Ashes and Light

Ashes and Light
Studio album by Mark Heard
Released	1984
Recorded	Fingerprint Recorders Montrose, California
Genre	Folk/rock
Label	Home Sweet Home
Producer	Mark Heard
Mark Heard chronology
Eye of the Storm (1984) Ashes and Light (1984) Mosaics (1985)

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic	[1]

Ashes and Light is an album by Mark Heard, released in 1984 on Home Sweet Home Records. According to the liner notes, Heard recorded Mosaics first, but the record company wanted this album released first.

The cover says, "This album is dedicated to the memory of Francis A. Schaeffer, whose love for truth and whose understanding of the arts has helped me more than I can say, in my desire to interweave the two."

Track listing

All songs written by Mark Heard, except "Threw It Away" written by Mark Heard and Pat Terry.

Side one

1. "The Winds Of Time" - 3:59
2. "True Confessions" - 3:31
3. "I Know What It's Like To Be Loved" - 3:38
4. "Washed To the Sea" - 3:23
5. "We Believe So Well" - 3:34

Side two

1. "Straw Men" - 4:01
2. "Age Of the Broken Heart" - 4:16
3. "Can't See Light" - 4:59
4. "Threw It Away" - 4:06
5. "In Spite Of Himself" - 3:09

The band

• Mark Heard: acoustic guitars, electric 6- and 12-string guitars, slide guitars, synthesizer on "True Confessions", bass guitar on "Washed To The Sea" and "Threw It Away", harmonica, accordion, vocals
• Dave McSparran: drums
• Bill Batstone: bass guitar
• Carl Pickhardt: Hammond organ
• David Mansfield: fiddle, dobro, lead guitar on "Age Of The Broken Heart"
• Pat Terry: electric guitar on "Washed To The Sea", acoustic guitar on "Threw It Away"; synthesizer on "Straw Men", "We Believe So Well" and "In Spite Of Himself", general camaraderie and comic relief
• Tom Howard: synthesizer on "Can't See Light", "I Know What It's Like To Be Loved" and "We Believe So Well"
• Harry Stinson: percussion
• Background vocals by Mark Heard, Dave de Coup-Crank and Dori Howard

Production notes

• Written, produced and arranged by Mark Heard
• Engineered and mixed by Mark Heard at Fingerprint Recorders, Montrose, California
• Assistant engineer on basic tracks: Dan Reed
• Punch-ins by Mylo Carter, Janet Heard, Pat Terry, Tim Alderson and Dave de Coup-Crank
• Cover photography and artwork by Stewart Ivester
• Art director: Tim Alderson
• Cover concept by Stewart Ivester and Mark Heard

References

1. Allmusic review