# What singer has outlived most of his/her singing partners? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 21, 2017, 12:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-singer-has-outlived-most-of-his-her-singing-partners/787136 "2017-05-21T12:53:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Superdude](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/superdude/32/13450_2.png) [@Superdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superdude)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2017, 12:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-singer-has-outlived-most-of-his-her-singing-partners/787136/1 "2017-05-21T12:53:48Z")
So at work the other night, I heard [“Knew You Were Waiting for Me”](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KBCWLhlJV0Y) by Aretha Franklin and George Michael. And it occurred to me that Aretha had outlived George, even despite some of her own medical problems (including obesity, alcoholism, being a former chain smoker, rumored pancreatic cancer, and being 75 years old). So that got me to thinking: what singer - still living - has recorded the most duets with people who have since died? It doesn’t matter if the deceased was born before the living person. That’s immaterial to the question as I see it. Would it be someone older, like a Tony Bennett? Someone young, like a Lady Gaga? I want someone with an established solo/group career. Not someone who seemed to only sing with others (in a duo format…again, someone like Cass Elliott would be okay, as she had her career with The Mamas & the Papas, and her solo career. I don’t know whether she recorded a bunch of duets. I only included her as a reference point). ---
**Author:** ![Ellis\_Aponte\_Jr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@Ellis\_Aponte\_Jr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ellis_Aponte_Jr)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2017, 2:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-singer-has-outlived-most-of-his-her-singing-partners/787136/2 "2017-05-21T14:03:32Z")
Interesting question. Just to throw a name out to get the conversation started, I thought of Nancy Sinatra. She recorded duets with Elvis Presley (“Ain’t Nothing Like a Song”) d. 1977 Dean Martin (“Things”) d. 1995 Frank Sinatra (“Somethin’ Stupid,” which she also sang on TV with her brother Frank Sinatra Jr., who passed away last year) d. 1998 Lee Hazlewood (“Some Velvet Morning” & others). d. 2007 She also sang duets with Mel Tillis (“Texas Cowboy Night” & others), whom I thought was dead but is still with us at age 84 ---
**Author:** ![Ellis\_Aponte\_Jr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@Ellis\_Aponte\_Jr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ellis_Aponte_Jr)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2017, 2:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-singer-has-outlived-most-of-his-her-singing-partners/787136/3 "2017-05-21T14:12:07Z")
Doris Day recorded duets with Buddy Clark, d. 1949 Gordon MacRae, d. 1986 Johnnie Ray, d. 1990 Danny Thomas, d. 1991 Guy Mitchell, d. 1999 Donald O’Connor, d. 2003 Frankie Laine, d. 2007 ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2017, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-singer-has-outlived-most-of-his-her-singing-partners/787136/4 "2017-05-21T14:24:35Z")
Paul McCartney outlived Michael Jackson and his wife Linda. ---
**Author:** ![Superdude](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/superdude/32/13450_2.png) [@Superdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superdude)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2017, 2:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-singer-has-outlived-most-of-his-her-singing-partners/787136/5 "2017-05-21T14:29:11Z")
> [@Ellis\_Aponte\_Jr](#): > > Interesting question. Just to throw a name out to get the conversation started, I thought of Nancy Sinatra. She recorded duets with > > Elvis Presley (“Ain’t Nothing Like a Song”) d. 1977 > Dean Martin (“Things”) d. 1995 > Frank Sinatra (“Somethin’ Stupid,” which she also sang on TV with her brother Frank Sinatra Jr., who passed away last year) d. 1998 > Lee Hazlewood (“Some Velvet Morning” & others). d. 2007 > > She also sang duets with Mel Tillis (“Texas Cowboy Night” & others), whom I thought was dead but is still with us at age 84 Were you thinking of [Merle Haggard](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Merle_Haggard), perhaps? ---
**Author:** ![Ellis\_Aponte\_Jr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@Ellis\_Aponte\_Jr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ellis_Aponte_Jr)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2017, 2:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-singer-has-outlived-most-of-his-her-singing-partners/787136/6 "2017-05-21T14:34:16Z")
> [@Superdude](#): > > Were you thinking of [Merle Haggard](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Merle_Haggard), perhaps? Nah, I just hadn’t heard about Mel Tillis in a while. I guess he stopped recording in the 1990s (?) ---
**Author:** ![Quercus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/7ab992/32.png) [@Quercus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quercus)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2017, 2:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-singer-has-outlived-most-of-his-her-singing-partners/787136/7 "2017-05-21T14:41:00Z")
> [@astorian](#): > > Paul McCartney outlived Michael Jackson and his wife Linda. Didn’t Paul McCartney once record with another singer? Seems familiar… (and wasn’t Michael Jackson’s wife named Lisa and is still alive?) ---
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2017, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-singer-has-outlived-most-of-his-her-singing-partners/787136/8 "2017-05-21T14:50:01Z")
No, he meant that Paul’s wife’s name was Linda. ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2017, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-singer-has-outlived-most-of-his-her-singing-partners/787136/9 "2017-05-21T14:50:46Z")
Barbra Streisand may be a contender. She definitely did duets with the late Judy Garland, Ray Charles, Frank Sinatra and Donna Summer. She may yet outlive Barry Gibb and Neil Diamond. There are bound to be others Barbra has recorded duets with. ---
