5 Defining Duets Of The '70s That Prove Two Is Better Than One

The 1970s were filled with hits of all kinds, from classic rock 'n' roll to country and disco. Many solo artists and vocalists achieved great heights, but on occasion, two vocalists came together and found a true creative spark. It's from this collaboration that some of the best songs of the '70s were made. The duet was a mark of many of the decade's peaks, both from artists who sang a lot together and those whose collaborations were less common.

In this list, we'll rewind back to the 1970s from start to finish, featuring memorable names from the likes of Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel to Willie Nelson and more. These songs are full of incredible vocals, with the collaboration making the material land even more so than it would from just one artist. Across folk rock, disco, country music, and more, these five collaborations helped define the music of the 1970s with their addicting and memorable sounds.

Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel were definitively the ultimate duo of the 1960s, but they had just a little more left in the tank in 1970 before their breakup with the classic final album "Bridge Over Troubled Water." The title track of this record spent an incredibly rare six weeks at No. 1 in the United States, and it was the pair's most successful single ever. But just as memorable a cut is "The Boxer." Though there are many options, it's arguably their best track as a duo, and it's now a folk rock standard, thanks in part to Simon & Garfunkel sharing gorgeous harmonies in the song's chorus.

"The Boxer" has a tender, moving lyric in its compelling narrative structure to match the nostalgic feel of each vocalist. Though Simon is a bit more in the forefront — in contrast to "Bridge Over Troubled Water" — each singer brings inarguable value to the recording. Though each continued making music after their breakup, the peaks of Simon & Garfunkel as a duo remain much more iconic and essential to folk and folk rock history. At least when these two music legends worked together, two minds and voices were surely better than one.

Released right in the middle of disco music's heyday in the late 1970s, this collaboration from two legendary groups is a duet as high-flying and memorable as any. "Boogie Wonderland" brought together Earth, Wind & Fire with the Emotions and sent the tune to No. 6 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the summer of 1979. The infectious dance song is certainly one of the most iconic disco tracks of all time.

"Boogie Wonderland" is a high-energy hit with an incredible groove and driving melody. But where it separates itself from other disco tracks is its perfect back and forth between the vocals of the two groups, which respond to each other with such magic that the song will be stuck in your head indefinitely: "The mirror stares you in the face / And says 'Baby, uh, uh, it don't work' / You say your prayers though you don't care / You dance and shake the hurt / Dance, boogie wonderland." "Boogie Wonderland" is among the most iconic songs of the '70s for good reason, with Maurice White and the Emotions singers delivering an otherworldly energy — and the song simply wouldn't be the same with only one of them.

The era of 1976's "Desire" was a resurgence for Bob Dylan, with the album topping the Billboard 200 for five weeks — his most successful chart performance ever. The songs "Hurricane" and "Mozambique" were also commercial successes, but one of the most memorable, emotional tracks on the album is the underrated "Oh, Sister." And it owes much of its memorability to Dylan's vocal collaboration with Emmylou Harris. Harris is a legendary musician in her own right, and she is instrumental in bringing alive the tender, nostalgic song about an undying and unconditional love.

"Oh, Sister" is driven by a slow acoustic guitar, quiet percussion, and wallowing strings, and the combination of Dylan and Harris' voices throughout the song's three verses and bridge adds a palpable depth. The duo sings of a complicated relationship that transcends their romantic bounds: "Oh, sister, am I not a brother to you / And one deserving of affection? / And is our purpose not the same on this earth / To love and follow His direction?" Dylan and Harris performed this song often during the "Rolling Thunder Revue" tour, and it's a cutting ballad that blends many of the best styles of the '70s together.

There are few 1970s country songs as iconic as this excellent duet from two legends, and there's little to no doubt that it just wouldn't be the same without the duo's back-and-forth harmonies. Waylon Jennings and Willie Nelson released an entire collaborative album, "Waylon & Willie," in early 1978, which peaked at No. 12 on the Billboard 200 albums chart. The record was headlined and led off by an excellent single, "Mammas Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up to Be Cowboys," which was also a solid hit at the time, peaking a few spots inside the Top 50 on the Hot 100 chart. Today, the song is a country classic.

The two Highwaymen alternate space in the song's verses, and they come together in the singalong chorus, where Jennings' classic low country voice pairs perfectly with Nelson's lighter tone: "Mamas, don't let your babies grow up to be cowboys / Don't let 'em pick guitars or drive them old trucks / Let 'em be doctors and lawyers and such." "Mammas Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up to Be Cowboys" is both tender and fun, and the croons of Nelson and Jennings are certainly those of a country masterpiece. It's been memorable since the '70s, and it's an anthem we'll be singing along to for many more years to come.

Elton John has a nearly uncountable number of hits across his lengthy career, but this duet released in the summer of 1976 is one of his best. Sonically following in the footsteps of legendary Motown duo Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell, "Don't Go Breaking My Heart" is an upbeat and soulful love song that John sings with Kiki Dee. It was a No. 1 hit in '76, spending four weeks in the top spot, and it's among the strongest proof of the duet's power in the '70s.

John and Dee are absolutely electric together vocally, bouncing back and forth throughout the song's four-and-a-half-minute runtime. It's a straightforward song of hopeless love, sold by the pair's delivery of its infectious chorus: "Don't go breaking my heart / I won't go breaking your heart / Don't go breaking my heart." It's nearly impossible to dislike this tune. "Don't Go Breaking My Heart" is one of the catchiest hits of the '70s altogether, and it's a surefire statement of how much two vocalists, as opposed to just one, can bring a track fully and colorfully to life.