10. Easy Lover (1984)
Phil Collins and Philip Bailey
Somehow, Easy Lover weaves shameless cheese into brilliant gold. One reason is the decision by the two Phils to replace the horns they each typically sing over with badass electric guitars. Another is the pair's infectious enthusiasm -- which is odd, as they're singing about a dangerous woman who puts men on their knees. On second thought, their enthusiasm makes perfect sense.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n9xY_cPenSs
9. This Mess We're In (2000)
Thom Yorke and PJ Harvey
Every rock snob's favorite duet of the past decade is the centerpiece of Harvey's Mercury Prize–winning Stories from the City, Stories from the Sea. This pairing has an air of inevitability to it, from Harvey's trademark guitar strum and the Radiohead frontman's pitch-perfect falsetto to the song's tale of doomed love. It's what you'd expect: profoundly gloomy and impossibly beautiful.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V2BGW0BsHW0
8. Under Pressure (1981)
David Bowie and Freddie Mercury (Queen)
Bowie and Mercury: a collaboration so perfect not even Vanilla Ice could tarnish its legacy. Although that distinctive bass line has become deservedly famous, it's the pairing of two of rock's most dramatic voices that sets this song apart. Born out of an impromptu jam session, it evolved into one of the most inspiring musical moments of the 1980s.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=faUuwRDRrqA
7. Candy (1990)
Iggy Pop and Kate Pierson
Iggy went through a "radio-friendly" phase in the late '80s and early '90s, culminating in his inclusion on the Pretty Woman soundtrack and this unlikely pairing with this B-52s vocalist. The tale of an ex-con reaching out to his lost love after 20 years, Candy makes brilliant use of Iggy's sly, world-weary baritone and Pierson's usual sunny tones. The result is an unheralded modern-rock classic.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M4v4DXLqm48
6. Some Velvet Morning (1967)
Nancy Sinatra and Lee Hazlewood
Wading into deep waters (by Nancy Sinatra standards), Hazlewood's psychedelic composition weaves references to sex, drugs, daffodils and Greek mythology into a baroque, incomprehensible masterpiece that's as cool as it is strange. The oblique dialogue between a man and an ethereal angel/lover/wood nymph has had rock fans scratching their heads for decades.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gbadg5BAb1E
5. Interlude (1994)
Siouxsie Sioux and Morrissey
Goth queen Siouxsie and "Pope of Mope" Morrissey got together and created a ballad so gorgeously melancholy it makes Love Will Tear Us Apart sound like Sussudio. Then a "falling out" between the moody duo led them both to choose staying home and pouting over promoting the single. Despite their best efforts, Interlude was among the biggest hits for either artist that year.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yjUKAETwDKg
4. Je t'Aime ... Moi Non Plus (1969)
Jane Birkin and Serge Gainsbourg
Gainsbourg, France's enfant terrible of sleaze and seduction, originally recorded the overtly sexual Je t'aime ... with his then-lover, Brigitte Bardot, who blocked its release, as she was still married. This version was recorded a year later with his next lover, English actress Jane Birkin. Scandalous even by French standards, this deliciously dirty single peaked at an appropriate No. 69 in the U.S.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sHiMDB19Dyc
3. I'll Be There for You/You're All I Need to Get By (1995)
Mary J. Blige and Method Man
The unlikely pairing of Blige and the Wu-Tang MC pull the classic Motown spirit of Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell (not to mention the original chorus from their You're All I Need to Get By) into the hip-hop era --and won a Grammy for Best Rap Performance. The key? Subtlety. Unlike the majority of R&B/rap collaborations, this one keeps it smooth and sultry.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GfuRCnWV698
2. Ain't Nothing Like the Real Thing (1968)
Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell
Choosing the "best" of Gaye's duets with Terrell is a little ridiculous: It's like crowning the world's best ice cream flavor. They remain the gold standard by which all other duets are judged. Let's just say that Real Thing barely edges Ain't No Mountain High Enough as the signature Gaye/Terrell song. Fittingly, both were written by another future power duo: Ashford & Simpson.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eEcLuVhRbkU
1. Fairtayle of New York (1987)
Kirsty MacColl and Shane McGowan (The Pogues)
A guy in the drunk tank reminiscing about his junkie girlfriend doesn't exactly scream Merry Christmas, but McGowan and MacColl invest this yuletide tale of love in the gutter with so much heart it's hard not to get choked up. Following a reissue in the wake of MacColl's tragic death in 2000, the song has routinely topped Best Christmas Song polls in the U.K
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NrAwK9juhhY
