Jan Eggum is a Norwegian

Norway

Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...

 singer-songwriter

Singer-songwriter

Singer-songwriters are musicians who write, compose and sing their own musical material including lyrics and melodies. As opposed to contemporary popular music singers who write their own songs, the term singer-songwriter describes a distinct form of artistry, closely associated with the...

 who has been active since 1975. He is often characterised as a "face for the melancholy", and the themes in his songs are often broken hearts, loneliness and sorrow. Sometimes his lyrics have social criticism

Social criticism

The term social criticism locates the reasons for malicious conditions of the society in flawed social structures. People adhering to a social critics aim at practical solutions by specific measures, often consensual reform but sometimes also by powerful revolution.- European roots :Religious...

, but he also shows more trivial and funny sides of himself.

He started as a pub singer in London

London

London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

, and made his living for two years writing songs in English. One of his most famous songs – "En natt forbi" ("A night is over") – was originally written in English, with the title "Alone, Awake".

Eggum got a record contract in 1975 with the Norwegian record company CBS

CBS

CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...

, and recorded his debut album "Trubadur" that autumn. His breakthrough came after his third release, the album "Heksedans" from 1977. This album gave him the Norwegian award Spellemannsprisen, and on this album has such classics as "Mor, jeg vil tilbake".

Since this, Eggum has been one of Norway's most well known artists, both as a solo artist and with others. An example of the latter is his membership in Gitarkameratene

Gitarkameratene

Gitarkameratene is the name of a group of well-known Norwegian recording artists when they tour together. The group includes Lillebjørn Nilsen, Halvdan Sivertsen, Jan Eggum and Øystein Sunde...

 with fellow guitarists Lillebjørn Nilsen

Lillebjørn Nilsen

Bjørn "Lillebjørn" Falk Nilsen is a prominent Norwegian singer-songwriter and folk musician. He is also considered somewhat the leading "voice of Oslo" thanks to numerous classic songs about the city from the 1970s and up....

, Øystein Sunde

Øystein Sunde

Øystein Olaf Sunde is a Norwegian folk singer and guitarist. He is known for his high-speed guitar and banjo style and his satirical lyrics...

 and Halvdan Sivertsen

Halvdan Sivertsen

Halvdan Sivertsen is a Norwegian singer. He was born in Tromsø, but raised and currently lives in Bodø. He has won Spellemannprisen awards five times, twice with his group Gitarkameratene, and received the Culture Prize of Nordland county in 2000...

.

Eggum has been a minor political candidate for the Norwegian Green Party

Green Party (Norway)

The Norwegian Greens is a Norwegian political party, formed in October 1988 from a number of local environmental election lists. The party has no members of parliament , but has some representation in municipal councils...

.

Albums

• Jan Eggum (1975)
• Trubadur (1976)
• Heksedans (1977)
• En natt forbi (1979)
• En sang fra vest (1979)
• 5 år med Jan Eggum - 14 utvalgte sanger (1980)
• Alarmen går (1982)
• E.G.G.U.M. (1985)
• Da Capo (1990)
• Underveis (1991)
• Nesten ikke tilstede (1993)
• Mang slags kjærlighet (1994)
• Dingli bang (1997)
• Deilig (1999)
• Ekte Eggum (2001)
• President (2002)
• Alle gjør det (2004)
• 30/30 (2005)
• Hjerteknuser (2007)

Singles

• En sang fra vest / Kort opphold (1979)
• Alarmen går / Vest for Voss (1981)
• En helt ny dag / Sommeren nytes best om vinteren (1984)
• Utenfor (1988) (with Bjørn Eidsvåg
  Bjørn Eidsvåg
  Bjørn Eidsvåg is a Norwegian singer, songwriter and Lutheran minister. He is a graduate from the MF Norwegian School of Theology...
  
