The Beyman Bros are renowned guitarist, composer ("Midnight at the Oasis"), and producer David Nichtern and multi-instrumentalist, writer, actor (This Is Spinal Tap), and filmmaker (For Your Consideration, A Mighty Wind, Best in Show) Christopher Guest. "Our collaboration sprang out of my relationship with Chris," Nichtern reflects. "We've played music together for most of our lives. My mother actually introduced Chris's parents to each other, and we were born two weeks apart. We literally went to kindergarten together. The story goes that some kid was beating me up in kindergarten and Chris intervened on my behalf." As baby boomers, they were swept into the folk music boom of the early 1960s, developing a shared passion for bluegrass and roots music while growing up in New York City. Graduating from playing acoustic guitars together in Washington Square Park, Guest and Nichtern formed the rock band Voltaire's Nose, performing at fraternity parties at area universities. "While we haven't been in a band together since," says Nichtern, "we've continued to play music together on and off for decades."

In the 1970s and 1980s, Nichtern and Guest found success separately. Nichtern headed to California, where both his formidable guitar technique and witty, challenging compositions were quickly in demand. He performed alongside maverick mandolinist David Grisman, formed a band with Jerry Garcia, and appeared on records by Maria Muldaur, Kate and Anna McGarrigle, and David Bromberg. Nichtern wrote Muldaur's biggest hit, the sly and seductive "Midnight at the Oasis." Returning to New York, he remained active as a performer, producer, composer, and musician, while also dedicating considerable time to Buddhist practice and teaching. Currently, Nichtern teaches Yoga Body Buddha Mind workshops around the world with his wife Cyndi Lee, the internationally renowned yoga teacher. In addition, Nichtern also owns and operates two record labels, Dharma Moon and 5 Points Records. As Nichtern migrated west, Guest was working in film and theatre, gaining widespread attention for his performances in National Lampoon's counter-culture satire Lemmings. He was a Saturday Night Live cast member during the 1984-1985 season, which coincided with the release of This is Spinal Tap. The much-heralded mockumentary featured Guest as Nigel Tufnel, a confused and yet captivatingly soulful heavy metal guitarist and a role that Guest has continued to reprise in a variety of contexts since. He made his directorial debut with 1989's The Big Picture (which featured a score by Nichtern), and has increasingly focused on conceiving, directing, and acting in an acclaimed series of documentary-styled comedies including Waiting for Guffman (1997), Best in Show (2000), A Mighty Wind (2003), and For Your Consideration (2006) (all of which featured music either produced, arranged, performed, or composed by CJ Vanston).

In the rare moments between their respective endeavors, Guest and Nichtern still managed to find time to make music together. "Whenever David would come out to Los Angeles," says Guest, "he and I would play together in my kitchen."  

"It would be us, just playing two guitars or maybe him on guitar and me on mandolin," Nichtern adds. "We'd get very relaxed and get into this sort of open improv kind of picking. Some of it was very similar to what's on the record: moody and spacious."

"It seemed that those sessions were events that we both enjoyed, and we wondered if that could be replicated and recorded," Guest recalls. "We thought that perhaps we could get some of the same feel that we got when we were improvising."