Us Two and Him - Americana Trio Acoustic Band from Nashville, TN

Describing "us two and him" is a difficult thing to do because there's not another group like them. They are an imaginative musical trio consisting of brothers Jim and John Rickman ("us two") and Phil Comstock ("him"). Jim plays the stand-up bass while Phil and John play guitar. They capture on stage the feeling of three good buddies enjoying themselves—telling stories, harmonizing, pickin' and grinnin'. For more than four decades, "us two and him" have been entertaining and after all this time, they are still having fun--and it shows. They specialize in banquet entertainment suitable for all audiences regardless of age or socio- economic background. They play for business and civic groups, churches, and industry. Their versatility meets varied situations spanning the spectrum from conventions, trade shows, sales meetings to private parties, plus a clever program to enliven and amuse as after-dinner "speakers". Their unique talent has taken them to a guest appearance on the world famous "Grand Ole Opry". They have appeared on "The Ernest Tubb Midnight Jamboree", "Nashville Gospel Show", WSM's "Bill Cody in the Morning" radio show, and for eleven years they were semi-regulars on Nashville television's popular "The Ralph Emery Show". They have shared the stage with noted celebrities and have been the subject of numerous articles in local, state, and national publications. What makes "us two and him" stand alone is their original compositions. They have successfully recorded and packaged these tunes in four albums. In addition, they perform other hilarious numbers such as, "I Just Don't Look Good Naked Anymore", "Snuff Dipper", and "The Rooster Song". Entertainment with an abundance of enthusiasm best describes "us two and him". Each member of the group has a particular talent complimenting the other two, resulting in a delightful blend and approach to entertainment. They sing songs of growing up country, a foot-stomping music laced with homespun humor, bringing a laugh and a toe tap from the worst critic. Many consider them a most refreshingly different group, conveying a light-hearted, comical theme, yet a surprising sophistication in story and song. "us two and him" have been compared to the Smothers Brothers and the Kingston Trio. Comstock agrees they might be compare to "Riders in the Sky", a cowboy-dressed group based in the Brentwood-Green Hills area. The South Central Tennessee boys are like characters in the Andy Griffith Show with a touch of Ray Stevens' lyrical madness, toned down from "The Streak", and the lines, "It's me again, Margaret". About the Musicians Jim and John Rickman, "us two", and Phil Comstock, "him", all grew up about thirty-five miles south of Nashville in the small rural community of Chapel Hill, Tennessee. Chapel Hill resembled Andy Griffith's Mayberry, so "us two and him" created a song, "The Folks of Mayberry", reflecting a day when the pace of life was much slower: "I'd sit on the porch and pick with Andy, make eyes at Thelma Lou, Get thrown in the pokey with Otis Campbell, that's something I always wanted to do, Skip rocks on the pond with Opie, chit-chat with old Aunt Bea, Ride with Barney with his siren on through the streets of Mayberry." All three were influenced in their youth by extended family gatherings. Their song, "Chicken Necks and Wings", describes how little kids might view these get-togethers: "We sat at the second table eating chicken necks and wings, A leftover dab of gravy, juice and fatback from the beans, Fresh peach cobbler without peaches, melted ice cream from the churn, Wasn't very much to choose from once those grown-ups had their turn. (Grand Ole Opry star, Mike Snider, recorded this one.)" As teenagers, the older Rickman boys were part of a rock-and-roll band that swept first place in "The Nashville Tennessean's Discovery of the Year" contest in 1965. Then in 1972 John, Jim and Phil came together forming "us two and him". Note the self-deprecating lyrics of one of the group's songs entitled "The Chapel Hill Pickers": "We played rock-and-roll music back in '65, the girls would follow us around. We wore shoulder-length hair and skin-tight pants and, Man, we had a groovy sound. But now our hair's fallin' out and our skin-tights don't fit, the girls they just giggle and snicker. We used to be the group called "Electric Soul", but now we're just "The Chapel Hill Pickers"." These are men of character, college graduates, outstanding citizens, businessmen, churchmen, civic-minded and family-oriented. They are the kind of people with whom you like to associate. John is the songwriter and lives in Tullahoma, Jim is the group's "funnyman" and lives in Murfreesboro, and Phil, the trio's spokesman, resides in Chapel Hill. All these talents blend making an "us two and him" performance a distinctly clever musical presentation.

