Anderson was a founding member of The Beta Band and co-wrote several of their early songs including "Dry the Rain" and "Dog's Got a Bone".
[1][3][4] Ill-health forced him to leave the band and return to Scotland, and he began to record solo under the name Lone Pigeon in 1997.
The 'Honda Hedge' album, which was available only by mailorder, contains early versions of several of the songs later to appear on The Aliens' 'Astronomy for Dogs' (see below), including "Robotman", "Tomorrow", "Only Waiting" and "Honest Again".
In May 2006 an EP entitled Alienoid Starmonica was released, a collaboration with ex-Beta Band members John Maclean and Robin Jones under the name The Aliens.
In 2015 Anderson wrote and performed "Aeolian Arietta", a track on Beta Band co-founder John Maclean's feature film debut, Slow West.