10 duets Barbra Streisand and Bob Dylan should have chosen for her upcoming album
Dylan and Streisand are joining forces for ‘The Very Thought of You,’ but the choices on this playlist might have been better
They’re singing together on a pop standard made famous by Nat King Cole and Billie Holiday. But what if they did a song by John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John? Photo by Getty Images
Barbra Streisand’s next album —The Secret of Life: Partners, Volume Two, due out in late June — will consist of duets with the likes of Paul McCartney, Sting, James Taylor, Mariah Carey, Hozier, Sam Smith, Ariana Grande, Josh Groban, Seal, and Icelandic singer-songwriter Laufey. Some of the numbers, including those with McCartney, Sting, and Taylor, are songs written by Streisand’s duet partners. Oddly, however, one of the potentially most intriguing duets, the one with Bob Dylan, is not on a song by the Nobel Prize-winning songwriter, but rather a 1934 jazz standard, “The Very Thought of You,” best known in its versions performed by Nat King Cole and Billie Holiday.
Until we hear the actual recording, we cannot be 100% positive that the Streisand-Dylan duet is not a version of the obscure, never-released Dylan song by the same name, originally recorded during the sessions that resulted in Dylan’s somewhat middling 1985 album, Empire Burlesque. But given Streisand’s and Dylan’s well-known fondness for pre-rock pop songs, it doesn’t come as a total surprise they would choose to take that road and record the old Ray Noble tune. But that doesn’t mean it also doesn’t come as a huge disappointment, leaving some fans and listeners to wonder what other songs two of the most famous singers of all time might have chosen to sing together. So I revved up my imagination (and employed no AI) to come up with an alternative playlist of 10 songs we wish Streisand and Dylan had recorded together. There’s still time — perhaps the two could do an entire album of duets!
I have tried to be realistic with the songs I have assigned the two. For example, one of the all-time great male-female duets is by Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell on “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough,” which Babs could certainly pull off. But even my own fantastic (if somewhat deluded) imagination cannot fathom Dylan executing Gaye’s part. Also, while it would have been fascinating to hear the two Jewish singers on Dylan’s 1983 Zionist anthem, “Neighborhood Bully,” that might not be the political statement either of them wants to be making at this particular time — to say nothing of the question as to what Streisand would possibly do on that Rolling Stones-type rocker.
In coming up with the ideal 10 songs, I split the list in half between songs written by Bob Dylan and songs by other songwriters. The playlist also includes Nat King Cole’s version of “The Very Thought of You” for the sake of comparison.
- “Islands in the Stream” Written by the Bee Gees and made famous by Dolly Parton and Kenny Rogers, this is arguably one of the best male-female duets of all time. There is even a version by Reba McEntire and Barry Manilow. The lyrics include the very Dylanesque line, “Making love with each other, ah ha.” Who wouldn’t want to hear Streisand and Dylan harmonize on that?
- “Stop Draggin’ My Heart Around” Written by Tom Petty and Heartbreakers guitarist Mike Campbell, the original 1981 version features Petty duetting with Stevie Nicks, on what would become the biggest hit for both Nicks and the Heartbreakers. It’s a rather dark song featuring distinctive voices, much like it would with Dylan/Streisand.
- “You’re the One That I Want” Yes, I refer to the song originally recorded by John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John from the 1978 movie Grease, one of the only songs written especially for the film version of the stage musical by the same name. The idea behind a Streisand/Dylan duet on this number would be to capture their innate sense of humor and playfulness. And I’m only being half-ironic when I say that.
- “Love Hurts” Written by Boudleaux Bryant and first recorded by the Everly Brothers in 1960, this classic has been covered numerous times. But it’s the 1974 rendition by Gram Parsons and Emmylou Harris that would be the model for a Streisand/Dylan take on the number, which, like “Stop Draggin’ My Heart Around,” would suit these singers who are quite adept and comfortable with expressing melancholy in song.
- “You Don’t Know Me” Originally written by Eddy Arnold and Cindy Walker in 1955, Ray Charles recorded the best-known version of the song in 1962 for his #1 album, Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music. Dylan has sung the song on occasion, but it might be better known for the live version often performed by The Band, sung by pianist Richard Manuel, whose voice bore a remarkable resemblance to Charles’. Charles re-recorded the song as a duet with Diana Krall in 2004. It’s another song of longing and heartbreak quite well-suited to our ideal singing duo
- “One More Cup of Coffee” This mournful tune is a highlight of Dylan’s great 1976 album Desire, which featured close harmonies provided by Emmylou Harris. Dylan’s original vocal was a rare instance of him employing cantorial ornamentation in his singing. Who better to recapture that sense and sensibility than the star of Yentl?
- “Emotionally Yours” The R&B trio the O’Jays made their version of this statement of love and affection the title track of their 1991 album. An otherwise overlooked gem from Dylan’s vast catalog, the song originally appeared on Empire Burlesque. The romantic number features the lines, “I could be dreaming but I keep believing you’re the one I’m livin’ for / And I will always be emotionally yours.” Imagine the music video of Bob and Babs singing this while staring into each other’s eyes. To quote Bonnie Raitt, let’s give them something to talk about!
- “Under Your Spell” Another Dylan obscurity, found on his 1986 album Knocked Out Loaded, this song has the added attraction of being a Dylan co-write with longtime Streisand songwriter Carole Bayer Sager.
- “Lay Lady Lay” As noted by PJ Grisar in these pages, Dylan claims to have originally written this 1969 song with Streisand in mind. How perfect would it be for the two to collaborate on it after all these many years? (56 years, to be precise.)
- “Dark Eyes” Another Dylan obscurity, the final song on Empire Burlesque, Dylan frequently performed this song as a duet with Patti Smith when the two toured together in 1995. With its references to aging and alienation — in lines such as “Oh, time is short and the days are sweet and passion rules the arrow that flies / A million faces at my feet but all I see are dark eyes” — this seems like the perfect closer for our proposed Streisand/Dylan duets album.
