6 Music DJs' favourite musical collaborations We asked a few of our presenters to pick their most memorable collaborations - check them out below...
Tom Robinson I'm a sucker for great pop music and the Traveling Wilburys, shamefully overlooked by revisionist rock historians, are in my opinion the greatest musical collaboration of all time. Honestly - as if a lineup of Dylan, Roy Orbison, Tom Petty and Jeff Lynne wasn't enough - they then roped in a Beatle for good measure.
Of course there have been plenty of all-star ego-stroking lineups at gala concerts since time immemorial. But lots of big names doesn't automatically equal great music. The Wilburys' LP was different: a bona fide record in its own right, immaculately produced and crammed with catchy tunes that still sound fresh as ever. Each vocalist takes his turn in the spotlight without ever hogging it - and it sounds as if these recording sessions were simply enormous fun.
Marc Riley As far as most memorable collaboration goes there’s surely only one contender: David Bowie and Bing Crosby's Peace On Earth/Little Drummer Boy. The chemistry between them is… erm… well… NON-EXISTENT. A little background information: the story goes that Crosby didn’t know who Bowie was and Bowie refused to sing Little Drummer Boy as he hated the song (great start!). As a result Peace on Earth was inserted, creating a medley.
Throughout the performance Bowie glances over to Bing hoping for a glint of warmth... it doesn’t come, the Crosby stare fixed into the distance as if eyeing up a newly found stain on the ceiling. It's fair to say there was probably more empathy and interaction in Stevie Wonder and Macca’s video of Ebony and Ivory... which they filmed thousands of miles apart. Bowie’s performance is rich and warm. Bing's isn’t. The miserable old git.
Chris Hawkins
My top collaboration would have to be The Pogues with Kirsty MacColl and Fairytale Of New York. It’s brilliant, bitter and twisted, yet somehow uplifting. Shane says “I could have been someone” and Kirsty barks back “Well, so could anyone”, perfectly encompassing lost dreams at the happiest time of year. Apparently.
As for the worst, I'd plump for The Beach Boys with Status Quo - Fun, Fun, Fun. Two fine bands but why collaborate?
Jon Holmes
Well if we must leave out the musical docking of Blue and Elton John and the mildly arousing mashup of Bryan Adams and Mel C, it simply has to be Puff Daddy feat. Jimmy Page and Come With Me. Constantly name-changing rap maestro teams up with iconic guitar legend to do battle against Godzilla. The fact that the song was on the soundtrack to Godzilla trumps everything. Imagine Blue and Elton fighting Godzilla. They wouldn't stand a chance, the pansies. So that's my choice (well, it's a toss up between that and Whispering Grass by the musical collective of Windsor Davies and Don Estelle).