Three years ago, The Two Man Gentlemen Band played for tips on the subways and streets of New York City. After a transition from troubadours to signed musicians, they embarked on a national tour that touches down at Casa Cantina, 4 W. State St., tonight.
Made up of 30-year-old Andy Bean on vocals and four-string guitar or banjo and 30-year-old Fuller Condon on vocals and upright bass, the band is a vaudevillian swing vocal duo that sings about a range of topics from mathematics to past politicians.
Bean took a break from traveling to talk to Post reporter Jane Adams about kazoos, the best places to earn tips and the band's new album Live in New York.
The Post: The band began with the two of you playing on the streets of New York City. What was that like?
Andy Bean: Imagine just sitting on a park bench and having 100 percent of the people pass you by. Instead of that, since we were playing, only 95 percent ignored us. The other 5 percent stopped, listened and occasionally threw us a dollar. It was a good lesson in rejection.
Post: Was there a specific location where you made the most tips?
Bean: We had a special corner in Central Park, and it was a great secret. One time, the secret got out and we had people try to steal our spot. We had to get up really early to get there - getting up early was enough to make us not want to street perform anymore and take the act on the road.
Post: I heard that you sometimes conduct kazoo-alongs, dance contests and historical re-enactments during your shows?
Bean: We are a small band so we need all the help we can get to keep things going. It has mostly been cut down to shout-alongs these days. When we were playing for 30 to 50 people every night we could keep it organized, but when we hand out kazoos to 100 or 120 people in England that are really drunk it becomes harder to maintain order.
Post: What should people expect at the show?
Bean: They can expect hours upon hours of splendid up-tempo music. They can also expect to be asked to shout along to songs about Howard Taft or mathematics; we have a song about prime numbers.
Post: Tell me about the new Live in New York album.
Bean: We invited about 50 or 75 of our fans in New York to squeeze into a loft in Manhattan that fits about 35 people. We jammed them all together, turned off the air conditioners and had a rowdy show.
Post: Do you two have a life philosophy for the band?
Bean: We have an unspoken philosophy to try to make the biggest and most varied sound two guys with acoustic instruments can. It is always easier to add other musicians to make a bigger sound, but we are very dedicated to two-man music.
3 Culture
Jane Adams
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