Top 20 Romantic Duets

As frequent love songwriter Paul McCartney as soon as sang, “Some people want to fill the world with silly love songs / And what’s wrong with that?“

Love has been considered one of music’s important themes all through historical past. Its universality and persistence have impressed nearly each songwriter and artist to precise themselves with love songs in some unspecified time in the future. “Although people change and their bodies change, and their hair grows grey and falls out and their bodies decay and die … there is something that doesn’t change also about love and about the feelings we have for people,” Leonard Cohen mentioned in 1992. “Love never dies.”

The greatest love songs aren’t essentially restricted to easy romantic proclamations, but in addition embody messages of devotion, forgiveness, lust, kindness and friendship. Beyond lyrics, the tempo, rhythm and instrumentation also can fill within the gaps the place bizarre phrases fail. Music can converse volumes and convey a better sense of ardour and achievement. And who higher to sing these foolish love songs with than a companion?

With that in thoughts, we check out the Top 20 Romantic Duets beneath. So cozy up with a companion, dim the lights and soak in these classing cuts.

20. “Close My Eyes Forever,” Ozzy Osbourne and Lita Ford (1988)

The ‘80s were a blurry time for Ozzy Osbourne, and one of the biggest hits of his career stemmed from a song he wanted little to do with. Buried at the end of former Runaways guitarist Lita Ford’s 1988 album Lita, “Close My Eyes Forever” proved to be a profitable mixture. The tune conversationally suggests an emotional wrestle between a weary couple, a tone carried over to the monitor itself – a possible aspect impact of the various makes an attempt to report the tune. (Matt Wardlaw)

19. “Almost Paradise,” Mike Reno and Ann Wilson (1984)

The story goes that Ann Wilson and Mike Reno have been requested who they needed to duet with on “Almost Paradise,” the love theme from Footloose. Wilson named Lou Gramm and Paul Rodgers; Reno mentioned simply two phrases: “Ann Wilson.” (The Loverboy singer as soon as mentioned the soundtrack tune nearly broke up his band.) Working from a gospel-infused piano demo by Eric Carmen, who wrote the tune with Dean Pitchford, Reno and Wilson scored one of many largest hits of their respective careers. (Wardlaw)

18. “Surrender to Me,” Robin Zander and Ann Wilson (1988)

The pairing of Heart’s Ann Wilson and Robin Zander of Cheap Trick was a dream team-up in 1988. Luck was beginning to flip for Cheap Trick due to the success of their Lap of Luxury album and No. 1 single “The Flame,” launched the identical 12 months as “Surrender to Me.” Wilson’s different soundtrack duet from the ’80s – “Almost Paradise” – is the extra well-liked tune, however “Surrender to Me,” from Tequila Sunrise and co-written by Richard Marx, stays an underrated gem of a duet from the period. (Wardlaw)

17. “Up Where We Belong,” Joe Cocker and Jennifer Warnes (1982)

In 1982, there was no film second extra romantic than Richard Gere carrying Debra Winger off in his arms on the conclusion of An Officer and a Gentleman. The well-known scene was made much more poignant by “Up Where We Belong,” the hovering ballad carried out by Joe Cocker and Jennifer Warnes. The monitor was successful, topping the Billboard chart and incomes the singers a Grammy Award. Songwriters Jack Nitzsche, Buffy Sainte-Marie and Will Jennings scored much more {hardware}, taking house each the Academy Award and Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song. (Corey Irwin)

16. “Stick With Me Baby,” Robert Plant and Alison Krauss (2007)

There are some duet companions whose voices meld collectively as if they have been meant for the pairing all alongside … like Robert Plant and Alison Krauss, whose harmonies throughout their collaborative albums Raising Sand (2007) and Raise the Roof (2021) exude tenderness and compassion. (Their chemistry is so profound that followers surprise whether or not Plant and Krauss’ relationship has ever been greater than platonic. Plant says no and identified if that was the case, “we’d be in trouble now.”) Not all of Plant and Krauss’ duets are historically “romantic”; it is their blended voices that give the music its romance, which is particularly evident in “Stick With Me Baby,” a tune first recorded by one other famed duo, the Everly Brothers. (Allison Rapp)

15. “Guilty,” Barbra Streisand Ft. Barry Gibb (1980)

Flush with Saturday Night Fever success, Bee Gees have been requested which act they have been most taken with producing. They had a frankly inexplicable response: “We said, ‘Barbra Streisand,'” the late Maurice Gibb later recalled. She did not simply comply with the bizarre pairing; Streisand gave Barry Gibb full management of the method. “Just call me,” she quipped, “when you’re ready for me to sing.” Gibb wrote or co-wrote each tune on Guilty and sang on two (together with the title monitor) whereas serving as producer and generally sideman on acoustic guitar. Perhaps unsurprisingly, “Guilty” sounds nothing in any respect like a Barbra Streisand report. This Grammy-winning Top 5 smash is simply proof that something Bee Gees touched again then turned to gold. (Nick DeRiso)

