Jane Hirshfield 's sixth and most recent book of poems, After, was named a best book of 2006 by the Washington Post, The San Francisco Chronicle, and England's Financial Times. Other recent poems appear in The New Yorker, Poetry, The American Poetry Review, and elsewhere. Her honors have included fellowships from the Guggenheim and Rockefeller foundations, the NEA, and the Academy of American Poets, as well as five appearances in The Best American Poetry series. She lives in the San Francisco Bay Area.

David Fredrick Lochelt : Born March 4, 1948 in Sacramento, California. Grew up in San Francisco Bay Area until drafted in 1968. Viet Nam veteran. Began writing poems and songs at 14 and purchased first guitar in mid sixties with S&H Green Stamps. College dropout. 39 years professional musician. Self-educated, self-taught, self-absorbed atheist who writes about life on the gravel road, hope and despair, the simple side of life and the callous side of being an American. Musical poetry and un-pigeonholed melodies. A hard-working, politically opinionated, soft-hearted ole fool. Instruments: Vocals, guitar, harmonica, bass, banjo, and fiddle.