Mark Heard released 13 studio albums in his lifetime (as Mark Heard & Ideola) also 1 album with Infinity Plus Three), and produced and performed with many other artists as well, such as Daniel Amos, Sam Phillips, Pierce Pettis, Phil Keaggy, Vigilantes of Love, Peter Buck of R.E.M., John Austin, The Choir, Randy Stonehill and Michael Been of The Call. Heard produced part of Olivia Newton John's The Rumour, which also included a cover of Heard's "Big and Strong".
On July 4, 1992, Heard suffered a heart attack on stage while performing with Pierce Pettis and Kate Miner, at the Cornerstone Festival, near Chicago, Illinois. Heard finished his set and went to the hospital immediately afterwards. Two weeks after being released from the hospital, Heard had a cardiac arrest and died in August of 1992. Sadly, this happened at a time when Heard's musical career never looked brighter. Not only had he just released three albums (Dry Bones Dance in 1990, Second Hand in 1991, and Satellite Sky in 1992) that many hailed as his best work to date, but he had also just been included on a sampler from Windham Hill's High Street label.
Heard's early work was often marked by strong, poetic lyrics; but musically he lingered in a generic folk/folk-rock style. But Heard continued to experiment musically; his most extreme was perhaps the elaborately-produced electronic rock on the album Tribal Opera, which he released under the name iDEoLA. With Dry Bones Dance, however, Heard's music blossomed into an intense folk-rock fusion, marked by driving rhythms, virtuosic instrumentals, passionate vocals, and interwoven elements borrowed from styles such as Appalachian folk, zydeco, bluegrass, and country (though Heard's music is none of those). Second Hand returned to a more acoustic guitar-based folk sound, but retained the energy and creativity discovered through Dry Bones Dance. His final official album, Satellite Sky, was again more like the latter.
Mark Heard's lyrics are deeply grounded in a Christian view of the world, though explicitly so only half the time. He was often critical and had an eye for emotional pain and spiritual desolation, yet he remarkably avoided cynicism. When his lyrics turned to expressing hope or joy, they were powerful. As a poetic lyricist, Heard cultivated verbal sound (e.g. with internal rhyme), strong images and elaborate personae, while avoiding the cheap punch-line metaphors popular in much contemporary folk music. Some of his images, most notably "bones," can be found repeated and richly varied in their meaning across years of songwriting.
In 1994, many artists came together to record a tribute album called Strong Hand of Love. Artists lending their talents to the project included Victoria Williams, Chagall Guevara, Buddy Miller, Julie Miller, Daniel Amos, The Choir, Rich Mullins, Bruce Cockburn, and the Vigilantes of Love. The project was later reissued as a 2 CD set with additional tracks and retitled Orphans of God.
Another Good Lie
Mark Heard Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I could do anything
There were days of rock 'n roll
And lunar strolls and friendship rings
And baby I told myself
I'd follow my deepest dreams
Knowing if I did my best
Success would always follow me
It was another good lie
Coming down like a freezing rain
From a hot blue sky
Another good lie
Coming in like a crosstown hurricane on fire
Another good lie
Coming down on your Daddy's soul
'Til it made him old
Another good lie
Another good lie
Another good lie
Darling they all told me
That they would do anything
Climb the highest mountain
Swim the ocean
Do the damnedest things
And baby then they took my heart
And vanished into memory
Leaving it to time and circumstance
To come deliver me
It was another good lie
Coming down like a freezing rain
From a hot blue sky
Another good lie
Coming in like a crosstown hurricane on fire
Another good lie
Coming down on your Daddy's soul
'Til it made him old
Another good lie
Another good lie
Another good lie
Baby I'm just one man
And my world fell apart long ago
I guess I'm still in shock
It shouldn't have been like that
I guess I still hope for deliverance
Darling when I was your age
I could do anything
I could be a restless heart
A social force
Or just genuine
And baby don't our dreams die hard
In the ashes of destiny
I wish that I could lay to rest
The bitterness that keeps telling me
About another good lie
Coming down like a freezing rain
From a hot blue sky
Another good lie
Coming in like a crosstown hurricane on fire
Another good lie
Coming down on your Daddy's soul
'Til it made him old
Another good lie
Another good lie
Another good lie
The song "Another Good Lie" by Mark Heard paints the picture of a disillusioned and bitter man reflecting on the unrealistic promises of success and fulfillment that were made to him in his youth. He recalls a time when he believed that by following his dreams and aligning himself with good intentions, he would find success and happiness. But as he grew older, he experienced disappointment and came to see these promises as nothing more than "good lies." The lyrics suggest that these lies have a lasting impact, leading the singer to a state of bitterness and resentment. He wishes that he could let go of this bitterness but finds it difficult to do so.
The song's message is universal and relatable to many people who have experienced disappointment or disillusionment in their lives. It highlights the danger of unrealistic expectations and the importance of learning to accept life's ups and downs without losing hope.
Line by Line Meaning
Darling when I was your age
When I was your age, dear
I could do anything
I believed that I had the power to do anything
There were days of rock 'n roll
And lunar strolls and friendship rings
It was an era of music, adventure, and friendship
And baby I told myself
I'd follow my deepest dreams
Knowing if I did my best
Success would always follow me
I promised myself that I would pursue my dreams and, as long as I worked hard, I would achieve success
It was another good lie
Coming down like a freezing rain
From a hot blue sky
Another good lie
Coming in like a crosstown hurricane on fire
Another good lie
Coming down on your Daddy's soul
'Til it made him old
Another good lie
Another good lie
Another good lie
Those promises turned out to be just another lie that crashed in and destroyed everything - like freezing rain from a blue sky, a fiery hurricane, and it aged my father's soul
Darling they all told me
That they would do anything
Climb the highest mountain
Swim the ocean
Do the damnedest things
Others promised they would do anything, even impossible feats, for their dreams
And baby then they took my heart
And vanished into memory
Leaving it to time and circumstance
To come deliver me
But they only took my heart and left me at the mercy of fate and time
Baby I'm just one man
And my world fell apart long ago
I guess I'm still in shock
It shouldn't have been like that
I guess I still hope for deliverance
I acknowledge that I'm just one person, and my world has already crumbled. But part of me still hopes for a salvation.
And baby don't our dreams die hard
In the ashes of destiny
I wish that I could lay to rest
The bitterness that keeps telling me
Our dreams often die hard, crushed under the weight of the inevitable. I wish I could get rid of the bitterness that reminds me of this loss.
About another good lie
Coming down like a freezing rain
From a hot blue sky
Another good lie
Coming in like a crosstown hurricane on fire
Another good lie
Coming down on your Daddy's soul
'Til it made him old
Another good lie
Another good lie
Another good lie
It's a reminder of how those promises were just another lie that sounded good at the time, but ultimately left a trail of destruction
Contributed by Luke M. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Igloo Zoo
Imagine having all this talent and being so limited and underappreciated within the monster of Contemporary Christian Music Industry. It would make any artist crazy. Turning 50 soon and worked in my job for last 20 yrs and although in this SJW age, one never wants to admit being bitter and jaded and victimized, this song always reveals things I don't want to admit.
David Holdren
This song always brought tears to my eyes....it was his career in a nutshell.
Jim Bee
i really love Mark's music. He is able to touch something inside of me that i thought i had extinguished years ago.
MJ Harding
Great song. Too underrated, just like the man himself.