Mark Heard
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John Mark Heard (1951-1992) was a record producer, singer, and songwriter originally from Macon, Georgia.
Mark Heard released 16 records in his lifetime, and produced and performed with many other artists as well, such as Sam Phillips, Pierce Pettis, Phil Keaggy, Vigilantes of Love, Peter Buck of R.E.M. (who co-produced VOL's album Killing Floor with Heard), John Austin and Michael Been of The Call. Heard produced part of Olivia Newton-John's The Rumor, which also included a cover of Heard's own "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. Shortly after being released from the hospital two weeks later, Heard had a cardiac arrest and died in August of 1992.
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.
In 2003, Cornerstone Press, a company which is owned by the same people that organize the Cornerstone festival, published an authorized biography of Heard called Hammers and Nails. A collection of previously unreleased demos was also released by Paste Music under the same title.
Discography
- Setting Yesterday Free with Infinity+3, 1972 album
- Mark Heard, 1975 album
- On Turning To Dust, 1978 album (Reissue of "Mark Heard)
- Appalachian Melody, 1979 album
- Fingerprint, 1980 album
- Stop the Dominoes, 1981 album
- Victims of the Age, 1982 album
- Eye of the Storm, 1983 album
- Ashes and Light, 1984 album
- Mosaics, 1985 album
- Tribal Opera, 1987 album (as iDEoLA)
- Dry Bones Dance, 1990 album
- Second Hand, 1991 album
- Satellite Sky, 1992 album
- High Noon, 1993 "best of" album
- Strong Hand of Love: A Tribute to Mark Heard, Various Artists 1994 tribute album
- Orphans of God: A Tribute to Mark Heard, Various Artists 1996 tribute album
- Mystery Mind, 2000 album
- Hammers and Nails, 2003 collection of previously unreleased demos
External links
- Mark Heard website (http://mh.rru.com/)
- Mark Heard lyrics project (http://mhlp.rru.com/)
- The Mark Heard Tribute Project (http://www.markheard.net/)
- Mark Heard MusicZone (http://launch.groups.yahoo.com/group/markheardmusiczone/) Yahoo!Groups