14. “Do That to Me One More Time,” Captain & Tennille (1979)

Get your thoughts out of the gutter. According to Toni Tennille, the “that” in “Do That to Me One More Time” refers to kissing. In later years it was revealed that Tennille was channeling frustrations about her relationship with husband Daryl “Captain” Dragon into her songwriting. Viewed by way of that lens, it’s straightforward to listen to the melancholy undertone operating all through the tune. Still, the tune stays a nice and ethereal hear, even when there’s not a lot substance to it. (Wardlaw)

13. “You’re the One That I Want,” John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John (1978)

“You’re the One That I Want” wasn’t a part of the Broadway model of Grease, which as a substitute included the Elvis Presley-inspired “All Choked Up” through the scene the place Sandy and Danny lastly get on the identical web page. For the 1978 film model, the producers needed a extra contemporary-sounding tune, in order that they employed longtime Olivia Newton-John collaborator John Farrar to provide you with this infectious duet. It was an ideal match and a worldwide smash, promoting 15 million copies internationally. Guess which tune will get utilized in new productions of the musical now? (Matthew Wilkening)

12. “Reunited,” Peaches & Herb (1978 )

This heartfelt love tune was born in a moderately sterile setting. Songwriting duo Dino Fekaris and Freddie Perren – who additionally penned ‘70s hits “I Will Survive” and “Shake Your Groove Thing” — came up with “Reunited” in a purposeful attempt to write a love ballad. Still, it was Peaches & Herb who gave the track its soul. With lyrics about a couple that had called it quits, only to come back together and have their romance burn brighter than ever before, “Reunited” struck a chord with music lovers everywhere. The song spent four weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1979 and sold more than 2 million copies. (Irwin)

11. “Take Me With U,” Prince (With Apollonia) (1984)

When Purple Rain movie director Albert Magnoli suggested the project needed a romantic duet, Prince took back the gorgeous “Take Me With U” from his protege group Apollonia 6, who were planning to use it on their debut album. Although it took some serious coaching to guide singer Apollonia through her vocal parts, the song’s tumbling percussion and soaring strings proved to be a perfect fit for the scene where the couple hops on Prince’s motorcycle and head for the purifying waters of (what’s supposed to be) Lake Minnetonka. (Wilkening)

10. “Insider,” Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers Ft. Stevie Nicks (1981)

Tom Petty and Stevie Nicks were speculated to be more than friends, but it’s a testament to their kinship that their collaborative work feels so intimate. The result is one of the ’80s’ best love songs, which Petty admitted he wrote with Nicks’ voice in mind. “I loved her voice,” Petty said in the 2005 book Conversations With Tom Petty. “We could make a pretty good sound, singing with the acoustic guitar.” In contrast to the duo’s other big collaboration, the searing “Stop Draggin’ My Heart Around,” “Insider” is remorseful, emotive, vulnerable – a “quiet world of white and gold.” (Rapp)

9. “Don’t Go Breaking My Heart,” Elton John and Kiki Dee (1976)

Like a long-distance relationship, Elton John and Kiki Dee recorded their respective vocals for “Don’t Go Breaking My Heart” lots of of miles aside. John and his band recorded their components in Toronto through the classes for his 1976 LP Blue Moves. The materials was then despatched to Dee, who added her vocals in London. Despite the far-flung nature of their recordings, the 2 singers present clear chemistry on the upbeat quantity. John and Bernie Taupin had been attempting to faucet into the identical power that helped Marvin Gaye rating a number of duet hits. Judging by the success of “Don’t Go Breaking My Heart” – which reached No. 1 in each the U.S. and U.Okay. – that mission was achieved. (Irwin)

8. “Our House,” Graham Nash and Joni Mitchell (2021)

It’s no wonder two of the early ’70s’ best singer-songwriters would fall in love. Graham Nash and Joni Mitchell split in 1970 but continued to pen songs about each other. (“I simply need to maintain you, I do not need to maintain you down,” Nash sang on 1971’s Songs for Beginners — “Now I’ve gone and misplaced one of the best child that I ever had,” Mitchell answered a few months later on Blue.) Before the breakup, Nash wrote about their domestic bliss in “Our House,” which appeared on Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young’s 1970 album Deja Vu. In 2021 an intimate demo featuring Nash and Mitchell appeared on the 50th-anniversary edition of the album. The sentiment has only gotten sweeter over the years. (Rapp)

7. “Stop Draggin’ My Heart Around,” Stevie Nicks and Tom Petty (1981)

