StrangeButTrue said:

https://www.cheatsheet.co...work.html/ . This clickbait piece about “Just Good Friends” meant to replicate or build on the success of “The Girl Is Mine” got me thinking about other duets that sounded great on paper but not so much to the ears. . I remember hearing “I Used To Love Him” by Lauryn Hill & Mary J Blige and from the get go it’s unmistakably Mary but as the song goes on one almost stops caring whom of the two is actually singing. . Dru Hill and Mariah doing “The Beautiful Ones” comes to mind. To me that song should not have been duet-ified. Same with the Blackstreet & Janet re-duet. . Are there any other duets that you think might have just been better off as solo songs? Or with someone else?

Just Good Friends is not a bad song by any means, but is a mediocre one, considering is a duet between both of them most talented artists ever, how couldn't they come up with a better song musically and specially lyrically.

I don't think the David Bowie, Mick Jagger duet "dancing in the streets" works. Bowie has one line that he croons well, but otherwise I don't like their vocals together. In the video the clothes are pretty unsightly and the dancing is deplorable. It is throwaway. Jagger is capable of some very fine vocals, but this is the mediocre section of his wheelhouse. Suffers unfavorably with the contemporary duet of Bowie with Queen (Freddie Mercury) "Under Pressure" that works as a song and shows off the talents of the singers.

I agree that "Just good friends" is a track that does not work. Always the worst track on Bad for me, and often forgot about. Considering the talent level on display that is a real shame.

[Edited 5/6/20 20:11pm]

Just Good Friends never bothered me. It's ok. One would expect a little more. I do think MJ and Stevie's duet "Get It" on the Characters album works better. But of course Stevie wrote it.

I think people forget about "Get It", but it was a single in spring of 1988.

SoulAlive said:

The Janet/Luther duet “Best Things In Life Are Free” didn’t work,imo.

Hey, Soul! Hope u.r. well and I agree with u! This song SUCKED! Talk about two timbres that didn't blend well! <3

SoulAlive said:

You guys are spot on with MJ and Stevie Wonder Just Good Friends

Just a weak duet for mega superstars

Chante Moore and JoJo(jodeci) I See You In A Different Life

Wasn't horribe but Chante would have made that work on her own without

JoJo's whiney vocal

[Edited 5/7/20 2:13am]

Dolly Parton & Sylvestor Stallone ~ Sweet Lovin' Friends

Luciano Pavarotti & Spice Girls ~ Viva Forever

Aretha Franklin & John Legend ~ What Y'All Came To Do

William Shatner & Lin Yu Chun ~ Total Eclipse Of The Heart

In fairness, "The Beautiful Ones" wasn't a great duet because the whole production was a giant heap of used tampons.

Willie Nelson & Julio Iglesias - To All The Girls I've Loved Before: just horrid on every level

Stevie Wonder & Paul McCartney - Ebony & Ivory: it's a dreadful song

Prince & Sheryl Crow - Baby Knows: why can't Sheryl sing something besides the chorus? Waste of talent, but good song

Britney Spears & Madonna - Me Against the Music: It wasn't even written as a duet. It was a desperate attempt to put two women together for the sake of it, not because it was an artistic endeavor.

I don't think MJ & Stevie's "Just Good Friends" is that bad, necessarily. I do think "Streetwalker" should've been on the record in general, and that could've easily pushed JGF off the playlist, left to be a bonus track or a b-side somewhere; or given to someone else. Two guys singing that song sounds queer, to me. I get that they're both talking to the same chicken, but still.

alphastreet said:

I didn’t get queer vibes from just good friends at all, but it’s an ok song though not the best in either ones catalogue of music I think the Janet and Busta duet as well the songs with blackstreet are overrated and not that great though I liked them in the time they were released. They were just ok

Agree on this! I think the song could've been better. Those two together sounds like an interesting pairing.

