Unexpected Duets

I just finished reading the book, The Name of This Band Is R.E.M. I enjoyed it — a 4/5 from me on Goodreads. What it lacked in its “this happened, then this happened, then this happened” structure, it made up for in its subject matter and insight into the band’s growth.

Two wonderful things came out of the read for me. The first is an appreciation for the R.E.M. albums that I thought I didn’t love. I am what the book refers to as a murmurer. Thanks to my age, I got obsessed with R.E.M. between their EP Chronic Town and their first album, Murmur. While Murmur remains my favorite album of theirs, I adore everything through Life’s Rich Pageant. After that, they gained a sound that made them infinitely more popular but lost the enigmatic murmuring that I so loved. I bought all the albums through New Adventures in HiFi and appreciated many of the hits. How could you not? The One I Love and Losing My Religion are perfect songs. Getting walked through what led to Document, Green, Out of Time, Automatic for the People, and Monster gifted me what feel like new albums.

The other thing I got from the book is a reminder of two terrific duets, Shiny Happy People and A Campfire Song. Michael Stipe seems like a nice, friendly, generous guy who liked working with others. These songs sent me down a rabbit hole, thinking about other great duets. Like any “best of” list worth its salt, I had to make a bunch of stipulations. Songs on this list had to be people you would not expect to sing together -- no John and Paul, Mick and Keith, or Nancy Sinatra and Lee Hazlewood on this list. I also nixed any people who collaborated on a whole record. There are a few obvious ones, hugely popular, totally from my era, that I just don’t like as much as these. Please name yours in the comments.

Shiny Happy People, Michael Stipe and Kate Pierson.

The Name of this Band is R.E.M. is almost worth reading just for the trivia about this song. The band may not hate Shiny Happy People, but it does bother them that this piece of pop perfection is what many people know R.E.M. for. For the entire time R.E.M. was on IRS records, the band refused to record music videos that would be acceptable to MTV. After they moved to Warner Bros., the IRS execs were devastated to see the charming video of this song. To see what they were producing while they were on IRS, take a look at the Fall on Me video. Years later, Michael Stipe, Mike Mills, and Peter Buck performed Furry Happy Monsters with the Muppets. A Kate Pierson Muppet stands in for her.

Before the vocals, Shiny Happy People begins with the Peter Buck Guitar that made every critic add “jangly” to their vocabulary and had Michael Stipe bragging that Buck had “the best right hand in Rock and Roll”. Then comes everything I love about a great rock duet. The two singers are clearly identifiable. There is a good backstory about their relationship. They seem to enjoy singing together. While I appreciate Stipe’s vocals, you hear what a talent Pierson is; her voice cuts through other vocals and instruments in such a pleasing way. Really, this song is a trio. Mike Mills has a significant vocal part. I’m gonna say that just makes it better.

A Campfire Song, Natalie Merchant and Michael Stipe

When I was finding my way into the 10,000 Maniacs album In My Tribe during college, I remember hearing Michael Stipe’s voice chime in, trading parts on the bridge. It is not a big part, but it makes the song a subtle environmental protest. I never knew much about their relationship, which is covered in some depth in The Name of This Band. A couple of years later, 10/16/87, I saw 10,000 Maniacs open for R.E.M. at the Philadelphia Spectrum. The concert was terrific, with the lead singers joining each other’s bands for parts of the set.

One More Cup of Coffee, Bob Dylan and Emmylou Harris

This song could also be considered a trio since Scarlet Rivera’s violin is like a third voice. It’s a haunting song. The percussion is totally amazing. I think Harris challenges Dylan because he goes all in on the singing. There is another song in his catalogue that he really sings like this. The singers’ voices have nothing in common; there is no real harmonizing, but they sound great together. There are amazing covers of this song – The White Stripes, Robert Palmer – but, for me, none even approach the original.