Duetting with Tom Petty on “Stop Draggin’ My Heart Around” was a dream come true for Stevie Nicks. Not so much for Petty, though, who was initially skeptical of working with a member of what he considered a “huge company rock band.” He was determined to put “Draggin'” on the Heartbreakers’ Hard Promises LP until producer Jimmy Iovine convinced him to give it to Nicks instead. His intervention proved a blessing: Nicks brings an extra layer of gritty defiance, flipping the perspective and laying down a scorching harmony on top of his pre-recorded chorus vocal. The danger of “Stop Draggin’ My Heart Around” isn’t that one of them will buckle under the pressure of their fraught relationship; it’s that they’ll destroy each other before either admits defeat. (Bryan Rolli)

6. “I’d Do Anything for Love (But I Won’t Do That),” Meat Loaf (With Lorraine Crosby) (1993)

Meat Loaf’s 1993 comeback hit is not technically a duet as a result of solely the late singer is credited, however Lorraine Crosby’s powerhouse efficiency through the tune’s climactic traces are pivotal. Meat Loaf and songwriter Jim Steinman have been by no means fairly clear what “I’d Do Anything for Love” was about (they’ve mentioned the reply is correct there within the tune, however you want commander-level navigational abilities to comply with the winding path); what is obvious is how a lot Crosby (credited solely as Mrs. Loud) elevates the tune. Be positive to stay with the 12-minute album model, which heightens the drama to curtain-tearing theatrical ranges. – (Michael Gallucci)

5. “Islands in the Stream,” Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton (1982)

Few songs provide as much joy as this early ’80s summit of music legends. Written by Bee Gees, co-produced by Barry Gibb and sung by Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton, “Islands within the Stream” offers new thrills with every turn of its melody and vocal shifts. Parton’s solo entrance around the 90-second mark is breathtaking, but she’s just as exhilarating when she blends with Rogers. And she wasn’t even supposed to be on the track. “Islands within the Stream” was originally intended for Marvin Gaye and ended up with Rogers as a solo cut before Parton was recruited at the last minute – she was recording in an adjacent studio – for the duet. It went straight to No. 1. (Gallucci)

4. “It Takes Two,” Marvin Gaye and Kim Weston (1966)

Motown took this song’s title to heart. They were determined to shake Marvin Gaye out of his throwback commitment to the Great American Songbook and figured pairing him with a female singing partner might encourage some chart action, too. It led only to a series of heartbreaks. Motown tried in 1964 with Mary Wells, but she subsequently exited the label. They tried in 1965 with Kim Weston, and the billowing passions found on “It Takes Two” helped it become Gaye’s breakthrough single in the U.K. But then Weston followed Wells out the door. Gaye suffered through a failed collaboration with Oma Page, before finally finding the perfect match later in 1966 with Tammi Terrell. They scored a remarkable seven Top 40 singles before Terrell collapsed into Gaye’s arms while onstage in 1967. She died at age 24, after being diagnosed with a brain tumor. (DeRiso)

3. “Leather and Lace,” Stevie Nicks and Don Henley (1981)

“Leather and Lace” could have just as easily been called “Whiskey and Honey” for Stevie Nicks and Don Henley’s gorgeous vocal alchemy. The collaborators and former romantic partners weave a tale of two embattled lovers — one callous, the other tender — struggling to find common ground. An elegant acoustic guitar arrangement lays the foundation for Nicks and Henley’s vocals — plaintive and captivating on their own, but truly spellbinding when they join forces in the song’s heartrending chorus. (Rolli)

2. “I Got You Babe,” Sonny & Cher (1965)

Sonny Bono was barely in a position to rouse Cher from a late-night slumber to sing her half on “I Got You Babe.” “I didn’t like it and just said, ‘OK, I’ll sing it and then I’m going back to bed,'” she defined to ABC News. Luckily, his persistence paid off. Bono was working for Phil Spector on the time and properly saved this tune – by which the couple vows eternal love within the face of skeptical judgment from the surface world – for himself and his real-life spouse. The refrain’ insistent oboe provides a component of sophistication and timelessness. Released because the duo’s first single in July 1965, “I Got You Babe” spent three weeks on the high of the chart. It has gone on to grow to be of of probably the most enduring love songs in music historical past, boosted by media appearances such because the divorced couple’s 1987 reunion on Late Night With David Letterman and its recurring function in Bill Murray’s 1993 film Groundhog Day. (Wilkening)

1. “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough,” Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell (1967)

Songwriters Nick Ashford and Valerie Simpson knew what that they had with “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough” and refused to offer it to Dusty Springfield. “We felt like that could be our entry to Motown,” Simpson informed The Philadelphia Inquirer in 2011. “Nick called it the ‘golden egg.'” He was proper: Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell took their tune to the Billboard Top 20, establishing a sweetly romantic basis that Diana Ross would mimic when the Supremes recorded an replace of “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough” a 12 months later with the Temptations. In 1970, she was satisfied to take one other swing and noticed a radically reworked solo model streak to No. 1. (DeRiso)