The England swing specialist took five wickets for 49 runs in 20 overs as Pakistan slumped to 147 for nine in reply to England's first innings 354 -- a deficit of 207 and still eight shy of avoiding the follow-on when bad light forced a premature close.
It was the Lancashire quick's ninth haul of five or more wickets in 49 Tests and third in four at Trent Bridge, where he took a Test-best seven for 43 against New Zealand in 2008.
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Overcast conditions on Friday provided the ideal backdrop for both Anderson and Pakistan's Mohammad Asif, who earlier took four wickets for eight runs in 13 balls -- all lbw -- on his way to five for 77 in 27 overs.
But the key difference was Pakistan's fallible fielding which helped contribute to an England's fifth-wicket stand of 219 between Eoin Morgan (130) and Paul Collingwood (82).
Even when the skies are clear, Trent Bridge has a reputation for aiding swing bowling and Anderson told reporters: "It's been good to me the last couple of times I've been here. Certain grounds do tend to swing every time you come, and this is one of them."
Anderson had come under some pressure for his place after a lacklustre one-day series after being effectively dropped for the final one-day international against Bangladesh.
But an ankle injury to Ajmal Shahzad cleared the way for England to field an attack in this opening match of a four-Test series of Anderson, Steven Finn - who took three for 20 in 11 overs on Friday - and Stuart Broad.
"There's been a lot of competition over the last few months and a couple of guys have been unlucky to miss out this week," Anderson said. "I think that's really healthy, and what you need in a team to succeed.
"I've felt like I've been bowling pretty well, just not getting the wickets.
"Sometimes you go through patches, not getting the wickets you think you deserve. I hope now I can give it a big push in this series."
The tall Finn, in what is England's last series before the Ashes, enhanced his case for a place in the squad to tour Australia with a fine burst of three wickets for one run in 14 balls.
"I thought he bowled fantastically well," Anderson said of Finn. "He uses his height, bangs the pitch and is very consistent - always asking questions of the batsmen.
"He's been a pleasure to bowl with. In the past, I've also bowled well with Stuart Broad. We're different heights and do different things with the ball.
"I think we all complement each other really well.
However, Pakistan captain Salman Butt was in no doubt about England's leading man.
"Anderson was a different bowler. He stood out for England," said the left-handed opener, whose dismissal for one, caught behind off Anderson, sparked Pakistan's slump to 47 for six.
"Not many bowlers in the world bowl both swings with that much control. He swings the ball both ways and at the same pace. It was an outstanding bowling performance."
Asked if Anderson and Asif were the two best swing bowlers in world cricket at the moment, Butt replied: "Yes, pretty much. In these conditions they are both very lethal.
"Any batsman needs only one ball to get dismissed. These conditions and these bowlers are not making it easy for them."
