Mark Heard

Last updated

Mark Heard
Mark Heard singer-songwriter in 1987.jpg
Mark Heard performs in 1987
Background information
Birth nameJohn Mark Heard III
Born(1951-12-16)December 16, 1951
Macon, Georgia, U.S.
DiedAugust 16, 1992(1992-08-16) (aged 40)
Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
GenresFolk rock
Occupation(s)Singer, songwriter, record producer
InstrumentsGuitar, voice, electric mandolin
Years active1970–1992
Labels

John Mark Heard III (December 16, 1951 – August 16, 1992) was an American record producer, folk rock singer and songwriter from Macon, Georgia.

Contents

Heard released sixteen albums, and produced or performed with many artists, including: Sam Phillips (aka Leslie Phillips), Pierce Pettis, Phil Keaggy, Vigilantes of Love, Peter Buck of R.E.M. (who co-produced VOL's album Killing Floor with Heard), The Choir, Randy Stonehill and Michael Been of The Call. Heard produced part of Olivia Newton-John's The Rumour (1988), which also included a cover of Heard's own "Big and Strong" (originally called "How to Grow Up Big and Strong").

Early life and music career

After graduating from the University of Georgia in 1974 with an ABJ (bachelor of arts in journalism) degree in television, Heard traveled to Switzerland to study at L'Abri under the influential evangelical Christian philosopher Francis Schaeffer. Singers Larry Norman and Randy Stonehill stumbled onto Mark one day playing his guitar. Because Norman and Stonehill expressed interest, Heard spent most of his spare time the next two months putting together a demo tape in a local studio with the help of the Pat Terry group (Pat Terry, Sonny Lallerstedt and Randy Bugg). Norman was so impressed by Heard's abilities that he soon signed him to his record label, Solid Rock Records. In 1977, Heard and his wife Janet moved to Glendale, California. He begin working on his Appalachian Melody album for the label, but would also maintain a close relationship with the people at the L'Abri for years. In 1980, Heard recorded and released Fingerprint on a Swiss label.

In 1981, Heard began a recording contract with Chris Christian's Home Sweet Home Records. Although Heard's sales did not attract attention from the major Christian labels, Christian felt Mark's music was unique, fresh and deserved to be heard. Christian funded his projects with no production oversight, which is what Heard wanted. His signing to the label was a departure from the commercial artists that Christian traditionally signed and produced on the Home Sweet Home label. Heard released five albums for the label: 1981's Stop the Dominoes , 1982's Victims of the Age , 1983's Eye of the Storm , 1984's Ashes and Light and 1985's Mosaics . The overall experience was not one that Heard enjoyed, partly due to his personal experiences with record company executives, and partly due to compromises he felt under pressure to make himself so that his songs were more marketable to Christian audiences.

In 1984, Heard began recording in his home studio, which he dubbed "Fingerprint Recorders", after the title of one of his earlier records. From that point on, his albums were largely made at home, with just a handful of friends and relatives lending a hand. In 1986, Heard decided to try something a little different and recorded the experimental Pop/Rock album for What? Records entitled Tribal Opera , under the name iDEoLA. When asked about the unusual name, Heard replied "It's not supposed to be mysterious or anything; I just put a band together and right now I happen to be the only one in it." Heard also directed a music video for the single of that album, "Is It Any Wonder".

With assistance from Dan Russell and Chuck Long, Fingerprint Records and studio were born. Heard began to produce albums for a number of artists including two albums for Randy Stonehill, Jacob's Trouble, Pierce Pettis and 1992's Vigilantes of Love album, Killing Floor, which he co-produced with R.E.M.'s Peter Buck. Stonehill's Until We Have Wings includes a song co-written by Heard, "Faithful", although the CD liner notes credit the song to Heard's pseudonym, Giovanni Audiori. In 1988, Heard collaborated with Randy Stonehill and other well known artists on Phil Keaggy and Sunday's Child . In addition to writing and performing credits, he helped with the engineering.

Heard returned to recording albums of his own in the early 1990s, with Dry Bones Dance . Fans and reviewers alike hailed the new release as one of the best of his career. He followed Dry Bones Dance with Second Hand in 1991, and Satellite Sky in 1992, which would turn out to be his final release.

Death

On July 4, 1992, Heard had a heart attack on stage while performing with Pierce Pettis and Kate Miner, at the Cornerstone Festival in Bushnell, IL, near Peoria. Heard finished his set and went to the hospital immediately afterwards. Two weeks after being released from the hospital, Heard went into cardiac arrest and died on August 16, 1992. [1] [2] Before Heard's death, he had been included on the Legacy II sampler from Windham Hill's High Street label, and was nearly finalizing a mainstream contract with Bruce Cockburn's label, True North Records in Canada. There was also interest from Sony's Columbia Records label for distribution in the US.

