Andersen belonged, in the early sixties, together with Phil Ochs and Bob Dylan, to the Greenwich Village folkscene in New York. His best-known songs from that time are “Violets of Dawn,” “Come to My Bedside” and “Thirsty Boots” (the latter was recorded by Judy Collins and several others). In 1966, he made his debut at the Newport Folk Festival and that same year he starred in the Andy Warhol movie Space. In 1970 he took part in the Festival Express tour across Canada with the Grateful Dead , Janis Joplin, The Band and others. In 1972 he issued his most successful (and sold) album Blue River. The tapes of his follow-up album Stages got lost, but were found back more than a decade later and issued in 1991 as Stages: The Lost Album. In 1975 he performed at the opening show of the Bob Dylan's Rolling Thunder Revue, at Gerde's Folk City in New York, and again in Niagara Falls. After several albums (country/rock/folk), he issued Ghosts Upon the Road a highly recognized album in 1988. In the early 1990s, Andersen teamed with Rick Danko (The Band) and Jonas Fjeld to form the trio Danko/Fjeld/Andersen and three albums were released, Danko/Fjeld/Andersen (1991), Ridin' on the Blinds (1994), and One More Shot (2001). It lasted nine years before his next solo album Memory Of The Future (1998) was issued. This "dreamy and introspective music" album was followed by You Can't Relive The Past (2000), which contains some blues songs and a selection of songs co-written with Townes van Zandt . A double album Beat Avenue followed in 2003, which contains a series rock dominated ballads and includes a 26-minute title track (a jazzy beat poem), which represents his experiences among San Francisco’s beat community of artists (see 'Beat Generation') on the day of president John Kennedy’s assassination. On his last two albums The Street Was Always There (2004) and Waves (2005), both produced by the multi-instrumentalist Robert Aaron, he presents (amongst own songs) new versions of classics and of his sixties contemporaries and friends David Blue, Bob Dylan, Tim Hardin, Peter La Farge, Fred Neil, Phil Ochs, Buffy Sainte-Marie, Paul Siebel, Patrick Sky, Tom Paxton, Richard Farina, John Sebastian, Happy Traum, Tom Rush and Lou Reed . His next album Blue Rain, released in 2007, was his first live album. It was recorded in Norway and contains a blend of blues, jazz and folk.
In 2009, Andersen contributed an essay entitled The Danger Zone to the Naked Lunch @ 50: Anniversary Essays, a book volume edited by Oliver Harris and Ian MacFadyen devoted to William Burroughs’ masterpiece the Naked Lunch, considered one of the landmark publications in the history of American literature.
In 2011, a second live album The Cologne Concert was released featuring Michele Gazich (Italy) on violin and Eric's wife Inge Andersen on backing vocals.
In 2012 the filmmaker Paul Lamont (Toward Castle Films) started the production of The Eric Andersen Story, a documentary film, which is expected to be ready for global distribution in 2014.
Andersen has completed the recording of his new album Dance of Love and Death. The album is mixed by Steve Addabbo (Suzanne Vega ), other musicians are Lenny Kaye (Patti Smith Group), Larry Campbell (musician) (Bob Dylan band; Phil Lesh and Friends, Levon Helm Band), Michele Gazich (Mary Gauthier , Mark Olson (musician), Michelle Shocked ) and Inge Andersen. The record is expected to be released early 2013.
Cross Your Mind
Eric Andersen Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And the eyes that pass remind me that she's gone
If my steps could only go back to where they started
To the only one I could call my own
But stars are hid familiar paths of pardon
As I find myself and evening drawing near
If only there was some way I could show her
How much I really felt and I really cared
Chorus:
But now I only stop myself and wonder
If you ever think of all that's gone behind
Yes I wonder just how things are going for you
I wonder does it ever cross your mind
Now my days they could be easy going
Though the keeper of my cares is far away
Cause if there's someone somewhere out there waitin'
Just to let you know things are still OK
When my days begin to lose their number
And the silver dawn comes streakin' from behind
From the night I spent in jokin' and a laughin'
With my friends who tried to ease a troubled mind
Chorus
I guess we should I guess somehow we couldn't
See it through and get along somehow
I wish we had a chance to start all over
But too many doors are closed to open now
Gal if it comes that our ways don't touch together
Cause our roads ya know they just don't meet again
I'd be pleased to know that you still think about me
I'd be pleased to count myself amongst yer friends
Chorus
The lyrics to Eric Andersen's song Cross Your Mind are a heartfelt lament about lost love, regret, longing, and the passing of time. The song begins with the singer walking through the evening, his feet dripping in sundown's shadows. The eyes that pass by remind him that she's gone, and he wishes he could go back to where they started when she was the only one he could call his own. However, he acknowledges that the stars are hiding familiar paths of pardon, and he finds himself drawing near to evening. He longs to show her how much he really felt and cared, but wonders if it ever crosses her mind.
