"D.Gregory Griffith" wrote:

>     Tambo and Bones are or were stock figures from minstrel shows. In
> their
> original incarnation in the Christy Minstrels (the template for much
> of the
> standard fare of a minstrel show), the two figures were seated at the
> far ends
> of the semi-circle of minstrels on stage and one played tambourine and
> the other
> played bone castanets--there were duets which these two figures would
> perform
> together--and the Interlocutor who sat or stood stage center would
> initiate banter
> and jokes that would involve "Mr. Bones" and "Mr. Interlocutor" (this
> pair is
> probably vaguely familiar to most folks, but the actual pair of Bones
> and
> Tambo or the banter exchanged between "Mr. Tambo" and "Mr.
> Interlocutor,"
> that was also a stock feature, are less well known).

See, too, John Berryman's Dream Songs.