Tributes and influence

In 1993, Rich Mullins covered "How to Grow Up Big and Strong" on his A Liturgy, a Legacy, & a Ragamuffin Band . In 1994, many artists came together to record a tribute album called Strong Hand of Love. Artists lending their talents to the project included Phil Keaggy, Victoria Williams, Chagall Guevara, Buddy Miller, Julie Miller, Daniel Amos, The Choir and Bruce Cockburn. The project was later reissued as a double album set with additional tracks and re-titled Orphans of God . Cockburn frequently called Heard his favorite songwriter. He wrote and recorded a song dedicated to Heard for his Dart to the Heart album, "Closer to the Light". Daniel Amos dedicated their album MotorCycle to Heard in 1993, and The Swirling Eddies dedicated Zoom Daddy to Heard the same year. Julie Miller also wrote a song in tribute to Heard called "All My Tears" which has also been recorded by Jars of Clay, Emmylou Harris (studio and live versions) and Selah with Kim Hill on Bless the Broken Road: The Duets Album .

In 2000, a group of fans gathered together to help Fingerprint Records release Mystery Mind, the first collection of previously unreleased material from the songwriter. There were plans to release a full length collection that same year, but those plans never came to fruition.

In 2002, the Cornerstone Music Festival held a songwriting contest in honor of Heard. The following year, Paste magazine released Hammers and Nails, a CD of previously unreleased recordings by Heard. An authorized biography of the same name was also released by Cornerstone Press, written by Matthew T. Dickerson.

In September 2005, the Americana Music Association held its annual Americana Music Honors & Awards at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, Tennessee. The Song of the Year Award was presented to Mark Heard for "Worry Too Much", originally featured on Second Hand . Buddy Miller, who performed the track on Universal United House of Prayer , accepted the award on behalf of Heard. Miller also received the Album of the Year Award for Universal United House of Prayer.

In a June/July 2006 Paste magazine article (from the special collector's issue featuring the 100 Best Living Songwriters), Heard was remembered under the heading Wish You Were Here: "Mark Heard's lyrics are weighted with such a wry longing that they'll forever reflect a fresh turbulence."

Pierce Pettis and Ralston Bowles have covered a song by Mark Heard on each of their albums released since Heard's death. [3]

In 2017, an 18-song retrospective, Mark Heard: Treasure of the Broken Land, was released. It focuses on Heard's last three albums and features Rodney Crowell, Buddy Miller, Over the Rhine and others. Produced by Phil Madeira (a member of Emmylou Harris' backing band Red Dirt Boys), the album received notable attention from Rolling Stone magazine, [4] and Americana music magazine No Depression .

Discography

[5] [6] [7] [8] [9]

Studio albums

Spirit Records
Airborn Records
AB Records
Solid Rock
King's/Palmfrond Records
Home Sweet Home Records
What? Records
Fingerprint Records

Compilation albums

Home Sweet Home Records
Fingerprint Records
Solid Rock Records

Tribute albums

Videos

Related Research Articles

Terry Scott Taylor American singer-songwriter

Terry Scott Taylor is an American songwriter, record producer, writer and founding member of the bands Daniel Amos and The Swirling Eddies. Taylor is also a member of the roots and alternative music group, Lost Dogs. He is currently based in San Jose, California, U.S.

Julie Miller American singer-songwriter

Julie Anne Miller is a songwriter, singer, and recording artist living in Nashville, Tennessee. She married Buddy Miller in 1981. They sing and play on each other's solo projects and have recorded three duet albums.

Buddy Miller American singer-songwriter

Steven Paul "Buddy" Miller is an American singer, songwriter, musician, recording artist and producer, currently living in Nashville, Tennessee. Miller is married to and has recorded with singer-songwriter Julie Miller.

Phil Madeira American singer-songwriter

Philip Kamm Madeira is an American songwriter, producer, musician and singer. He was raised in Barrington, Rhode Island, and attended Taylor University, graduating in 1975. His songs have been recorded by The Civil Wars, Buddy Miller, Alison Krauss, Toby Keith, Ricky Skaggs, Bruce Hornsby, Keb' Mo', Garth Brooks, The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Cindy Morgan, Shawn Mullins, The North Mississippi Allstars. His co-writing partners include Will Kimbrough, Matraca Berg, Chuck Cannon, Cindy Morgan, Wayne Kirkpatrick, Gordon Kennedy, Keb' Mo', and Emmylou Harris. He lives in Nashville, Tennessee.

