It Takes Two – Ten Classic Duets for Valentine’s Day
In love, as in war, it takes two to really get anything done. So, for this Valentine’s Day, we collected a batch of classic duets about love in its myriad forms. Quite a few of the picks have a healthy dose of humor because a couple that laughs is a couple that lasts.
Johnny Cash & June Carter Cash – “If I Were a Carpenter”
Leave it to Johnny and June to have a tune about loving each other no matter what. Luckily for all of us, Johnny was a lot more than a carpenter and a tinker, and June gave him quite a few tomorrows: “Save your love through loneliness. Save your love through sorrow. I gave you my onliness. Give me your tomorrow.”
Dolly Parton & Porter Wagoner – “The Right Combination”
Oh, Dolly and Porter… what a wonderfully strange and twisted tale they lived. At the heart of it, though, was a real, true love that played out in their songs: “Some folks spend a lifetime searching for the right one and they’ll grasp at any one of love’s sensations. But you and I will search the most, for we have found it. You and I have found the right combination.”
Emmylou Harris & Rodney Crowell – “If I Needed You”
One of the simplest, sweetest love songs out there, this Townes Van Zandt gem has long been a staple in Emmy’s catalog, no matter who her duet partner is: “If I needed you would you come to me, would you come to me, and ease my pain? If you needed me, I would come to you. I’d swim the seas for to ease your pain.”
John Prine & Iris DeMent – “In Spite of Ourselves”
Of course, John and Iris would take things in a completely different direction. The couple in this little ditty is so perfectly paired that the joke’s on the rest of us: “He ain’t got laid in a month of Sundays. I caught him once and he was sniffin’ my undies. He ain’t too sharp but he gets things done. Drinks his beer like it’s oxygen. He’s my baby and I’m his honey. Never gonna let him go.”
Conway Twitty & Loretta Lynn – “Louisiana Woman, Mississippi Man”
As told by Conway and Loretta, the geographically challenged lovers of this country classic refuse to let the Big Muddy get in their way: “Louisiana woman, Mississippi man, we get together every time we can. The Mississippi River can keep us apart. There’s too much love in the Mississippi heart. Too much love in this Louisiana heart.”
Bonnie Raitt & Richard Thompson – “Dimming of the Day”
Not unlike “If I Needed You,” this Richard Thompson stunner is a song of questioning, of longing, of hoping. And nobody brings all of that emotion to bear so easily and gracefully as does Bonnie Raitt. Added together, the whole is so much greater than that mere sum: “You pull me like the moon pulls on the tide. You know just where I keep my better side.”
Jessi Colter & Waylon Jennings – “Storms Never Last”
Another real-life couple tell a tale of a hard-fought love. Here, Jessi and Waylon let us all know that, sometimes, the calm comes after the storm: “Storms never last, do they baby? Bad times all pass with the wind. Your hand in mine stills the thunder and you make the sun want to shine.”
Hayes Carll & Cary Ann Hearst – “Another Like You”
On this contemporary Hayes Carll classic, the odd couple finds themselves headed for a one-night stand, and calling each other out for their shortcomings is just part of the courtship: “I’m having trouble breathing. I probably should be leaving. Well, I’m up in room 402. I gotta hand it to you. There’s a chance I’m gonna screw you. I have never seen another like you.”
Kay Starr & Tennessee Ernie Ford – “You’re My Sugar”
Here’s another couple at odds, this time brought to life by Kay Starr and Tennessee Ernie Ford. Although they bicker a bit, it all works out in the end: “I’m getting tired of fighting, been at it all my life. Well, the way we always get along, we should be man and wife. You’re my sugar. You’re my sugar. You’re my sugar. But I am sweet on you.”
George Jones & Tammy Wynette – “Golden Ring”
And, because one in two marriages end in divorce, one in 10 Valentine’s Day videos can, too… especially if it’s sung by George and Tammy: “Golden ring with one tiny little stone. Shining ring, now at last it’s found a home. By itself, it’s just a cold metallic thing. Only love can make a golden wedding ring.”
One in 10 videos didn’t allow embedding in this blog post, but CLICK HERE to WATCH.
