Sometimes, it seems like country and rock and roll are on separate sides of a tall fence. After all, fans of both genres have been locked in a “My music is better than yours” argument for decades. However, many rock and country artists would rather collaborate than compare. When they do, the result is usually something that fans of both genres can agree on.
Videos by American Songwriter
The songs below are the results of collaborations between some of the biggest names in rock and country. They prove that, at the end of the day, genre lines aren’t really that important. Good music is good music, no matter where it comes from.
[RELATED: 4 of the Greatest Country Rock Crossovers From the 1970s]
1. “Oh Well” by Slash and Chris Stapleton
Long before Fleetwood Mac enlisted Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks, they were a blues-rock band fronted by Peter Green. He penned “Oh Well” for their 1969 album, Then Play On. More than five decades later, guitar legend Slash decided to record the song for his blues covers album, Orgy of the Damned. The album featured a dozen A-list vocalists. Hearing country superstar Chris Stapleton belt this blues-rock classic with Slash was possibly the best collaboration of the bunch.
2. “The Wanderer” by U2 and Johnny Cash
Bono wrote “The Wanderer” for U2’s 1993 album, Zooropa. The album track is about a man searching for God and meaning in a post-apocalyptic wasteland. It is also one of the only songs in the band’s discography that doesn’t feature Bono on lead vocals. Instead, they enlisted Johnny Cash for the job.
Cash’s voice fits the song perfectly. His grizzled, somber style is perfect for a set of post-apocalyptic lyrics based on the biblical book of Ecclesiastes.
3. “Can’t Stop Lovin’ You” by Aerosmith and Carrie Underwood
Carrie Underwood is one of the biggest stars in modern country music and is no stranger to collaborations with rock bands. She has shared the stage and studio space with the likes of Papa Roach and Guns N’ Roses in recent years. She also recorded “Can’t Stop Lovin’ You” with Aerosmith. The band released it as the fourth single from their 2012 album Music from Another Dimension. The melody and country-leaning guitar work from Joe Perry made the song fit Underwood’s powerful pipes like a glove.
4. “Terrible Things” by Halestorm and Ashley McBryde
Halestorm originally included “Terrible Things” on their 2022 album, Back from the Dead. Then, the next year, they invited Ashley McBryde to add her vocals to a new version of the song. The collaboration was the perfect combination of country and rock.
“We had been talking about making the song a duet/guest appearance since we recorded it,” Lizzy Hale told American Songwriter. “Instead of staying in our hard rock lane, we, in true Halestorm style, wanted to take a risk and blur the lines,” she added.
Featured Image by Rick Diamond/Getty Images for CMT
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