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Live Music: Folk

3:30 PM at the Allen Street Stage as part of the Central PA Festival of the Arts

It’s all about the kazoo. Okay, maybe not all about the kazoo, but don’t expect to see a Two Man Gentleman Band performance without one. As one reviewer said, this group should be recognized “as the duo that made the kazoo hip again.”

Calling themselves “neo-vaudevillian,” Andy Bean and Fuller Condon take original songs, deliver them with expert musicianship and bring back a style many argue should’ve never gone out of style. Much like their vaudeville predecessors, they intersperse witty tunes with audience banter and top hats. The pair has a banjo, bass, guitar, cornet and two kazoos on hand to deliver their unique mix of songs, comedy, and audience interaction.

They find their vaudevillian tone, drawn from the early 20th century when an economic boom was followed by a bust, a fitting reference for our times. And their songs, about the many merits of a croquet-playing woman, the perfect time for a fancy beer (any time) and drip-drying when you have no towel, are a great distraction from today’s financial woes. Much like their musical style, which plays proud homage to an earlier era, the men’s fashion is also nod to the vaudeville tradition from which they draw their inspiration. They are, in a word, dapper.

The Gentlemen’s stop at the Arts Festival is a continuation of their tour, started in January, promoting their fourth and latest album, “Drip-Dryin’ with the Two Man Gentlemen Band.” There’s even a drip-dryin’ dance to accompany the title song. This tour, for the first time, took them across the pond and the gentlemen showed the British a thing or two about haberdashery and hip kazoos.

The two normally call New York City home, where they met pursuing their dreams of rock glory. After a couple of failed attempts at rock bands, they tried their hand at busking on New York City’s streets and finally found their niche as the Two Man Gentlemen Band in 2005. Bean plays master of ceremonies and banjo while Condon is the silent straight man on bass.

Come see what vaudeville for the 21st century can be, and be prepared to kazoo!

Details

COST: Free
BROUGHT TO YOU BY: Central PA Festival of the Arts
WEBSITE: http://www.arts-festival.com/schedule_07092009.html