10 Greatest Duets In Rock History

After he departed from Genesis, Peter Gabriel was dangerously close to falling back into obscurity. It might seem ludicrous today, but given the more underground status of his first few solo albums and his old band soaring on the strength of Phil Collins, Gabriel's career on his own could have gotten left in the dust pretty quickly. He eventually put himself on solid ground with the blockbuster release So, but he did have a little bit of help on some of the more emotional material.

Crafting a song about two lovers dealing with losing a job, Gabriel's initial idea for the female counterpoint on Don't Give Up was country legend Dolly Parton. While that certainly would have been interesting to hear in retrospect, the prog titan traded up for Kate Bush, whose voice is like a disembodied spirit calling on you to keep moving forward.

Granted, most of the lyrics of this song could have come off as generic "you can do it" analogies you see on inspirational posters, but the baroque pop stylings of Bush act more like a soothing balm on your nerves, as she delicately calms you down from your despair. Despite Gabriel's attempts to add his own stamp to the track, Don't Give Up would never have worked if it wasn't given this amazing trade-off performance.