Post by jrmugz on Oct 19, 2014 10:22:29 GMT
My CD pick for this week is Mark Heard, "Second Hand". It was released in 1991. He died a year later, at age 40.
Produced, recorded, and mixed by Mark Heard, it certainly ranks among one of the best acoustic singer-songwriter CDs I've ever heard.
Here is the first paragraph about him in Wikipedia:
"John Mark Heard (December 16, 1951 – August 16, 1992) was an American record producer, folk rock singer, and songwriter originally from Macon, Georgia, United States. Heard released 16 albums, and produced and performed with many other artists as well, such as Sam Phillips (a.k.a. Leslie 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, The Choir, Randy Stonehill 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" (originally called "How to Grow Up Big and Strong")."
Most people familiar with this album that I know, rank it among their favorites, and consider it to be one of the best albums they've heard.
For me, it seems like the lyrics are sometimes abstract, yet overall universal enough, so that I can find a way to relate them to my own life, kinda like the song "Running On Empty" by Jackson Browne, whatever he had in mind for himself, we can take it and try to make sense of our own life with it, etc.
Below are my comments on the songs. I mainly comment on the lyrics, since musically they all share similar laid back, tasteful, acoustic country-folkish arrangements, and since it is a singer-songwriter album in my book, maybe something like a Jim Croce or Gordon Lightfoot.
All songs written by Mark Heard, except where otherwise noted.
01. "Nod Over Coffee" - Great chorus, interesting lyrics, nice mandolin solo.
02. "Lonely Moon" - Mysterious story to nice arrangement. Very cool.
03. "Worry Too Much" - Very cool melody and profound lyric. I love the imagery in the verses. So much there.
04. "Look Over Your Shoulder" - Very nice arrangement. I love the line "You will weather well in a climate of love." Very profound and deep, like many lyrics on this CD.
05. "She Don't Have A Clue" - Nice arangement, lyrics remind me of how much we value the strong qualities in the people in our lives, though we don't express it to them.
06. "Talking In Circles" - One of the greatest choruses I've ever heard, instantly catchy and universal musically and lyrically.
07. "Love Is Not the Only Thing" - Beautiful and profound song. Seems like a realistic and humble perspective for dealing with difficult people and situations. It is a lyric that comes to mind often for me.
08. "I Just Wanna Get Warm" - Nice countryish arrangement that seems to be a yearning maybe to feel real, authentic, connected, etc.
09. "Another Good Lie" - Painfully realistic lyrics to his daughter, about how sometimes our dreams/relationships don't work out for all our hardest efforts.
10. "All Too Soon" - Reminds me how to cherish the good and more easygoing times, etc. because all too soon, summer is over, so to speak.
11. "It's Not Your Fault" - One word: "Ouch". My wife assures me this is my theme song, and that I might as well sing it all the time. And I have to agree. "It's not your fault, I'm just a jerk that's all."
12. "I'm Looking Through You" (written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney) - Nice country version of a Beatles classic, that I posted here before. :-)
13. "What Kind of Friend" - Nice reflective song about how good of a friend we would really be if the rubber met the road.
14. "The Ways Of Men" (written by Steve Padgett) - Nice cover song, that for me, helps me to humbly reflect on my frailty as a human being, and what we as mortal men and women are capable of, as far as damage we can cause, etc.
This is a CD that really strikes me for its craft, depth, and beauty. It seems like there is not one contrived, insincere, or disingenuous lyric on the whole thing, and the acoustic arrangements are perfect for the words.
Guess he must have had in mind it would be a words-oriented album, and in my book, he had great success with it. It seems like if someone ever wanted to, they could disect the lyrics forever, as every line seems so rich.
Here is the youtube link, looking forward to hearing everyone's feedback!
Jim
PS Here are the music credits for anyone interested.
Steve Hindalong: drums
David Raven: drums
Bill Batstone: acoustic bass guitar, electric bass guitar
Glen Holmen: standup bass, electric bass guitar
Fergus Jemison Marsh: Chapman stick
Mark Heard: acoustic and electric guitars, Hammond organ, vocals, accordion, mandolin, harmonica
Pam Dwinell-Miner: backing vocals
Greg Liesz: pedal steel guitar, dobro
David Baker: percussion
Doug Atwell: fiddle
Produced, recorded, and mixed by Mark Heard, it certainly ranks among one of the best acoustic singer-songwriter CDs I've ever heard.
