Celtic harpist Lisa Lynne Franco began studying music as a child; initially attracted to folk sounds, she took up the guitar and mandolin, later playing bass in a local rock band. While enrolled at Hollywood's Musician's Institute of Technology, she concurrently enjoyed a thriving career as a session player; upon discovering the harp in 1985, Franco also formed a progressive rock outfit dubbed Bigger Than Blue. After landing a deal with the German label Innovative Communication, however, student visa problems forced the band to dissolve, so Franco instead played all the instruments on 1991's debut LP Bigger Than Blue. Three more efforts for the label - Romantic Dreams, My Way, and Silken Wings - followed while she formed a new group, Celestial Winds, which earned a significant following playing the boardwalk along Venice Beach.