• Thank You World | Statler Brothers
• The Chapel Hill Pickers | John Rickman
• I Just Don't Look Good Naked Anymore | Ben Colder
• Home Grown Tomatoes | Guy Clark
• Chicken Necks and Wings | John Rickman
• All the Gold in California | Gatlin Brothers
• The Rooster Song | Unknown
• I'll Fly Away | Albert Brumley
• Playing Right Field | Peter, Paul and Mary
• The Folks of Mayberry | John Rickman
• You Never Even Called Me by My Name | David Allen Coe
• You are My Sunshine | Gene Autry
• Yesterday | Beatles
• Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow | Carol King
• Will the Circle Be Unbroken | Carter Family
• Why Me Lord? | Kris Kristofferson
• When the Kids Leave Home | John Rickman
• Under the Boardwalk | The Drifters
• Uncle John | John Rickman
• Turn Your Radio On | Albert Brumley
• Tom Dooley | Kingston Trio
• This Old Tattoo | John Rickman
• This Land is Your Land | Woody Guthrie
• There'll Never Be Anyone Else But You | Rick Nelson
• There Goes My Everything | Jack Green
• The Wizard of the Saddle | John Rickman
• The Wild Side of Life | Hank Thompson
• "T" for Texas, "T" for Tennessee | Jimmy Rogers
• The Other Woman | Ray Price
• The Mountain of Love | Johnny Rivers
• Your Cheating Heart | Hank Williams
• Jason White and Leroy Black | John Rickman
• The Chapel Hill Light | John Rickman
• The Birds and the Bees | Jewel Akens
• That's Old Fashion | Every Brothers
• The Company You Keep | Bill Phillips
• Thank God I'm a Country Boy | John Denver
• Tennessee | Jimmy Martin
• Swappin' Knives | John Rickman
• Statues Without Hearts | Gatlin Brothers
• Southern Hospitality | Lou Childre
• So Happy Together | The Turtles
• Snuff Dipper | Mike Snider
• Sixteen Tons | Ernie Ford
• She's a Broken Lady | Gatlin Brothers
• Sense of Humor | John Rickman
• Send Me the Pillow | Hank Locklin
• Running Bear | Sonny James
• Rolling in my Sweet Baby's Arms | Flatt and Scruggs
• Rocky Top | Osborne Brothers
• Ring of Fire | Johnny Cash
• Proud Mary | Credence Clearwater Revival
• Houston Means I'm One Day Closer to You | Larry Gatlin
• One in a Million | Statler Brothers
• Old P-31 | John Rickman
• Ol' Maude | John Rickman
• Oh Lonesome Me | Don Gibson
• My Heart Tells Me Stay | Ray Price
• My Girl | Dylan Scott
• My First Chew | John Rickman
• My Baby is American Made | Oak Ridge Boys
• Mountain Dew | Grandpa Jones
• Margaritaville | Jimmy Buffett
• Mama Tried | Merle Haggard
• Make the World Go Away | Eddie Arnold
• M.T.A. | Kingston Trio
• Little Brown Shack | Billy Edd Wheeler
• King of the Road | Roger Miller
• Just Walk On By | Leroy VanDyke
• It Keeps Right on a Hurtin' | Johnny Tillotson
• In the Garden | C. Austin Miles
• If My Nose was Runnin' Money | Mike Snider
• If I Had a Hammer | Pete Seeger
• Amazing Grace | John Newton
• I Saw the Light | Hank Williams
• I Saw Her Standing There | Beatles
• I Just Wish You Were Someone I Loved | Larry Gatlin
• How Great Thou Art | Martin Luther
• I Can't Help It | Hank Williams
• I Can't Help Falling in Love | Elvis Presley
• I Believe in Music | Mac Davis
• The Ralph Emery Show Song | John Rickman
• Holy Spirit | John Rickman
• Hey Good Looking | Hank Williams
• Gotta Travel On | Billy Grammer
• Good Lovin' | Hanson Band
• Going to the Chapel | The Dixie Cups
• Going Bald | John Rickman
• God Bless the U.S.A. | Lee Greenwood
• Fox on the Run | Tom T. Hall
• Elvira | Oak Ridge Boys
• Dig a Little Deeper in the Well | Statler Brothers
• Dang Me | Roger Miller
• Daddy Sang Bass | Johnny Cash
• Crying Time Again | Ray Charles
• Crying | Roy Orbison
• Country Roads | John Denver
• Cotton Fields | The Highwaymen
• Chicken Snake in the Outhouse | John Rickman
• Hormones | John Rickman
• Broken Lady | Larry Gatlin
• Almost Persuaded | David Houston
• All the Good Times Are Past and Gone | Flatt and Scruggs
• Two Snake Doctors and a Butterfly | John Rickman
• Abilene | George Hamilton IIII
• The Maury County Jail Fire | John Rickman