# Duets between two male singers **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** music\ **Created:** [June 19, 2005, 3:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/duets-between-two-male-singers/308878 "2005-06-19T03:52:58Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![klintypooh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3da27b/32.png) [@klintypooh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/klintypooh)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2005, 1:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/duets-between-two-male-singers/308878/41 "2005-06-19T13:46:29Z")
Oh, and Brandy and Monica did **The Boy Is Mine**. ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2005, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/duets-between-two-male-singers/308878/42 "2005-06-19T13:48:03Z")
Willie Nelson and Frank Sinatra both did albums full of duets with other (All male, I **think** ) singers. ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2005, 1:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/duets-between-two-male-singers/308878/43 "2005-06-19T13:49:11Z")
> [@klintypooh](#): > > Elton John and George Michael did the ‘dont let the sun go down on me’ song. I’m not sure what the title is, although that is probably it. It is. ---
**Author:** ![Chanteuse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9de053/32.png) [@Chanteuse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chanteuse)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2005, 3:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/duets-between-two-male-singers/308878/44 "2005-06-19T15:26:21Z")
I heard a duet performed by Pavarotti and Sting. It was _Panis Angelicus_ and I found it surprisingly enjoyable. Something about the blend of Sting’s somewhat dry and scratchy voice and Pavarotti’s strong and fluid tones–I don’t know, but I really liked it. I know, I know, I’m a strange person! 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Eonwe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eonwe/32/240_2.png) [@Eonwe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eonwe)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2005, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/duets-between-two-male-singers/308878/45 "2005-06-19T15:56:31Z")
In the musical theatre world, there’s the song **Lilly’s Eyes** from the show Secret Garden. One of the best male/male duets out there, IMO. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2005, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/duets-between-two-male-singers/308878/46 "2005-06-19T15:59:45Z")
Most of my favorite examples have already been mentioned, but there’s also the duet that David Bowie and Mick Jagger did of “Dancing in the Streets” Sting and Mark Knopfler/Dire Straits on “Money for Nothing” Are you counting those groups (like the Beatles, the Beach Boys, They Might Be Giants) that have more than one lead vocalist, sometimes singing in unison or in back-and-forth interaction? (My favorite example: “The Slacks” by Trip Shakespeare) ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2005, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/duets-between-two-male-singers/308878/47 "2005-06-19T16:51:10Z")
> [@Otto](#): > > Oh, I suppose if you wanted to get esoteric about it, you could include _Hey There_ from “The Pajama Game,” in which John Raitt duets with a Dictaphone recording of himself. Damn! I was just gonna mention that. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2005, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/duets-between-two-male-singers/308878/48 "2005-06-19T16:58:05Z")
We might as well include all the songs sung by male duos such as the Righteous Brothers, the Everly Brothers, Simon and Garfunkel, etc. And there are tons of male duets in operas. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2005, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/duets-between-two-male-singers/308878/49 "2005-06-19T17:27:34Z")
I have a vague memory of Sting, Rod Stewart and Brian Adams singing a song from some film soundtrack… the Kiefer Sutherland/Charlie Sheen _Three Musketeers_? (Asks Mrs. Alessan, a fan of all three blonde singers) “All For Love.” That was it. ---
**Author:** ![AHunter3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ahunter3/32/368_2.png) [@AHunter3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AHunter3)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2005, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/duets-between-two-male-singers/308878/50 "2005-06-19T17:39:55Z")
I’m not a top-40 music fan, generally speaking, but I have to confess a fondness for the song “You Make Me Feel Brand New”, a duet by two guys who constitute the vocals for the _Stylistics_. ---
**Author:** ![parthenokinesis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/cc9497/32.png) [@parthenokinesis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/parthenokinesis)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2005, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/duets-between-two-male-singers/308878/51 "2005-06-19T17:50:59Z")
> [@Thudlow Boink](#): > > Are you counting those groups (like the Beatles, the Beach Boys, They Might Be Giants) that have more than one lead vocalist, sometimes singing in unison or in back-and-forth) My favorite would have to be “If I Had a Million $” by **Bare Naked Ladies** “I would buy you a green dress… But not a real green dress, cause that’s cruel” Jack ---
**Author:** ![Sunshine\_and\_Smiles](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a5b964/32.png) [@Sunshine\_and\_Smiles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunshine_and_Smiles)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2005, 6:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/duets-between-two-male-singers/308878/52 "2005-06-19T18:33:07Z")
Rufus Wainwright and Ben Folds do a live version of Careless Whisper that certainly fits the bill. Not my cup of tea, personally, but you gotta love that Ben Folds! ---