Girl from the North Country, Bob Dylan and Johnnie Cash

Nashville Skyline is a strange album. The songs are uneven, and Bob barely even sounds like himself. I actually like the version of Girl from the North Country on The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan better than this one. That said, the Nashville Skyline version is charming. Dylan and Cash are clearly having a good time, and you can hear their mutual respect and admiration. They duet not just with their voices but with their guitars. I like that Cash’s vocals make Dylan sound like Sinatra. I recently was fed this video on IG, and it made me wish I could have been hanging out with them.

Carpetbaggers Jenny Lewis and Elvis Costello

I think Jenny Lewis can do no wrong. She is uncategorizable, sometimes rock, sometimes country, often just called Americana. I loved Rilo Kiley, and her solo output is even better. Sarah and I saw her perform Rabbit Fur Coat at The Chicago Theater, and the concert ranks with my favorites of all time.

Carpetbaggers reminds me of A Campfire Song; it’s an enjoyable song with great primary vocals that hits another level when the second, outrageously recognizable voice comes in. I am pretty sure that Elvis Costello is doing his best Elvis Costello impression here.

You’re So Vain, Carly Simon and Mick Jagger

This shouldn’t really qualify. It is barely a duet. If this makes the list, then Gimmer Shelter should. Mick’s is a backup singer here, rather than a true partner. But, come on! He starts with understated backing vocals and then becomes more recognizable as the song progresses. By the end, you can’t miss him. It has begun to sound like a Stones song. The story is that the duet was unplanned and only came to be because Jagger happened to be in the studio.

You’re So Vain is 1970s pop/rock perfection. Carly Simon’s voice is perfect. The song is wonderfully harsh.

Well you’re where you should be all the time
And when you’re not, you’re with some underworld spy
Or the wife of a close friend, wife of a close friend

If the song was written today, it would be called Swiftian, but it proves that Simon was Swiftian 17 years prior to the birth of Taylor. I also like the song because it reminds me of my mother, who loved the song (and had her own crush on Warren Beatty).

Our House, Graham Nash and Joni Mitchell

A deep cut here. Graham Nash wrote this song as an ode to how wonderful life was, however briefly, with Joni Mitchell. The song describes their home together. This version has them just messing around. The sound is awful, but hearing these two amazing voices la-la-la-ing is priceless. Nash does most of the singing, occasionally seeming to willfully drown Joni out. They sound pretty happy here, but just from the vocal give and take, I can imagine her getting fed up with him.

Straight to Hell, Lily Allen and Mick Jones

Ok, this gets in based on the history, the trivia, the quality of the song, rather than the quality of the duet. Like Girl from the North Country, this version is not as good as the original — the song that ends the first side of The Clash’s Combat Rock. I consider Straight to Hell the finale for one of my favorite bands; a band I can’t imagine my adolescence without. It’s a classic late Clash tune: creatively arranged, politically aware, intelligently written.

Lilly Allen’s family was close with Joe Strummer — I have heard she referred to him as Uncle Joe. Here is Allen dueting with Mick Jones on a Strummer classic, seven years after his death. As reimagined, this version is a perfect balance of the original, post-Clash Mick Jones, and vintage aughts Lilly Allen.

The Mess We’re In, PJ Harvey and Thom Yorke

The opening guitar on The Mess We’re In reminds me that there will never be a better instrument than the electric guitar. People may not like this song because, although it is on a Harvey record, Yorke dominates, and people either love or hate the Radiohead frontman. Often, he uses his voice as an instrument. Here he is making his way through lyrics that are clearly intelligible. Harvey’s voice is beautiful, but it is used as an ornament here. The call-and-response part of the song — the only part that Harvey really occupies — is lyrically and musically wonderful.

Whenever I hear this song, I end up putting on OK Computer (which is a better album than In Rainbows, VP!).

I included a playlist for my previous music post, Family, Friends, and Rock & Roll, so I feel like I need to do it here: nine songs, no surprises. Please chime in with your favorites.