Eliza Gilkyson Releases “Wanderin’, Second Single From Upcoming “Songs From the River Wind”, with Premiere on The Bluegrass Situation

January 12, 2022


The Bluegrass Situation premiered the second single from Eliza’s new album on Howlin’ Dog on November 15th! Check it out here.

From Eliza - This is my adaptation of an old Irish ballad from the late 1800's that was passed along through the last century, picked up by Carl Sandburg in the 1920's and modified by folk singers in the '60s such as Josh White, Dave Van Ronk and my dad, Terry Gilkyson, who covered it with his trio "the Easy Riders" in the '50s. (Check out their version here.) It was later recorded by Roger McGuinn and James Taylor in the '80s. Typical of folk songs passed down through time, there are many verses and lyrics to be found for “Wanderin’.”  I have always loved this song, especially my dad's version, but I wanted to rewrite it from a woman’s perspective. We women like to wander too, but you rarely hear about that in those early folk songs and it seemed like the time was right for a woman to give it another point of view. I love the push and pull between loneliness and the sense of choosing that loneliness over "settling down.” That might be the musicians' creed right there! I set it in the Old West because that's where I had my happiest roaming days.

There's some good historical background on the song here:

Produced by Don Richmond



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