01	Beef Jerky						04:20
	02	In The Shadow						07:12
	03	Wrecking Ball						04:27
	04	Way Down Time						06:34
	05	Three Feet Off The Ground						04:14
	06	Walk With Me						06:23
	07	You're It						04:23
	08	Jet Lag						05:17
	09	The Hook						04:49
	10	Key To The City						05:00
	11	Switchin'						04:36

Bruce Katz - Hammond B-3 organ and piano
Julien Kasper - guitar
Blake Newman - acoustic bass
Ralph Rosen - drums
Duke Robillard - guitar on "In The Shadow" and "Jetlag"

Recorded by Michael C. Ross at Bearsville Studio, Woodstock, NY April 17 and 18, 2000
All tracks were recorded live direct to the two track Sony Direct Stream Digital System

When I'm playing the Hammond B-3 organ and the band, audience and universe are tuned up perfectly. I feel like I am three feet off the ground. All energy, no gravity. The amazing thing is that this happens all the time, thanks to the remarkable musicians who play with me in the Bruce Katz Band.
This CD feels like both a continuation and a new beginning for my music. I have been obsessed with blues and American roots music forms for most of my life. I love Muddy Waters, Jimmy McGriff, James Booker and Charley Patton as well as George Jones, Thelonius Monk, Count Basie and Bill Monroe. I love gospel music, "real" country music, New Orleans brass bands, rural string bands, rock and roll, and a large collection of musicians who create music with a certain truth and purity of feeling that seem to be associated with the sound of American "folk" styles...folk musk: in the largest and truest sense of the word.
I don't try to re-create those musical forms. The musicians that I love tap into something deep within themselves and this countries history to create their own personal statements. I start with the music of my heroes for inspiration and attempt to look both inward and outward, writing music that reflects my time and place while hopefully continuing to evolve this great tradition.
In the three years since our last CD, "Mississippi Moan" (AQ-1047). I've been very pleased with the growth and direction of the band. We are now a four piece group, which has sharpened the focus... less is more. It continues to be an amazing amount of fun writing and playing music with the wonderful and unique musicians who collectively make up the Bruce Katz Band. Traveling with people I enjoy both on and off stage, and playing music we are all passionate about...I feel very lucky indeed.
Julien Kasper, on guitar, is so deep. He surprises me every night with his inventiveness and his ability to use both nuance and power in his playing.
Ralph Rosen, on drums, creates brilliant grooves. His understanding and vast knowledge of music along with his quest for new approaches to traditional rhythms is so inspiring.
Blake Newman, the newest member of the band, comes from a very broad musical background. With his aggressive and clear attack on the acoustic bass, Blake helps create a foundation that is deep and subtle at the same time.
I think long time fans will hear some surprises on this CD. This is mostly a Hammond B-3 album. This was not a conscious decision, just another example of the Hammond B3 taking over my life! (Some would argue that the B-3 is the worlds most perfect instrument and I'm in no position to disagree.) The tunes, with a lot of help from the band, go to some very interesting new places.
I hope you have as much of a blast listening to our music as we did making it.
-Bruce Katz



Three Feet Off the Ground
Date of Release Aug 15, 2000

AMG EXPERT REVIEW: It has been said that instrumentalist Bruce Katz has one foot in jazz and the other foot in the blues, but those aren't the only styles that interest the organist/pianist; rock, soul, and gospel are also part of what he does. All of those influences assert themselves on Three Feet Off the Ground, which tends to be more aggressive and rockin' than the album that preceded it, 1997's Mississippi Moan. "Wrecking Ball" and "Beef Jerky" (which brings to mind Lee Morgan's "The Sidewinder") are definitely among the more forceful things Katz has recorded, and his guitarist Julien Kasper sounds equally uninhibited. Although Katz is a talented acoustic pianist with a healthy appreciation of Albert Ammons, his piano playing takes a back seat to the organ this time. Katz's Hammond B-3 dominates the CD, and one is reminded how appealing he is on the instrument. As an organist, Katz has a gritty, earthy sound that is somewhere between Jimmy Smith and Stax hero Booker T. Jones (of Booker T. & the MG's fame). Three Feet Off the Ground is a release that blues, jazz, and rock fans alike will want to hear. - Alex Henderson

Duke Robillard - Guitar
Bruce Katz - Piano, Organ (Hammond)
Joe Harley - Producer
Jean Hangarter - Cover Photo
Hillary Weiss - Art Direction, Design
Aaron Franz - Assistant Engineer
Julien Kasper - Guitar
Blake Newman - Bass (Acoustic)
Ralph Rosen - Drums
Bill Synan - Assistant Engineer

2000 CD Audioquest 1056
2001 SCD Audioquest 1056