If you have never seen the Smothers Brothers, it’s possible to pigeonhole them as kind of a one-trick-pony comedy act in which one brother plays a dumb guy who makes stuff up and the other plays a superior straight man.

A lot of their act does rely on this foundation, but it was apparent from the minute the brothers hit the stage at Kleinhans Music Hall Saturday night that their 50-some years of playing off each other has allowed Tom and Dick Smothers to hone their interactions to perfect comebacks delivered with superb comedic timing.

Looking trim, dapper, and just the slightest bit older than they were when CBS first harassed and censored, then fired them from their cutting-edge comedy hour back in 1969, the brothers took the stage with a song, to the tune of “Those Were the Days,” a 1968 hit:

“Once upon a time we were on TV/Every Sunday night we knocked them dead/We got into some trouble, so they fired us/I guess it was something that we said!”

Although there was a sprinkling of young people in the audience, for the vast majority of those in the almost-full house, both the song and the story were familiar, and people clapped along.

The brothers are strong musically, Dick’s clear tenor shining and Tom displaying top-notch guitar skills as he tackles genres from folk and classical to a fast-fingered flamenco.

The pair expressed their delight at playing in Buffalo again, with our great philharmonic. Tom explained the difference between a philharmonic orchestra and a symphony orchestra: A symphony orchestra, he said, “plays mostly in the key of C,” while a philharmonic “plays in any key it wants, and they’re paid a lot less.” The quip drew knowing laughter from the crowd.

Tom then began a story, starting off with the fact that he is a pilot — as is, he claimed, BPO Conductor Paul Ferington — and the brothers had flown into Syracuse, where they rented a Cessna and Tom flew his brother around the area, up the Niagara River, over the falls, a beautiful trip to take in October, when the leaves are turning colors. “Tom, this is not true!” Dick said, to which Tom replied, with a crafty smile, “A lot of it is true!”

Tom’s reasons for claiming to be a pilot ranged from, “When I walked on stage I could not recall not being a pilot” to “I used to work with Bernie Madoff!”

Even Dick got in a zinger: “You are a frequent flier. But no matter how many miles you accumulate, they never upgrade you to pilot!”

The brothers started off a medley of folk songs about towns in Texas, “Quando Caliente el Sol,” Gilbert and Sullivan’s “Poor Wandering One,” each dissolving into comedy,

confusion and chaos, or, in one case, into yodeling and Tom playing the “dueling banjos” song from “Deliverance.”

A segment in which a silent Tom did yo-yo tricks, wearing a plaid shirt and wide yellow suspenders, was mildly amusing, but fell short of the brothers’ verbal interactions. They recovered their momentum with a series of photos and videos of their past, ranging from their baby pictures to clips from their Comedy Hour, including songs by The Doors, The Who, Kenny Rogers and the brothers themselves singing Phil Ochs’ controversial “Draft Dodger Rag.”

Paul Ferington, who conducted the BPO through the first half of the concert, selected music that referred to the tumultuous times of the late 1960s and early 1970s, including selections from “Hair,” “West Side Story,” “Jesus Christ Superstar” and the Beatles’ “Yesterday,” all evocative and magnificently performed.

“Age of Aquarius” and “Let the Sunshine In,” the medley from “Hair,” was particularly moving when delivered by the majestic orchestra. Opening with a sweet and simple string note, it grew in power with additions of many musical voices, with layered percussion and tambourine contributions particularly appealing. The “West Side Story” overture and triumphant final piece from “Jesus Christ Superstar” filled the house with melodies that were familiar and sound that was intensified into a higher sphere.

Concert Review

Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra with the Smothers Brothers

Saturday night in Kleinhans Music Hall.