Deep River Woman - Lionel Richie & Alabama - 1986 - (Album - Dancin' On The Ceiling)
In 1986 Alabama was on top of world and so was Lionel Richie. They were each dominating their respective charts that were seemingly miles apart. But after Richie got on the country charts with Stuck On You, this was the next step. This Richie penned gem of a song was about perfect. Alabama was loved by about everyone no matter what your musical preference was, and so was Richie. Their harmonies on this song are legendary, as it sounded as if they had been singing together forever. This song was a work of art in the fact too, it sounded like a song each one might have recorded independently of each other under different circumstances. To me, that is the key to any attempted duet, is it a good song, or an attempt to make a big song out of an average one? But lucky for us, they did it as a duet that went to #10 on the country charts. This song was also redone on Richie's 2012 masterpiece album, Tuskegee with Little Big Town and is terrific as well. I'll include both versions below. But in 1986, with two musical giants meeting in the studio to record this amazing record, was the stuff of legends.
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My Mega Star Profile On Lionel Richie
WIth Alabama - 1986
With Little Big Town - 2012