"Beginning with a stunning opener and moving through some of the grittiest tracks he's ever recorded - including four songwriting collaborations with the late, great Townes Van Zandt and another with art rock legend Lou Reed – You Can't Relive the Past is one of the strongest sets in Eric Andersen's 35 year-long recording career."
– Sing Out! |
| "Recorded in Mississippi and New York, Eric Andersen's latest has muscle and grit. ‘All my friends are dead and gone and I am growing old’ he sings, and goes on to muse extensively (and with precious little nostalgia) on the passage of time. Half the tracks are acoustic guitar-driven folk; the other half are fueled by Mississippi legends Sam Carr on drums, James Johnson on electric guitar, and Kenny Brown on slide guitar. Andersen's hypnotic poet's growl stitches it all together. Included are debut recordings of four songs that Andersen co-wrote with Townes Van Zandt in 1986. Highly recommended."
– Rani Arbo, Acoustic Guitar
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| “You Can't Relive the Past is Andersen's most ambitious work in years. While it contains some lovely acoustic folk ballads (‘Eyes of the Immigrant’ echoes and expands his great early song ‘Thirsty Boots’), for the most part Andersen finds a densely textured blues-based sound similar in feel to Dylan's Time Out of Mind.”
– Michael Friedman, No Depression
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". . . A compelling collection that shows the breadth of Andersen's writing. . . . Every song on this album is a finely crafted masterpiece by one of America's most enduring and articulate writers."
– Mick Skidmore, Relix |
| "This sequel comes only a year later than Memory of the Future and it's just as noteworthy. . . The fact that a songwriter can come out with an album that is this strong after 35 years in the business is impressive."
– Dirty Linen
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| “With two good friends dead and gone – Texas troubadour Townes Van Zandt and former New York Times music critic Robert Palmer – '60s folk veteran Eric Andersen communes with ghosts on You Can't Relive the Past. He reinvigorates his own music in the process: . . . the 57-year-old, poetically inclined singer-songwriter reclaims his voice by immersing himself in collaborative efforts. You Can't Relive the Past is commendably daring . . . The album includes four folkie, highway-haunted songs written with Van Zandt in 1986 and sung in Andersen's still-resonant baritone, and four vibrant electric blues cut in Palmer's old Mississippi Delta stomping grounds . . . ‘Memory runs right by your eyes, so real and so fast,’ Andersen sings on the title track, cowritten with Lou Reed. But on You Can't Relive the Past, he resists nostalgia, and instead uses loss as inspiration to move ahead with wisdom and grace. (***1/2 )”
– Philadelphia Inquirer
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"After last year's masterful Memory of the Future, Eric Andersen has now released a new album of major significance. . . . Andersen projects himself musically in an open and inviting way, with lyrics of laid-back wisdom and poetic innovations. He's on a rootless pilgrimage in the landscape of American music traditions, from blues and rock to Waits and Dylan folk variations. A touching record. . . . A beautiful record, both musically refined and lyrically thoughtful. (5 stars)"
– Fredrik Wandrup, Daglabet, Norway |
| "Singer songwriter from 60's folk revival with a gem of a CD including some great roots-rock from Mississippi."
– Mojo
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