Phil Collins and Philip Bailey
Somehow, Easy Lover weaves shameless cheese into brilliant gold. One reason is the decision by the two Phils to replace the horns they each typically sing over with badass electric guitars. Another is the pair's infectious enthusiasm -- which is odd, as they're singing about a dangerous woman who puts men on their knees. On second thought, their enthusiasm makes perfect sense.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n9xY_cPenSs
9. This Mess We're In (2000)
Thom Yorke and PJ Harvey
Every rock snob's favorite duet of the past decade is the centerpiece of Harvey's Mercury Prize–winning Stories from the City, Stories from the Sea. This pairing has an air of inevitability to it, from Harvey's trademark guitar strum and the Radiohead frontman's pitch-perfect falsetto to the song's tale of doomed love. It's what you'd expect: profoundly gloomy and impossibly beautiful.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V2BGW0BsHW0
8. Under Pressure (1981)
David Bowie and Freddie Mercury (Queen)
Bowie and Mercury: a collaboration so perfect not even Vanilla Ice could tarnish its legacy. Although that distinctive bass line has become deservedly famous, it's the pairing of two of rock's most dramatic voices that sets this song apart. Born out of an impromptu jam session, it evolved into one of the most inspiring musical moments of the 1980s.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=faUuwRDRrqA
7. Candy (1990)
Iggy Pop and Kate Pierson
Iggy went through a "radio-friendly" phase in the late '80s and early '90s, culminating in his inclusion on the Pretty Woman soundtrack and this unlikely pairing with this B-52s vocalist. The tale of an ex-con reaching out to his lost love after 20 years, Candy makes brilliant use of Iggy's sly, world-weary baritone and Pierson's usual sunny tones. The result is an unheralded modern-rock classic.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M4v4DXLqm48
6. Some Velvet Morning (1967)
Nancy Sinatra and Lee Hazlewood
Wading into deep waters (by Nancy Sinatra standards), Hazlewood's psychedelic composition weaves references to sex, drugs, daffodils and Greek mythology into a baroque, incomprehensible masterpiece that's as cool as it is strange. The oblique dialogue between a man and an ethereal angel/lover/wood nymph has had rock fans scratching their heads for decades.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gbadg5BAb1E
5. Interlude (1994)
Siouxsie Sioux and Morrissey
Goth queen Siouxsie and "Pope of Mope" Morrissey got together and created a ballad so gorgeously melancholy it makes Love Will Tear Us Apart sound like Sussudio. Then a "falling out" between the moody duo led them both to choose staying home and pouting over promoting the single. Despite their best efforts, Interlude was among the biggest hits for either artist that year.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yjUKAETwDKg
4. Je t'Aime ... Moi Non Plus (1969)
Jane Birkin and Serge Gainsbourg
Gainsbourg, France's enfant terrible of sleaze and seduction, originally recorded the overtly sexual Je t'aime ... with his then-lover, Brigitte Bardot, who blocked its release, as she was still married. This version was recorded a year later with his next lover, English actress Jane Birkin. Scandalous even by French standards, this deliciously dirty single peaked at an appropriate No. 69 in the U.S.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sHiMDB19Dyc
3. I'll Be There for You/You're All I Need to Get By (1995)
Mary J. Blige and Method Man
The unlikely pairing of Blige and the Wu-Tang MC pull the classic Motown spirit of Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell (not to mention the original chorus from their You're All I Need to Get By) into the hip-hop era --and won a Grammy for Best Rap Performance. The key? Subtlety. Unlike the majority of R&B/rap collaborations, this one keeps it smooth and sultry.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GfuRCnWV698
2. Ain't Nothing Like the Real Thing (1968)
Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell
Choosing the "best" of Gaye's duets with Terrell is a little ridiculous: It's like crowning the world's best ice cream flavor. They remain the gold standard by which all other duets are judged. Let's just say that Real Thing barely edges Ain't No Mountain High Enough as the signature Gaye/Terrell song. Fittingly, both were written by another future power duo: Ashford & Simpson.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eEcLuVhRbkU
1. Fairtayle of New York (1987)
Kirsty MacColl and Shane McGowan (The Pogues)
A guy in the drunk tank reminiscing about his junkie girlfriend doesn't exactly scream Merry Christmas, but McGowan and MacColl invest this yuletide tale of love in the gutter with so much heart it's hard not to get choked up. Following a reissue in the wake of MacColl's tragic death in 2000, the song has routinely topped Best Christmas Song polls in the U.K
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NrAwK9juhhY