**Author:** ![Carm6773](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/2bfe46/32.png) [@Carm6773](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Carm6773)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2005, 10:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/duets-between-two-male-singers/308878/53 "2005-06-19T22:32:58Z")
Tim McGraw and Nelly colllaborated on a song (if that’s what you want to call it). I don’t know the name 'cause I don’t like it. “Shameless” was originally a song by Billy Joel that was then recorded by Garth Brooks. I **swear** I heard a version with both of them singing. Jimmy Buffet with Alan Jackson, “It’s 5o’clock Somewhere” Jimmy with AJ, George Strait, Brad Paisley and Toby Keith on a remake of “Hey Good Lookin’” Someone already got "Beer For My Horses, " but Toby offered his voice to the Cletus T. Judd (Country version of Weird Al) parody of “I Love This Bar” called “I Love NASCAR.” God, I’m a Country Music **Geek** , aren’t I? :smack: ---
**Author:** ![Laughing\_Lagomorph](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/6bbea6/32.png) [@Laughing\_Lagomorph](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Laughing_Lagomorph)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2005, 10:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/duets-between-two-male-singers/308878/54 "2005-06-19T22:42:28Z")
> [@Alessan](#): > > I have a vague memory of Sting, Rod Stewart and Brian Adams singing a song from some film soundtrack… the Kiefer Sutherland/Charlie Sheen _Three Musketeers_? > > … Bryan Adams also recorded “Don’t forget me when I’m gone” with the Canadian band Glass Tiger…if we are allowing songs recorded with one singer plus a whole other band. ---
**Author:** ![Eonwe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eonwe/32/240_2.png) [@Eonwe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eonwe)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2005, 11:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/duets-between-two-male-singers/308878/55 "2005-06-19T23:14:20Z")
I don’t know, is there a difference between a duet and a ‘song with a featured vocalist’? I would never call Dire Straits’ Money for Nothing, for example, a duet. Mark Knopfler sings it, and Sting adds some back-up stuff, harmony, and color. I don’t mean to hijack the OP, but there are plenty of ‘multi-singer’ songs, but somehow I think a duet is different. ---
**Author:** ![SisterCoyote](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/958977/32.png) [@SisterCoyote](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SisterCoyote)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2005, 11:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/duets-between-two-male-singers/308878/56 "2005-06-19T23:35:00Z")
Elton John and Nik Kershaw dueted on “Old Friend”; Elton and Paul Young on “I’m your Puppet”, both songs off the same album that brought you the Elton/RuPaul version of “Don’t go breakin’ my heart.” There’s also Axl Rose and Don Henley on “I will not go quietly,” but I think that violates the Eonwe rule above. ---
**Author:** ![ZeroGyro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/e47774/32.png) [@ZeroGyro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZeroGyro)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2005, 11:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/duets-between-two-male-singers/308878/57 "2005-06-19T23:46:09Z")
A favorite of mine is Johnny “Guitar” Watson and Larry Williams doing “Mercy, Mercy, Mercy.” ---
**Author:** ![Hung\_Mung](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a88e4f/32.png) [@Hung\_Mung](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hung_Mung)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2005, 12:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/duets-between-two-male-singers/308878/58 "2005-06-20T00:50:48Z")
“Sailing to Philadelphia” by Mark Knopfler and James Taylor. It’s totally sweet. ---
**Author:** ![Mister\_Rik](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mister_rik/32/491_2.png) [@Mister\_Rik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mister_Rik)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2005, 1:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/duets-between-two-male-singers/308878/59 "2005-06-20T01:24:50Z")
> [@panache45](#): > > We might as well include all the songs sung by male duos such as the Righteous Brothers, the Everly Brothers, Simon and Garfunkel, etc. I don’t think it’s considered a “duet” when it’s just one guy singing the melody and the other guy is only singing harmony behind him. In that case, it’s just a lead singer and a backup singer. In order to be a proper duet, I think both singers need to contribute roughly equal amounts of lead vocal. A duo doesn’t necessarily sing duets. Even The Beatles rarely sang duets - most of the time it was John or Paul singing lead and the other guy(s) singing harmony. ---
**Author:** ![LittleSable](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d6d6ee/32.png) [@LittleSable](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LittleSable)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2005, 1:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/duets-between-two-male-singers/308878/60 "2005-06-20T01:49:32Z")
> [@Carm6773](#): > > Tim McGraw and Nelly colllaborated on a song (if that’s what you want to call it). I don’t know the name 'cause I don’t like it. > > “Shameless” was originally a song by Billy Joel that was then recorded by Garth Brooks. I **swear** I heard a version with both of them singing. > > Jimmy Buffet with Alan Jackson, “It’s 5o’clock Somewhere” > > Jimmy with AJ, George Strait, Brad Paisley and Toby Keith on a remake of “Hey Good Lookin’” > > Someone already got "Beer For My Horses, " but Toby offered his voice to the Cletus T. Judd (Country version of Weird Al) parody of “I Love This Bar” called “I Love NASCAR.” > > God, I’m a Country Music **Geek** , aren’t I? :smack: Heh. I’m a country music geek too, which is why I’m surprised no one has yet to mention Waylon & Willie on “Mamas Don’t Let Your Babies Grow Up To Be Cowboys.” Travis Tritt and John Mellencamp did a duet called “What Say You.” Toby Keith has a duet with Merle Haggard on his new album. I suppose duos like Brooks & Dunn, Montgomery Gentry, and Big & Rich could be considered duets- at least on some songs; sometimes one singer takes the lead and the other is just back-up vocals, like **Phase42** said. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/duets-between-two-male-singers/308878.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/duets-between-two-male-singers/308878.md?page=4)