You do something to me that I can’t explain / Hold me closer and I feel no pain…Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton’s “Islands in the Stream” is a classic country duet of the highest order.
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The power duo recorded the song in 1983 for Rogers’ album Eyes That See in the Dark. It went on to earn them an ACM and an AMA for Single of the Year and Favorite Country Single, respectively.
Despite being the first song you think of when someone mentions Rogers and Parton in the same sentence, the songwriters behind the hit are pretty legendary themselves. Find out who wrote “Islands in the Stream” below.
Who Wrote “Islands in the Stream”
By the early ’80s, the Bee Gees were finding their era-defining sound was falling by the wayside. Their seminal ’70s harmonies weren’t landing the way they used to with disco slowly dying. To combat the change in the tides, the group lent into writing for other genres – notably country.
Barry, Robin and Marice Gibb originally penned “Islands in the Stream” as an R&B track for Marvin Gaye but, it soon turned into a country-pop crossover. The love song was inspired by Ernest Hemingway’s novel of the same name.
Other songs written by the Bee Gees for other artists include Olivia Newton-John’s “Come on Over,” Frankie Valli’s “Grease” and Samantha Sang’s “Emotion.” Read about 11 songs you didn’t know the Bee Gees wrote for other artists HERE.
The Bee Gees formed in 1958. Their tight three-part harmony made them one of the most prominent groups in disco. Barry’s trademark falsetto set him in a league all his own with hits like “More Than a Woman,” “How Deep Is Your Love” and “Stayin’ Alive.”
They amassed no shortage of No. 1 hits across their career, five Grammys for Saturday Night Fever and more than 220 million records sold worldwide.
Following Maurice’s death in January 2003, Barry and Robin retired the group’s name. In 2009, Robin revealed plans to re-form the Bee Gees, which were foiled by his death in 2012.
How Did Rogers and Parton Get the Song?
As the story goes, Rogers apparently wasn’t a fan of this song when he first started to record it solo.
“The story is the producer and the writer on the song was one of the Bee Gees, Barry Gibb,” Rogers once told People magazine (quote via Smooth Radio). “And we had been singing this song in my studio in L.A. for four days. And I finally said, ‘Barry, I don’t even like this song anymore.'”
Barry then struck up the idea to bring Parton into the mix.
“I said, ‘Well, why not, you know?'” Rogers continued. “Ken Kragen, my manager said, ‘I saw her downstairs.’ I said, ‘Well, go get her.’ And Dolly, in her inimitable fashion, marched into the room and the song was never the same.”
Who else but Parton could have that effect?
(Photo by Gary Gershoff/Getty Images)