Here is the first paragraph about him in Wikipedia:
"John Mark Heard (December 16, 1951 – August 16, 1992) was an American record producer, folk rock singer, and songwriter originally from Macon, Georgia, United States. Heard released 16 albums, and produced and performed with many other artists as well, such as Sam Phillips (a.k.a. Leslie 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, The Choir, Randy Stonehill 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" (originally called "How to Grow Up Big and Strong")."
Most people familiar with this album that I know, rank it among their favorites, and consider it to be one of the best albums they've heard.
For me, it seems like the lyrics are sometimes abstract, yet overall universal enough, so that I can find a way to relate them to my own life, kinda like the song "Running On Empty" by Jackson Browne, whatever he had in mind for himself, we can take it and try to make sense of our own life with it, etc.
Below are my comments on the songs. I mainly comment on the lyrics, since musically they all share similar laid back, tasteful, acoustic country-folkish arrangements, and since it is a singer-songwriter album in my book, maybe something like a Jim Croce or Gordon Lightfoot.
All songs written by Mark Heard, except where otherwise noted.
01. "Nod Over Coffee" - Great chorus, interesting lyrics, nice mandolin solo.
02. "Lonely Moon" - Mysterious story to nice arrangement. Very cool.
03. "Worry Too Much" - Very cool melody and profound lyric. I love the imagery in the verses. So much there.
04. "Look Over Your Shoulder" - Very nice arrangement. I love the line "You will weather well in a climate of love." Very profound and deep, like many lyrics on this CD.
05. "She Don't Have A Clue" - Nice arangement, lyrics remind me of how much we value the strong qualities in the people in our lives, though we don't express it to them.
06. "Talking In Circles" - One of the greatest choruses I've ever heard, instantly catchy and universal musically and lyrically.
07. "Love Is Not the Only Thing" - Beautiful and profound song. Seems like a realistic and humble perspective for dealing with difficult people and situations. It is a lyric that comes to mind often for me.
08. "I Just Wanna Get Warm" - Nice countryish arrangement that seems to be a yearning maybe to feel real, authentic, connected, etc.
09. "Another Good Lie" - Painfully realistic lyrics to his daughter, about how sometimes our dreams/relationships don't work out for all our hardest efforts.
10. "All Too Soon" - Reminds me how to cherish the good and more easygoing times, etc. because all too soon, summer is over, so to speak.
11. "It's Not Your Fault" - One word: "Ouch". My wife assures me this is my theme song, and that I might as well sing it all the time. And I have to agree. "It's not your fault, I'm just a jerk that's all."
12. "I'm Looking Through You" (written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney) - Nice country version of a Beatles classic, that I posted here before. :-)
13. "What Kind of Friend" - Nice reflective song about how good of a friend we would really be if the rubber met the road.
14. "The Ways Of Men" (written by Steve Padgett) - Nice cover song, that for me, helps me to humbly reflect on my frailty as a human being, and what we as mortal men and women are capable of, as far as damage we can cause, etc.
This is a CD that really strikes me for its craft, depth, and beauty. It seems like there is not one contrived, insincere, or disingenuous lyric on the whole thing, and the acoustic arrangements are perfect for the words.
Guess he must have had in mind it would be a words-oriented album, and in my book, he had great success with it. It seems like if someone ever wanted to, they could disect the lyrics forever, as every line seems so rich.
Here is the youtube link, looking forward to hearing everyone's feedback!
Jim
PS Here are the music credits for anyone interested.
Steve Hindalong: drums
David Raven: drums
Bill Batstone: acoustic bass guitar, electric bass guitar
Glen Holmen: standup bass, electric bass guitar
Fergus Jemison Marsh: Chapman stick
Mark Heard: acoustic and electric guitars, Hammond organ, vocals, accordion, mandolin, harmonica
Pam Dwinell-Miner: backing vocals
Greg Liesz: pedal steel guitar, dobro
David Baker: percussion
Doug Atwell: fiddle