The chorus is a series of questions and wonderings. He stops himself and wonders if she ever thinks about all that's gone behind. He wonders how things are going for her and if she ever thinks of him. The second verse speaks to the singer's wish for an easygoing life, but acknowledges that the keeper of his cares is far away. He hopes that there's someone out there waiting to let her know that things are still okay. He describes silver dawn streaking from behind and spending nights joking and laughing with friends who try to ease his troubled mind.
The final verse is about accepting the reality of the situation. The singer suggests that they should have been able to see it through and get along somehow, but they couldn't. He wishes they had a chance to start all over, but acknowledges that too many doors are closed now. He concludes by saying that even if their roads don't meet again, he'd be pleased to know that she still thinks about him, and he'd be pleased to count himself among her friends. The song is touching and poignant, evoking feelings of nostalgia, loss, and longing.
Line by Line Meaning
As I step my feet are dripped in sundown's shadows
As I walk, the sun is setting and my surroundings are filled with the darkness of night
And the eyes that pass remind me that she's gone
I see people walking by and it reminds me that the one I loved is not with me anymore
If my steps could only go back to where they started
If I could turn back time and go back to the beginning when we were together
To the only one I could call my own
To the one person who I loved and who loved me back and was truly mine
But stars are hid familiar paths of pardon
The stars in the sky hide the familiar path I want to take to find forgiveness from the one I love
As I find myself and evening drawing near
As the night approaches and darkness sets in, I am left alone with my thoughts
If only there was some way I could show her
If only I could find a way to express my love to her and make her understand how much she means to me
How much I really felt and I really cared
How deeply I loved her and cared about her
But now I only stop myself and wonder
But now I can only stop and think about what could have been
If you ever think of all that's gone behind
Do you ever think about the past and what we had together?
Yes I wonder just how things are going for you
I wonder how your life is now and whether you are happy
I wonder does it ever cross your mind
Do you ever think about me and what we had?
Now my days they could be easy going
My days could be relaxed and carefree if I didn't think about my lost love
Though the keeper of my cares is far away
Even though the one who used to comfort and care for me is not with me anymore
Cause if there's someone somewhere out there waitin'
But if there is someone out there waiting for me and willing to be with me
Just to let you know things are still OK
To let me know that everything is going to be alright
When my days begin to lose their number
As I grow older and my days become numbered
And the silver dawn comes streakin' from behind
And the early morning sun shines with a silver light
From the night I spent in jokin' and a laughin'
From the nights spent with my friends, trying to forget my troubles and laughing
With my friends who tried to ease a troubled mind
With friends who supported me and tried to comfort me when I was troubled
I guess we should I guess somehow we couldn't
I guess we should have been able to make it work, but for some reason we couldn't
See it through and get along somehow
We should have been able to work through our problems and keep going somehow
I wish we had a chance to start all over
I wish we could go back in time and start over to make things work between us
But too many doors are closed to open now
But too much time has passed and it's impossible to make things work between us now
Gal if it comes that our ways don't touch together
If we are destined to go our separate ways and never be together again
Cause our roads ya know they just don't meet again
Because our paths in life won't cross again
I'd be pleased to know that you still think about me
I would be happy to know that you still remember me and think fondly of me
I'd be pleased to count myself amongst yer friends
I would be honored to consider myself one of your friends
Writer(s): Eric Andersen Copyright: Emi U Catalog Inc.
Contributed by Reagan R. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Sharon L Simon
Thanx for bringing Eric back into my life. I've always adored him and his writings! Inspiring and peaceful...bringing me back to a lovely period in my life that seems to have been absent for too long!
LEXICOGRAFFER
If there's a finer collection of beautifully-written folk songs than Bout Changes n' Things, I have yet to find it.....
tehee
This guy blows the sock off Dylan, only if we could go back in time and switch them 'round.
John Doherty
What a gem. The Songpoet, Eric Andersen..
deborahkauffman09
I loved this guy, I remember my boyfriend broke my album cause he was jealous, thanks for posting, peace
tapsahtip
Me favourite song by him . . . .