The 60 Best Collaborations With the Beatles
There may be some surprises for casual fans in this list of 60 Best Collaborations With the Beatles.
After all, Paul McCartney remained a collaborative force after the group split up. He had two duets soar all the way to No. 1 in the early-'80s. Former bandmate John Lennon topped the charts with one, too.
Yet Lennon and McCartney appear fewer times on our countdown than George Harrison and Ringo Starr. McCartney is featured on 14 songs. Lennon appears on just three duets – partly, of course, because of his awful murder.
READ MORE: Ranking Every Beatles Solo Album
Meanwhile, Starr's name is attached to almost 20. Harrison bests him with nearly 30 duets, despite his own premature death. Whether with old friends or a new musical acquaintance, they proved to be the Beatles' most willing sidemen.
What's the Best Beatles Duet?
The sheer breadth of these collaborations might also come as a surprise. Several date back to 1969, before McCartney officially announced the Beatles' breakup. Fast forward and McCartney and Starr were still sitting in on album sessions into the 2020s.
Of course, almost half of these collaborations happened in the '70s. That's when all four Beatles were not only active but releasing a string of their own solo hits.
What didn't make the list? We avoided their recordings with one another, so songs like 2009's "Walk With You" and the more recent "Home to Us" featuring McCartney and Starr weren't considered – even though both were very well received.
It's a rock- and pop-focused list. Also avoided were jazz and songbook collaborations like McCartney's collaborations with Tony Bennett and George Benson. Straight-forward Beatles cover songs with the likes of Billy Joel and Dolly Parton, among others, didn't make the cut either.
Here's the a ranked look back at the 60 Best Collaborations With the Beatles:
No. 60. "Cups and Cakes" (2025)
Spinal Tap, with Paul McCartney
McCartney handled vocals on this update from the original 1984 soundtrack for This is Spinal Tap, released on the long-awaited sequel, 2025's Spınal Tap II: The End Continues. He also appeared in the highly improvised comedy film.
No. 59. "California Calling" (1985)
Beach Boys, with Ringo Starr
The Beach Boys' appropriately sleek self-titled mid-'80s LP was better known for its album-opening Top 30 hit "Getcha Back," but Starr makes an underrated guest turn later on this sunny throwback song by Al Jardine and a rejuvenated Brian Wilson.
No. 58. "Never Tell Your Mother She's Out of Tune" (1969)
Jack Bruce, with George Harrison
Harrison had already worked with Cream when he sat joined sessions for the solo debut from the group's former bassist, Jack Bruce. He once again played under the fun pseudonym L'Angelo Misterioso. This time, however, Harrison's contributions were barely heard below a suffocating final mix.
No. 57. "Basketball Jones" (1973)
Cheech and Chong, with George Harrison
Harrison's appearance on this parody of the contemporary Top 20 hit "Love Jones" was pure coincidence. The former Beatles star was "in the next studio recording, and so [producer] Lou [Adler] just ran over there and played [it for him]," Cheech Marin later revealed. "They made up the track right on the spot."
No. 56. "New Moon Over Jamaica" (1988)
Johnny Cash, with Paul McCartney
McCartney was vacationing in the Caribbean when Johnny Cash invited him over to his home in Jamaica. This song emerged from the jam sessions that followed. Cash recorded "New Moon Over Jamaica" with McCartney a couple of years later, thankfully passing on the reggae-fied arrangement from McCartney's early demo.
READ MORE: Paul McCartney's Top 10 Songs from the '80s
No. 55. "Ebony and Ivory" (1982)
Stevie Wonder, with Paul McCartney
Great sentiment, but not much of a song – even if "Ebony and Ivory" became the chart-topping lead single from Tug of War. McCartney eventually grew weary of the criticism. "You find yourself justifying your successes," he said in 2016's Conversations with McCartney. "It's a funny state of affairs."
No. 54. "Heart of Mine" (1981)
Bob Dylan, with Ringo Starr
Discussing this song in the liner notes for 1985's Biograph, Dylan said: "I had somebody specific in mind when I wrote ['Heart of Mine']; somebody who liked having me around." The Beatles certainly did. George Harrison eventually became the band's best-known Dylan collaborator, but he wasn't the only one.
No. 53. "The Girl Is Mine" (1982)
Michael Jackson, with Paul McCartney
This out-of-place duet was slotted at No. 3 on the track listing, putting Thriller's considerable early momentum at risk. Then "The Girl is Mine" soared to the Top 5 as the album's lead single. Call it proof of what a wise man once said about silly love songs.
No. 52. "Cut Me Some Slack" (2012)
Nirvana, with Paul McCartney
Working with the surviving members of Nirvana continued a run harder-edged McCartney fare like "Helter Skelter," "Let Me Roll It" and "Oh Darling." But those who solely associate him with pop confections like "Yesterday," "My Love" and Eleanor Rigby" probably had to pick their jaw up off the floor.