Phil Keaggy American acoustic and electric guitarist and vocalist

Philip Tyler Keaggy is an American acoustic and electric guitarist and vocalist who has released more than 55 albums and contributed to many more recordings in both the contemporary Christian music and mainstream markets. He is a seven-time recipient of the GMA Dove Award for Instrumental Album of the Year, and was twice nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Rock Gospel Album. He has frequently been listed as one of the world's top-two "finger-style" and "finger-picking" guitarists by Guitar Player Magazine readers' polls.

Randy Stonehill American songwriter

Randall Evan Stonehill is an American singer and songwriter from Stockton, California, best known as one of the pioneers of contemporary Christian music. His music is primarily folk rock in the style of James Taylor, but some of his albums have focused on new wave, pop, pop rock, roots rock, and children's music.

Pierce Pettis American singer-songwriter

Pierce Pettis is an American singer-songwriter from Fort Payne, Alabama.

Solid Rock Records is a record label started by Larry Norman. It was established in 1975 to distribute his work after he had been released by Capitol Records. Solid Rock had a distribution deal with Word Records until 1980.

Daniel Amos American rock band

Daniel Amos is an American Christian rock band formed in 1974 by Terry Scott Taylor on guitars and vocals, Marty Dieckmeyer on bass guitar, Steve Baxter on guitars and Jerry Chamberlain on lead guitars. The band currently consists of Taylor, guitarist Greg Flesch and drummer Ed McTaggart. The band has included keyboardist Mark Cook, drummer Alex MacDougall, bassist Tim Chandler, and keyboardist Rob Watson with sounds that experimented with country rock, rock, new wave, and alternative rock.

<i>Mosaics</i> (Mark Heard album) 1985 studio album by Mark Heard

Mosaics is an album by Mark Heard, released in 1985 on Home Sweet Home Records. According to the liner notes in Ashes and Light, this album was recorded first but delayed by the record company who wanted the less rock-oriented Ashes released first. Consequently, this was the first album recorded in Heard's own Fingerprint Recording Studio.

<i>Strong Hand of Love: A Tribute to Mark Heard</i> 1994 compilation album by Various artists

Strong Hand of Love: A Tribute to Mark Heard is a compilation of songs by various artists in tribute to songwriter, Mark Heard.

<i>Orphans of God</i> 1996 compilation album by Various Artists

Orphans of God is a 1996 two-CD compilation of songs performed by various artists in tribute to songwriter Mark Heard. Recorded and released after Heard's death in 1992, proceeds from the album benefit the Heard Family Fund. This album was listed at #25 in the book, CCM Presents: The 100 Greatest Albums in Christian Music.

Fingerprint Recorders was a recording studio owned by Mark Heard, where he recorded most of his own records. The studio was located in Montrose, California.

<i>Return to Paradise</i> (Randy Stonehill album) 1989 studio album by Randy Stonehill

Return to Paradise is an album by Randy Stonehill, released in 1989, on Myrrh Records. The title is a reference to Stonehill's earlier album, Welcome to Paradise.

Tom Howard was an American pianist, musical arranger and orchestral conductor.

<i>Celebrate This Heartbeat</i> 1984 studio album by Randy Stonehill

Celebrate This Heartbeat is an album by Randy Stonehill, released in 1984, on Myrrh Records.

Kate Miner is an American singer and songwriter.

Larry Norman discography

Recording since 1966, first as a lead singer for the group People! and then as a solo artist, Larry Norman is noted for his extensive career as well his attention to Christian subject matter. His music was released on both mainstream and independent labels, including his own Solid Rock Records. During his career his work appeared on over 100 albums, concert bootlegs, and compilations.

This is a listing of official releases by Phil Keaggy, an American acoustic and electric guitarist and vocalist.

Myrrh Records American record label

Myrrh Records was an American Christian music record label.

References

  1. ↑
  2. ↑ "Mark Heard". July 29, 2003.
  3. ↑ "Pierce Pettis Covers" Archived May 15, 2012, at the Wayback Machine . Retrieved August 4, 2012.
  4. ↑ "Hear Buddy Miller's Intense New Song from Mark Heard Tribute Album". Rolling Stone . April 24, 2017.
  5. ↑ "Mark Heard Albums and Discography". AllMusic . Retrieved July 17, 2022.
  6. ↑ "Mark Heard - Credits". AllMusic . Retrieved July 17, 2022.
  7. ↑ "Mark Heard Best Songs List: Top, New & Old". AllMusic . Retrieved July 17, 2022.
  8. ↑ "Mark Heard on Apple Music". Apple Music . Retrieved July 17, 2022.
  9. ↑ "Mark Heard - Spotify". Spotify . Retrieved July 17, 2022.
Awards
Preceded by AMA Song of the Year (Songwriter)
2005		Succeeded by
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.