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.
Waiting for a Reason
Mark Heard Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
With a sense of injustice
Not unlike the Russians’
Each time he shoots from the heart
He holds his breath
And waits for repercussions
He’d like to trust someone
He’d like to love someone
Waiting for a reason
He fills his Freudian pools
With crocodile tears
Brought on my nervous leisure
He kills his lovers with thoughts
Suspecting the worst
He cannot take the pressure
He’d like to trust someone
He’d like to love someone
But he’s waiting, waiting
Waiting for a reason
He finds no mercy
And he’s lost in the crowd
With an armored heart of metal
He finds he’s running out
Of odd-numbered daisies
From which to pull the petals
He’d like to trust someone
He’d like to love someone
But he’s waiting, waiting
Waiting for a reason
The song "Waiting for a Reason" by Mark Heard explores the themes of trust, love, and the fear of vulnerability. The singer of the song bears the scars of his childhood and has a sense of injustice, much like the Russians who shoot from the heart without knowing the repercussions. He wants to trust someone and love someone but is constantly waiting for a reason to do so, perhaps because he is afraid of being hurt or rejected.
The next verse describes how the singer fills his "Freudian pools" with crocodile tears, suggesting that he is not honest with himself about his emotions or fears. He suspects the worst in his lovers and cannot handle the pressure of vulnerability, leading him to kill his chances at love before they even begin. The imagery of odd-numbered daisies from which to pull petals suggests that he has exhausted all of his options and is running out of hope that he will find someone to trust and love.
Overall, Heard's lyrics paint a picture of a person who has experienced trauma and is struggling to connect with others because of their fear of vulnerability. The singer's actions and mindset are self-defeating, but they are grounded in real emotions and experiences that many people can relate to.
Line by Line Meaning
He bears his childhood scars
He carries emotional wounds from his upbringing
With a sense of injustice
He feels that his childhood was unfair or wrong in some way
Not unlike the Russians’
This feeling of injustice is similar to that experienced by people from a particular country
Each time he shoots from the heart
Every time he expresses something deeply personal or emotional
He holds his breath
He waits anxiously for the response
And waits for repercussions
He is anticipating negative consequences
He’d like to trust someone
He wishes he could confide in and rely on someone
He’d like to love someone
He wants to form a close emotional bond with someone
But he’s waiting, waiting
He is hesitant or reluctant to do so
Waiting for a reason
He is looking for some motivating or compelling factor to take that step
He fills his Freudian pools
He is indulging in deep, therapeutic introspection
With crocodile tears
He is crying insincerely or for show
Brought on my nervous leisure
This emotional exploration is triggered by anxiety or restlessness
He kills his lovers with thoughts
He destroys romantic relationships in his mind, suspecting them of wrongdoing
Suspecting the worst
He is pessimistic in his outlook and expects the worst outcomes
He cannot take the pressure
He is overwhelmed by the emotional strain and stress
He finds no mercy
He is unable to find compassion or forgiveness
And he’s lost in the crowd
He feels disconnected or alienated from others
With an armored heart of metal
He has built an emotional barrier or defense mechanism
He finds he’s running out
He is running low or scarce
Of odd-numbered daisies
He is losing the ability to make arbitrary decisions based on chance
From which to pull the petals
He is losing the ability to rely on chance to make decisions about his relationships
Contributed by Abigail B. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@seranadesongs
This album, to me, is by far his BEST CD! This CD was a masterpiece in every way. In lyrics, composition, and production. He is definitely missed. Thank you brother Mark!
@allthings2allmen
I bought this album fresh off the shelf when it was released. I had not listened to Mark before but was familiar with his name from other bands album credits..(the Choir for one) I LOVED his energy and style and writing from then...I was only a sophomore in high school, but I knew this was GOLD!
@icewolfbc
I agree with seranadesongs. I have to get this album. It's awesome. I've always thought so. Probably his best.