**Author:** ![Channing\_Idaho\_Banks](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/channing_idaho_banks/32/250_2.png) [@Channing\_Idaho\_Banks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Channing_Idaho_Banks)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2017, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-singer-has-outlived-most-of-his-her-singing-partners/787136/10 "2017-05-21T14:55:01Z")
> [@Superdude](#): > > Would it be someone older, like a Tony Bennett? Someone young, like a Lady Gaga? I know people talk like this but I didn’t think that people write this way. There is only one Tony, and only one Gaga. ---
**Author:** ![TreacherousCretin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treacherouscretin/32/476_2.png) [@TreacherousCretin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TreacherousCretin)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2017, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-singer-has-outlived-most-of-his-her-singing-partners/787136/11 "2017-05-21T17:01:02Z")
> [@astorian](#): > > Paul McCartney outlived Michael Jackson and his wife Linda. Not to mention Lennon and Harrison. ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2017, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-singer-has-outlived-most-of-his-her-singing-partners/787136/12 "2017-05-21T17:56:25Z")
King Crimson has had a bunch of different singers. Robert Fripp has outlived Boz Burrell as well as Greg Lake and Jon Wetton (who both died in the past year). ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2017, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-singer-has-outlived-most-of-his-her-singing-partners/787136/13 "2017-05-21T19:11:02Z")
Bill Medley easily outlived Bobby Hatfield. The Righteous Brothers lives on as Bill Medley with Bucky Heard as the duos tenor. [http://m.lasvegassun.com/vegasdeluxe/2016/mar/24/review-bill-medley-bucky-heard-soar-righteous-brot/](http://m.lasvegassun.com/vegasdeluxe/2016/mar/24/review-bill-medley-bucky-heard-soar-righteous-brot/) ---
**Author:** ![Enginerd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/bcef8e/32.png) [@Enginerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enginerd)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2017, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-singer-has-outlived-most-of-his-her-singing-partners/787136/14 "2017-05-21T19:53:08Z")
I’ll nominate [Emmylou Harris](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emmylou_Harris), who’s made a long career of collaborations. There’s a complete list [here](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emmylou_Harris_appearances), but a few of the highlights include Johnny Cash, Roy Orbison, Lou Reed, David Bowie, Levon Helm, BB King, Townes van Zandt, and Warren Zevon. ---
**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:** [May 22, 2017, 12:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-singer-has-outlived-most-of-his-her-singing-partners/787136/15 "2017-05-22T00:16:25Z")
> [@astorian](#): > > Barbra Streisand may be a contender. She definitely did duets with the late Judy Garland, Ray Charles, Frank Sinatra and Donna Summer. She may yet outlive Barry Gibb and Neil Diamond. > > There are bound to be others Barbra has recorded duets with. Streisand has recorded several entire albums of duets. My WAG is that quite a few of them are no longer living. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2017, 12:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-singer-has-outlived-most-of-his-her-singing-partners/787136/16 "2017-05-22T00:40:41Z")
> [@Superdude](#): > > I want someone with an established solo/group career. Not someone who seemed to only sing with others (in a duo format…again, someone like Cass Elliott would be okay, as she had her career with The Mamas & the Papas, and her solo career. I don’t know whether she recorded a bunch of duets. I only included her as a reference point). Her duet partner, Dave Mason, outlived her. Mason also did duets with Michael Jackson and Phoebe Snow. He performed (guitar and sometimes backup vocals) with Delaney Bramlett, Jimi Hendrix, George Harrison, and Jim Capaldi. ---
**Author:** ![Face\_Intentionally\_Left\_Blank](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/face_intentionally_left_blank/32/288_2.png) [@Face\_Intentionally\_Left\_Blank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Face_Intentionally_Left_Blank)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2017, 3:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-singer-has-outlived-most-of-his-her-singing-partners/787136/17 "2017-05-22T03:47:30Z")
> [@RealityChuck](#): > > Her duet partner, Dave Mason, outlived her. Mason also did duets with Michael Jackson and Phoebe Snow. He performed (guitar and sometimes backup vocals) with Delaney Bramlett, Jimi Hendrix, George Harrison, and Jim Capaldi. All the low-hanging fruit is gone, so I got nuthin’. Going OT a bit though, [Mason & Capaldi’s live version of, “Low Spark of High-Healed Boys”](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=348YeQ-7TcE) is awesome. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2017, 9:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-singer-has-outlived-most-of-his-her-singing-partners/787136/18 "2017-05-25T21:24:15Z")
Barry Gibb has outlived his younger brothers and band mates Robin and Maurice (and younger brother Andy). Brian Wilson has outlived his younger brothers and band mates Dennis and Carl. ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2017, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-singer-has-outlived-most-of-his-her-singing-partners/787136/19 "2017-05-25T22:13:55Z")
Liza Minnelli has performed with a huge number of other people. The ones I can find who’ve since died include: Judy Garland Charles Aznavour Luciano Pavarotti Donna Summer Frank Sinatra Sammy Davis, Jr. And I’m not even including her Broadway or movie work. I’m also not counting Michael Jackson, because I can’t find a reliable cite that they actually ever sang together in public. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2017, 1:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-singer-has-outlived-most-of-his-her-singing-partners/787136/20 "2017-05-26T01:08:59Z")
I’m lazy and haven’t read the entire thread Anyone mention Willie Nelson? He’s outlived EVERYBODY. LOL all the singers that he sold songs too as a songwriter. He’s partnered with a lot of stars, Ray Charles, Waylon, Cash, Haggard, you name them. Willie outlived them all. He’s too stoned to die. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-singer-has-outlived-most-of-his-her-singing-partners/787136.md?page=2)