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.
Rise From the Ruins
Mark Heard Lyrics
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Nobody wishes to die
Everybody whiles away the interim time
Sworn to rise from the ruins by and by
The engines are droning with progress
The pistons are pounding out time
And it’s you and me caught in this juggernaut jaunt
Left to rise from the ruins down the line
We will roll like an old Chevrolet
The road to ruin is something to see
Hang on to the wheel
For the highway to hell needs chauffers
For the powers that be
Go and tell all your friends and relations
Go and say what ain’t easy to say
Go and give them some hope
That we might rock this boat
And rise from the ruins one day
Ever try to carry water in a basket
Ever try to carry fire in your hand
Ever try to take on the weight of the everyday freight
Til you find that you’re too weak to stand
Why so pale and wan, fond lover
Why so downcast and desperately sad
We can walk, we can talk
We ain’t yet pillars of salt
And we will rise from the ruins while we can
The lyrics to Mark Heard's song Rise From the Ruins express the struggle of the human condition - the fact that no one asks to be born, no one can avoid death, and everyone in between is simply trying to make the most of their time. The song speaks to the idea of progress - the engines droning and pistons pounding - and how in the midst of this fast-paced, overwhelming world, we are left to figure out how to rise from the ruins left behind.
The song's imagery is striking, painting a picture of rolling like an old Chevrolet down the road to ruin, hanging on to the wheel while the powers that be demand we drive towards hell. Heard's words capture the difficulty of carrying the weight of life's struggles, from trying to carry water in a basket to taking on the everyday freight that leaves us too weak to stand. Despite these obstacles, the song offers hope. It encourages listeners to share that hope with others, and to remember that as long as we can walk and talk, we can rise from the ruins of life.
Overall, Mark Heard's Rise From the Ruins offers a powerful message of perseverance in the midst of life's struggles. It encourages listeners to hold onto hope, to stand together, and to keep moving forward no matter what obstacles we may encounter.
Line by Line Meaning
Nobody asks to be born
No one has a choice of being born into this world
Nobody wishes to die
Everyone fears the inevitability of death
Everybody whiles away the interim time
We all pass time, waiting for the unknown future
Sworn to rise from the ruins by and by
We are committed to emerge stronger from any challenges thrown across our lives
The engines are droning with progress
Technological advancement is moving forward at a fast pace
The pistons are pounding out time
Machinery and equipment are constantly in motion and working to keep up with the advancements
And it’s you and me caught in this juggernaut jaunt
We are all part of the same race, trying to keep up with the fast-paced life
Left to rise from the ruins down the line
Our duty is to get back up and overcome any setbacks in life
We will roll like an old Chevrolet
We will persist through life's difficulties with the same resilience as an old Chevrolet that still runs
The road to ruin is something to see
The path that can lead one towards failure is often evident and observable
Hang on to the wheel
Keep your focus intact and do not let the distractions overwhelm you
For the highway to hell needs chauffers
Evil and difficult things need strong individuals to handle them with care and perseverance
For the powers that be
The people who are in positions of control and authority
Go and tell all your friends and relations
Spread awareness and hope among your social circle
Go and say what ain’t easy to say
Speak up for what is right, even if it is not popular or easy
Go and give them some hope
Provide optimism and encouragement to your friends and family, even during tough times
That we might rock this boat
We can challenge the status quo and bring about positive change
And rise from the ruins one day
We can face adversity and come out victorious
Ever try to carry water in a basket
Trying to achieve an impossible or overwhelming task
Ever try to carry fire in your hand
Attempting to handle a highly dangerous or destructive task that one cannot handle
Ever try to take on the weight of the everyday freight
The daily burdens of life can become overwhelming and challenging to handle
Til you find that you’re too weak to stand
Exhaustion and fatigue can cause us to feel incapable of proceeding
Why so pale and wan, fond lover
Questioning why one is feeling down despite being in love
Why so downcast and desperately sad
Asking why one is feeling overwhelmed and hopeless
We can walk, we can talk
We have the strength to keep going and communicate with others
We ain’t yet pillars of salt
We have not given up or become stagnant
And we will rise from the ruins while we can
We can still overcome our struggles and become stronger if we try now
Contributed by Evan D. Suggest a correction in the comments below.