John Anderson – An Occasional Eagle

About The Song

“An Occasional Eagle” is a song written by Fred Carter Jr. It was recorded by American country music artist John Anderson and released in 1983 as a track on his album All the People Are Talkin’. The album was issued by Warner Bros. Records. John Anderson and Lou Bradley co-produced the recording. The track runs approximately 3 minutes and 41 seconds to 3 minutes and 48 seconds depending on the release edition.

The song was not issued as a commercial single and did not appear on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart. All the People Are Talkin’ was released in September 1983 and produced the singles “Black Sheep” (which reached number 1 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart) and “Let Somebody Else Drive” (which reached number 10). The album itself peaked at number 10 on the Billboard Top Country Albums chart.

Session credits associated with the album and track include Larry Emmons and X. Lincoln on bass, James Wolfe on drums, Tom Morley on fiddle and mandolin, Buck Reid and Vernon Pilder on guitar, Mike Jordan on organ, Bill Puett on saxophone, and background vocals by Deanna Anderson Walls and Donna Kay Anderson. John Anderson is also credited with bass guitar on some listings. Production continued the pairing of Anderson and Lou Bradley from prior Warner Bros. projects.

Fred Carter Jr., a noted Nashville session guitarist and songwriter, is the sole writer credited on the composition. The track appears as the seventh song on the original album sequence of All the People Are Talkin’. It has been included on later reissue collections such as Black Sheep: The Complete Warner Albums (2020). A re-recorded version appears on the 2019 collection 40 Years & Still Swingin’ under the shortened title “Occasional Eagle.”

All the People Are Talkin’ followed Anderson’s commercially successful Wild & Blue album and continued his association with Warner Bros. during the early-to-mid 1980s period that produced multiple Top 10 and number-one country singles. The album’s track listing placed “An Occasional Eagle” between “Let Somebody Else Drive” and “Things Ain’t Been the Same Around the Farm.”

Primary sources document consistent songwriting credit to Fred Carter Jr., production by John Anderson and Lou Bradley, the 1983 album release context, and the absence of independent single chart performance. Official audio is available through the John Anderson YouTube channel and Warner catalog reissues under Rhino/Warner Records.

The combination of songwriting credit, production details, album sequencing on the 1983 Warner Bros. release, and subsequent reissue history places the recording within Anderson’s mid-1980s catalog period on the label.

Video

Lyric

High o’er the coast of Alaska he flies
Wide ‘cross the prairies he covers the skies
A picture of courage and beauty, a symbol of freedom and right
Riding the winds through the mountains
Guided by nature, an occasional eagle in flight

When the shore ice is melting in Kodiak Bay
Knowing that Spring is well on its way
He calls to his mate of a lifetime, to a yearly nest in the thorn
Planting the egg in the branches
And with God’s assistance, an occasional eagle is born

And he flies, covering the land
Stirring the hearts through all generations of man
Poets tell of his bearing, truth on a feathery wind
Painters paint from inspiration
A beautiful picture that only a memory can bring

When I was younger and without a care
For granted I thought he would always be there
But now I only hear stories that the great bird of truth is alive
With a fist in my pocket I’m prayin’
An eternal prayer the great bird of truth will survive

And he flies, covering the land
Stirring the hearts through all generations of man
A picture of courage and beauty, a symbol of freedom and right
Riding the winds through the mountains
Guided by nature, an occasional eagle in flight