In the late 1980’s he became a music agent at International Creative Management. Then his father, Martin, passed away suddenly. David took over the family business and has served as president of CMH Records for the past 29 years.
In 2011, he decided to record and release his first full length album. He began in earnest and the project would ultimate take him roughly 7 years to finish. Garden of Edendale was released in the summer of 2018. His second album, Death Valley, is slated for release on May 8th.
Today Glide is excited to premiere the video for David’s song “Edendale,” a clear standout amongst the album’s fifteen tracks. Bringing to mind the soft-spoken folk of Bill Callahan, “Edendale” is an a sunny morsel of acoustic folk that reflects the warm weather and blue skies of the Los Angeles neighborhood it is based on. We see David strumming his guitar casually in front of a fountain as he sings an ode to the neighborhood, and this is intercut with peaceful scenes from that very same neighborhood. It is enlightening and soothing to see this footage accompanying a peaceful song during a time when most of us are stuck inside away from the people and places we love.
David describes the inspiration behind “Edendale”:
“Edendale is the historic name for the section of L.A. that is now Silver Lake, Los Feliz and Echo Park. I began living in this area at the age of 3. For me, Edendale isn’t just the physical place but a state of mind. A personal Eden. It’s that internal space in our head and heart where we find peace. The song questions how we often equate achievement, approval or winning, with happiness and security. I think it’s always a good idea to question any inner belief that goes something like, ‘I’ll be happy when/if…’ or ‘I can relax and be at peace when/if…’ Nothing is certain in this world, so learning to accept uncertainty is a real blessing. Sometimes there is a price to be paid for the choices we make. Is it worth it? Another good question to ask. In the song’s chorus, I’m referring to selling our peace of mind in exchange for false beliefs about the true nature of happiness and contentment. Here’s the good news: if we find that we’ve gotten away from our Edendale, we’re welcome back anytime we want.”
WATCH:
Death Valley out on May 8th. For more music and info visit davidhaerle.com.
Photo credit: Jenna Schoenefeld