  , Sidsel Endresen
  Sidsel Endresen
  Sidsel Endresen is a Norwegian jazz singer.She was part of the Jon Eberson Group from 1981 to 1987, resulting in five CDs and two "Spellemannprisen" awards...
  
  , Silje Nergård)

With other artists

• Various artists: VisFestivalen Västervik 1978 (1978)
• Various artists: Norske viser i 70-åra (1980)
• United artists: Sammen for livet (1985)
• Various artists: Utenfor/Naken hud (1988)
• Gitarkameratene
  Gitarkameratene
  Gitarkameratene is the name of a group of well-known Norwegian recording artists when they tour together. The group includes Lillebjørn Nilsen, Halvdan Sivertsen, Jan Eggum and Øystein Sunde...
  
  : Gitarkameratene (1989)
• Gitarkameratene
  Gitarkameratene
  Gitarkameratene is the name of a group of well-known Norwegian recording artists when they tour together. The group includes Lillebjørn Nilsen, Halvdan Sivertsen, Jan Eggum and Øystein Sunde...
  
  : Typisk norsk (1990)
• Various artists: Æ - en tribute til Åge Aleksandersen
  Åge Aleksandersen
  Åge Aleksandersen is a Norwegian singer, songwriter and guitarist. He is one of his country's most famous singer/songwriters, musicians....
  
  (1992)
• Gustav Lorentzen
  Gustav Lorentzen
  Gustav Lorentzen , also known by his stage name Ludvigsen, was a Norwegian singer-songwriter, best known from being half of the successful duo Knutsen & Ludvigsen, alongside Øystein "Knutsen" Dolmen...
  
  : 1. klasse (1992)
• Various artists: Det beste av norsk musikk 1978-1980 (1998)
• Various artists: Solide saker - en hyllest til Dumdum Boys
  DumDum Boys
  DumDum Boys is a Norwegian rock band from Trondheim. They started up in the late 1970s as a punk band under the name "Wannskrækk", and released a few singles under that name before they reinvented themselves with a new name and a somewhat new sound in 1985....
  
  (1999)
• Vamp (band)
  Vamp (band)
  Vamp is a band from Haugesund, Norway which was started in 1991. The band’s musical profile is a mix of Norwegian folk music, Celtic music and rock.- Members :* Torbjørn Økland...
  
  : En annen sol (2000)
• Various artists: Norske viseperler (2000)
• Various artists: Antons villfaring (2002) (Musical from Erlend Loe
  Erlend Loe
  Erlend Loe is a Norwegian novelist and screenwriter. He has gained popularity in Scandinavia with his humorous and sometimes naïve novels, although his stories have become darker in tone, moving towards a more satirical criticism of modern Norwegian society.-Biography:Erlend Loe worked at a...
  
  /Jan Eggum)
• Various artists: Gull i fra grønne skoger: Vidar Sandbeck
  Vidar Sandbeck
  Vidar Sandbeck was a Norwegian folk singer, composer, and writer.Sandbeck was born into modest conditions and suffered from poor health during much of his childhood. He became a protege on the violin at an early age and had his public debut in Stjørdal in 1941...
  
  (2003)
• Kaia Huuse: Trist og fint (2004)
• Various artists: Norsk rocks historie vol. 5: Viserock (1969–1977) (2004)
• Various artists: Venn (2005)

Eurovision Song Contest

• Deilige Drøm (1988) (ranked as number 10 in the Norwegian final)

Books/notes

• Ugress i ditt bed (1977; Eide Forlag)
• Heksedans (1981; Eide Forlag)
• Mellom borger og bohem (1991; Eide Forlag)
• Mang slags kjærlighet - 40 sanger del 2 (1994; Blåmann Forlag)
• Dingli Bang (1997; Blåmann Forlag)
• Deilig (1999; Blåmann Forlag)
• Nesten den samme (tekster) (2000; Blåmann Forlag)
• Norsk pop- og rockleksikon (2005; Vega Forlag)