One of pop music’s best opportunities to explore its theatrical side reveals itself quite often in duets featuring aptly paired male and female performers. This form has persisted throughout many eras of music but perhaps never belonged more fully than during the '80s. Overwrought love songs and sickly sweet ballads tend to be the order of the day for such star pairings, but sometimes the combination of voices and memorable melodies helps transform the occasion into something more. Here’s a look at some of the decade’s finest two-gender partnerships.
1. Kenny Rogers & Kim Carnes-“Don’t Fall in Love with a Dreamer”
During the early '80s, Kenny Rogers was the duet partner du jour for a number of female performers thanks to his massive country-pop crossover success. Consequently, there are a number of duets featuring that grey-bearded wonder that could easily crack this list. However, I choose this one not just because it’s my personal favorite but because Rogers’ chemistry with the previously all-pop Carnes (who also co-wrote the song) is surprisingly engaging. As such, the track displays far more genuine passion and compelling heartache than it has any business having, given its glossy, highly mainstream pop style.
2. Lita Ford & Ozzy Osbourne-“Close My Eyes Forever”
This tune is a special case in which the individual performers just happen to deliver top-notch efforts, which results in a surprisingly moving and lingering combination. The song’s haunting, arpeggiated acoustic guitar opening may be the key to its success, as it allows both singers to display a gift for balladry they’re not really known for. This makes up quite nicely for the relatively vapid lyrics that don’t really say much, as the main attraction clearly turns out to be the pleasing way these hard rock legends actually sound together. A pretty respectable late-'80s hair metal moment.
3. Stevie Nicks & Don Henley-“Leather & Lace”
Male vulnerability never had it as good as this gentle acoustic ballad, which showcased two of the '70s finest singers, in another inspired combination. I always sang along to this song, behind closed doors, of course, imagining a duet with whatever unattainable crush I may have had at the time. Nicks’ trademark raspy, sultry delivery contrasts interestingly with Henley’s smooth, high tenor, spotlighting the somewhat heavy-handed but effective metaphor of the title in lyrics like these: “Sometimes I’m a strong man, sometimes cold and scared, and sometimes I cry.” Cue the sharing circle, boys.
4. Sergio Mendes-“Never Gonna Let You Go”
If you can get past the sappy lyrics and the annoying fact that the artist name obscures the actual singers of the song, this ballad brings back the '80s memories in a gush of sticky sweetness. Sung in generic anonymity by Joe Pizzulo (who sounds like a poor man’s James Ingram) and Leza Miller (I can’t even think of anyone she sounds like), the song manages to stand out in spite of its unremarkability. The saving grace must be the memorable melodic rush of the verse and the payoff of the chorus, which recently earned official immortality through an appearance in a Geico commercial.
5. Atlantic Starr-“Secret Lovers”
Though not strictly a duet because it’s performed by a group, this song perfectly encapsulates the prototypical male-female duet format. It sets up a dramatic scene and introduces listeners to two characters in a conflict-ridden situation. It’s difficult to remember this once the slick and almost soul-free production kicks in, but this is decidedly adult material even if most of the starch is taken out of it. Nonetheless, this is doubtless an emblematic tune of the '80s, ripe for parody but also patently irresistible when it comes to a sing-along opportunity.
6. Ann Wilson & Robin Zander-“Surrender to Me”
Naturally, it’s impossible to get through a top 10 list of male-female duets without considering at least a few movie soundtrack entries. And although this one remains squarely in the shadow of more prominent silver screen duets of the period like “Up Where We Belong” and “Endless Love”, it holds its own quite well as pleasant romantic balladry for when the credits roll. Co-written by '80s soft rocker extraordinaire Richard Marx, the tune offers pleasant enough handholding background music while also benefiting strongly from the well-matched vocal presence of Wilson and Zander.
7. Peter Cetera & Amy Grant-“The Next Time I Fall”
When this song shot to No. 1 on the pop charts in 1986, Amy Grant was a big star only in Christian music circles, but her partnership with former Chicago bassist and singer Cetera produced musical ambrosia as sweet as fruit from the Garden of Eden. Cetera had already built a reputation as balladeer during the past decade with his former band, but on his first major solo release he certainly left behind all remaining vestiges of his rock and roll past. In doing so, he crafted a syrupy but highly melodic minor classic that mines the universally affecting subjects of love, loss and longing.
8. Phil Collins & Marilyn Martin-“Separate Lives”
Perhaps not many fans of this lovely, achingly slow ballad know that its songwriter is '70s pop singer-songwriter Stephen Bishop. Perhaps fewer still realize just how fine a songwriter Bishop is, but this song illustrates that fact clearly. As sung by pop superstar Collins and relative unknown Martin, the tune rises to the best of its potential precisely because it’s presented in duet form, which allows for emotionally charged give-and-take between the two performers. But more than anything else Bishop has captured a timeless melody whose permanence extends out from its solid structural qualities.
9. Patti Austin & James Ingram-“Baby Come to Me”
By their very nature, duets tend to be sappy, but this one’s course toward becoming a monster hit is particularly coated in sentimentality. After scarcely scraping the edge of the Top 40 in 1982, the tune was resurrected as love scene accompaniment for the ABC soap opera General Hospital. As the result of enthusiastic fan response and serendipity, the song received a second look on the charts, climbing to No. 1 in early 1983. It’s definitely one of the sexiest tunes on this list, communicating a sense of romantic longing and anticipation with the aid of a sultry groove.
10. Olivia Newton-John & Cliff Richard-“Suddenly”
The male-female duet works as a highly dramatic form, and perhaps that’s why it’s so often linked with filmed entertainment, particularly cinematic releases. In this case, the rather disastrous 1980 film Xanadu provided an appropriate arena for a number of hit songs by its star, Newton-John. While the title track and “Magic” are more well-known, this mid-tempo ballad arguably represents just as pleasurable a melodic experience. Joining with Richard, a British pop legend with plenty of pedigree himself, Newton-John delivers a silky smooth if not challenging brand of romantic pop.
