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.
Faces in Cabs
Mark Heard Lyrics
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Known only to themselves and God
Come and go and play the cameo
They're just faces in cabs
All the hearts that are gonna break today
All the lovers who won't come home tonight
Nobody feels their dynamite
They're just faces in the cabs-so I've been told
Just faces in the cabs-the masses out there
Just faces in cabs-anonymous souls
Somebody cries the tears of tragedy
Somebody cries the tears of joy today
Nobody knows exactly what to say
About the faces in cabs
Ten million in freshly dug graves
Ten thousand who will die by noon today
Four billion who will follow soon
They're just faces in cabs
They're just faces in the cabs-so I've been told
Just faces in the cabs-the masses out there
Just faces in cabs-anonymous souls
All the heathen in Africa
All the heathen in West L.A. today
All of raging humanity
Is just faces in cabs
They're just faces in the cabs-so I've been told
Just faces in the cabs-the masses out there
Just faces in cabs-anonymous souls
The song "Faces in Cabs" by Mark Heard discusses the fleeting nature of human life and the anonymity that comes with being just one face among a crowd of faces. Heard suggests that our individual experiences and emotions are often overlooked or forgotten in the larger picture of the world. He mentions hypothetical mortal beings who are known only to themselves and God, emphasizing that each person's life is unique and sacred despite their lack of recognition in society.
The song then focuses on the various struggles and experiences that people face, from heartbreak to tragedy and joy. Heard highlights the fact that while these experiences may be profound and deeply felt by those going through them, they often go unnoticed or unremarked upon by others. He ends the song by listing off the staggering number of people who will die soon, emphasizing the overwhelming nature of human mortality.
Overall, "Faces in Cabs" is a contemplation of the human condition and the ways in which we navigate our brief and often anonymous existence in the world.
Line by Line Meaning
Hypothetical mortal beings
Imaginary people who are bound to die someday
Known only to themselves and God
Only they and God are aware of their existence and life
Come and go and play the cameo
People appear and disappear quickly, playing a small role in life's grand scheme
They're just faces in cabs
People are nothing but anonymous passengers in cabs
All the hearts that are gonna break today
Countless hearts that will shatter today
All the lovers who won't come home tonight
Lovers who won't make it back home tonight
Nobody feels their dynamite
No one experiences the impact of their pain
They're just faces in cabs
People are mere unknown faces in cabs
Just faces in the cabs-so I've been told
People are only faces in cabs according to what he's been told
Just faces in the cabs-the masses out there
People in cabs are just part of the crowd
Just faces in cabs-anonymous souls
They are unknown souls on the streets
Somebody cries the tears of tragedy
Someone mourns a tragic loss
Somebody cries the tears of joy today
Someone is overwhelmed with happiness today
Nobody knows exactly what to say
Words fail to express the emotions of the moments
About the faces in cabs
Regarding the unknown faces in cabs
Ten million in freshly dug graves
Ten million people have just been buried
Ten thousand who will die by noon today
Ten thousand people will lose their lives before noon today
Four billion who will follow soon
Four billion more will follow on the same path
They're just faces in cabs
People are nothing but anonymous passengers in cabs
All the heathen in Africa
People who are not followers of a particular religion in Africa
All the heathen in West L.A. today
People who are not followers of a particular religion in West L.A. today
All of raging humanity
All of humanity that is raging with emotions
Is just faces in cabs
All of them are unknown passengers in cabs
Just faces in the cabs-so I've been told
People are only faces in cabs according to what he's been told
Just faces in the cabs-the masses out there
People in cabs are just part of the crowd
Just faces in cabs-anonymous souls
They are unknown souls on the streets
Contributed by Grace A. Suggest a correction in the comments below.