John Mark Heard (1951-1992) was a record producer, singer, and songwriter o… Read Full Bio ↴John Mark Heard (1951-1992) was a record producer, singer, and songwriter originally from Macon, Georgia.

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.

To See Your Face
Mark Heard Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

If I ever get to see your face
And if you will spare me
I know that my allegiance to the human race
Will not ensnare me

If I ever get to know your mind
And I survive it
I'm sure that I will leave a way of life behind

I won't revive it

Lord, you know I need your love so bad
I hardly even have the strength
To take Your hand

If I ever set to hear Your voice
And I can take it
I'm certain that I will listen
To the better choice
And I will make it

Lord, you know I need your love so bad
I hardly even have the strength
To take Your hand

If I ever get to see your face
And if you will spare me

I know that my allegiance to the human race
Will not ensnare me

Overall Meaning

The song "To See Your Face" by Mark Heard is a contemplation about the possibility of encountering God. The lyrics express a deep longing to know God in a personal and meaningful way, but also acknowledge the difficulty and challenge of such an encounter. The first verse explores the fear of being trapped by the human race, and the hope that knowing God would liberate the singer from the constraints of society. The second verse speaks to the idea of leaving behind a way of life that has been destructive or undesirable, with the hope of finding a more fulfilling alternative through God. The chorus reflects the singer's desperation for God's love and guidance, recognizing their frailty and need for assistance. The final verse returns to the theme of encountering God, but with a sense of confidence that the singer would be able to recognize and follow the right path.

Line by Line Meaning

If I ever get to see your face
If I have a chance to meet you in person

And if you will spare me
Assuming you are willing to give me a chance

I know that my allegiance to the human race
My loyalty to people

Will not ensnare me
Will not trap me or keep me from seeking you

If I ever get to know your mind
If I can understand your thoughts and feelings

And I survive it
Assuming I can handle the depth of your knowledge and wisdom

I'm sure that I will leave a way of life behind
I know that encountering you will require me to let go of my current way of living

I won't revive it
I won't go back to my old way of living

Lord, you know I need your love so bad
You know how much I need your love

I hardly even have the strength
I am weak and need your help

To take Your hand
To accept your guidance and love in my life