Eric Rensberger - clarinet, harp;  Bill Zink - guitar.

Eric Rensberger and Bill Zink wrote and played it (except "Night Watch": words Rensberger, music Zink), Dan Willems recorded it, Bill Zink poured some sugar on it.

Eric and I started playing together with Bob Wagner and Erica Zietz sometime in '87.  Erica was around for only a short time, but Eric, Bob, and I played together every Wednsday night until Bob left town ('89 maybe?).  After preparing a 3-cassette release in which the album title would remain the same (Free Jazz from the Record Collections of the Elite) but the band name would change, we settled on the name Catkillers (Coffee Achievers and Art Ensemble of Elletsville were the other most common names we used).  After Bob left, the Catkillers continued with Keith Welch on drums for a time.  Keith left the band, returned to the band, then left the band again for good sometime in the mid 90's.  After spending a bit over a year as an acoustic based duo, we were joined by Rob Stockwell on drums, and that was the lineup that ran from '95 until the band's end in '97.  These recordings come from the "duet" Catkillers period.  Someday I may get around to posting the Catkillers output somewhere.

This was recorded by Dan Willems in a miniscule 3-room appartment in the house on Rufer Ave. that served as the beach head for the TBW! Jazz Posse invasion of the mid-90's.  It was recorded on a sweltering summer day without any air conditioning: we closed all the windows, shut off all the fans, recorded a take or two of a song, then opened everything back up and sipped bourbon until the room cooled down again (relatively speaking).

Of special interest in this trio of songs is "Night Watch", the instrumental portion of which shows up on Hoosier Pete's Portland as "Requiem for Eric".  This song was part of a larger (unfinished) requiem we were putting together for Eric's father.  I would drop all my other projects tomorrow and team with Eric to finish this if I ever got the chance.