Frankly, I didn't like Nelly yapping on "Call On Me." I even edited Kanye out of whatever song on the Damito Jo album. Rappers on ballads is a crap idea. I don't need someone grunting "Uh...yeah...uh...yeah.." I even took Big Sean off an Ariana Grande ballad, which is an otherwise beautiful song. Enhanced it 100%. (Of course, I've also edited Tony M. out of 99% of D&P and so don't get me started. LOL)

Back to the topic, I want to be clear, it's not like "Oh, they're homos" or anything. It just seems like "The Girl is Mine" is more two men fighting over a chick, then "Just Good Friends." Two guys singing "tell 'em that we're just good friends," in phrasing alone, sounds gay AF. hahahaha

when thinking about MJ duets that did not work, "just good friends" is not the first one
that comes to my mind. the first and the worst one, imo, is "whatsupwitu" with Eddie M.

IstenSzek said:

whitechocolatebrotha said:

SoulAlive said:

The Janet/Luther duet “Best Things In Life Are Free” didn’t work,imo.

Hey, Soul! Hope u.r. well and I agree with u! This song SUCKED! Talk about two timbres that didn't blend well! <3

Yes. Janet was waaaaaaaay out of her league on that one.

alphastreet said:

IstenSzek said:

when thinking about MJ duets that did not work, "just good friends" is not the first one
that comes to my mind. the first and the worst one, imo, is "whatsupwitu" with Eddie M.

Oh no, you didn’t bash whatsupwithu! I actually love that song and also think it was done like an inside joke. Can you imagine if mj and Chris tucker did a duet too?

IstenSzek said:

I'm going to go completely new school with Nicki Minaj and Doja Cat's "Say So" remix.

Say So is a catchy song on its own but re-arranging the track to accommodate Nicki's rap takes you out of the song.

Bad execution of a not-so-bad idea. They should have just done a duet on a new song together from scratch if they were going to do it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=marAFsQo3VE

"Interlude" by Morrissey & Siouxise sounded really good to me when announced and then I heard the actual song. I didn't think their voices blended well together at all--at least not on that song. Siouxsie did better singing with Soft Cell's Marc Almond on "Threat of Love" a few years later.

Listening to Sinéad O'Connor's "I Want Your Hands On Me" with MC Lyte 30 years later, the juxtaposition of their voices on a song sounds jarring to me now. Back then I thought it was hot though. They were both just kids.

RJOrion said:

ANY song by Sonny & Cher...Cher could sing her ass off, while Sonny shouldve just STFU

I don't know other songs but I Got You Babe is a great song.

musicman said:

Just Good Friends never bothered me. It's ok. One would expect a little more. I do think MJ and Stevie's duet "Get It" on the Characters album works better. But of course Stevie wrote it.

I think people forget about "Get It", but it was a single in spring of 1988.

Get It is just as mediocre as Just Good Friends, neither of them are necessarily bad, though.

TrivialPursuit said:

In fairness, "The Beautiful Ones" wasn't a great duet because the whole production was a giant heap of used tampons.

Willie Nelson & Julio Iglesias - To All The Girls I've Loved Before: just horrid on every level

Stevie Wonder & Paul McCartney - Ebony & Ivory: it's a dreadful song

Prince & Sheryl Crow - Baby Knows: why can't Sheryl sing something besides the chorus? Waste of talent, but good song

Britney Spears & Madonna - Me Against the Music: It wasn't even written as a duet. It was a desperate attempt to put two women together for the sake of it, not because it was an artistic endeavor.

I don't think MJ & Stevie's "Just Good Friends" is that bad, necessarily. I do think "Streetwalker" should've been on the record in general, and that could've easily pushed JGF off the playlist, left to be a bonus track or a b-side somewhere; or given to someone else. Two guys singing that song sounds queer, to me. I get that they're both talking to the same chicken, but still.

That's a very good song that should have been on Bad instead of JGF.

alphastreet said:

Oh no, you didn’t bash whatsupwithu! I actually love that song and also think it was done like an inside joke.

I have that Eddie Murphy album. I like Yeah better though. I still listen to Yeah fairly often. Mike and a bunch of other singers & rappers are on it. Where else can you have Paul McCartney, Garth Brooks, Heavy D, Jon Bon Jovi, Barry White, Amy Grant, Julio Iglesias, Emmanuel Lewis, & Patti LaBelle on the same song? I guess Eddie had made up with Paul for kicking him out of The Beatles.