No. 51. "Loop de Loop" (1973)
Harry Nilsson, with Ringo Starr
"Loop de Loop" notably featured the "Masked Alberts Kids Chorale," and they were badly needed. Nilsson had blown out his voice during these boozy John Lennon-produced sessions and he practically disappears here amid the struggle to sing. They manage a bit of raucous fun anyway, with Starr playing happily along.
No. 50. "Talk Don't Bother Me" (1986)
Alvin Lee, with George Harrison
Harrison snuck in a sweeping, utterly gorgeous turn on slide on this largely forgotten solo album from Ten Years After's former guitarist. Lee was moving beyond songs that were simply fiery showcases for his instrument. In Harrison, he found the perfect ride-along companion.
No. 49. "Silver Lining" (1991)
Nils Lofgren, with Ringo Starr
Lofgren gets some help from his old E Street Band buddies, Bruce Springsteen and Clarence Clemons, while bringing more blues and soul into his sound. "Silver Lining" was different. Instead, Starr unleashes a fierce propulsion that drives Lofgren through perhaps this LP's best rocker.
No. 48. "Don't Try to Own Me" (1995)
Gary Wright, with George Harrison
With a relationship going back to 1970's All Things Must Pass, Gary Wright might have been one of the few who could coax Harrison out of a quiet period. Their long friendship also produced notable intersections on 1973's Living in the Material World, his self-titled 1979 LP, 1987's Cloud Nine, among others.
No. 47. "Bed of Roses" (2023)
Ian Hunter, with Ringo Starr
The roots-rocking opener on Defiance Part 1 recalls Hamburg's dingy Star Club, where the Beatles stormed through three seminal residencies between April and December 1962. Ian Hunter has special insight, since he played there too. Who better to complete things than Starr?
No. 46. "Under the Red Sky" (1990)
Bob Dylan, with George Harrison
In keeping with their recent song-a-day approach with the Traveling Wilburys, Harrison walked in and recorded an offhanded solo before really listening to the track. Dylan, perhaps joking, said it was perfect. That left producer Don Was to encourage another try. This time, he suggested, why not get in tune?
No. 45. "Mineral Man" (1982)
Gary Brooker, with George Harrison
Brooker's relationship with Harrison goes back even further than Gary Wright. They met when Brooker's pre-Procol Harum band opened for the Beatles in 1964. By 1982, Procol Harum had split and Brooker was ready to speak in his own unique voice. Harrison knew the feeling.
READ MORE: 20 Beatles Songs That John Lennon Hated
No. 44. "Run to Me" (2021)
Steve Lukather, with Ringo Starr
With Toto tied up in litigation, Lukather and his bandmate Joseph Williams released tandem solo projects during the pandemic. Ringo Starr made a memorable appearance on Lukather's record. "Run to Me," the lead single, extended a long collaboration that began when Lukather joined the All Starr Band in 2012.
No. 43. "The Last Time" (1978)
Hall and Oates, with George Harrison
John Oates had established a friendship with Harrison based on a shared passion for Formula One racing. Much later, Oates asked him to sit in. Harrison agreed – but on one condition. "I don't want any special treatment," Oates later remembered Harrison saying. "I just want to come down and play with the band."
No. 42. "Ghetto Woman" (1971)
B.B. King, with Ringo Starr
King's co-written "Ghetto Woman" was a sizable U.S. R&B hit recorded in the unlikeliest of places: England. As expected, a series of famous local musicians flocked to the sessions for B.B. King in London, including Starr. He ended up playing on three songs, including two featuring a twin-drum pairing with Jim Gordon.
No. 41. "Heal the Pain" (2008)
George Michael, with Paul McCartney
Originally found on 1990's Listen Without Prejudice Vol. 1, "Heal the Pain" was written very much in McCartney's breezy acoustic style. So it only made sense to re-record "Heal the Pain" with the man himself. The new version appeared on Michael's 2008 compilation Twenty Five.
No. 40. "Costafine Town" (1974)
Splinter, with George Harrison
This unjustly forgotten duo from South Shields, England, was the first signee to Harrison's newly launched Dark Horse imprint – and he clearly aimed for them to succeed. Harrison produced their debut, The Place I Love, while playing two basses, harmonium and percussion on the utterly delightful "Costafine Town."
No. 39. "If You've Got Love" (1973)
Dave Mason, with George Harrison
Harrison used another winking pseudonym, Son of Harry, while guesting on former Traffic member Dave Mason's fourth solo album, It's Like You Never Left. They'd first worked together on the sprawling All Things Must Pass and some early Derek and the Dominos sessions.
No. 38. "The Lodger" (1971)
Peter Frampton, with Ringo Starr
Peter Frampton's first solo album after leaving Humble Pie did far more with its Beatles connections than his subsequent career-turning Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Heart Club Band debacle. Starr appeared, along with Beatles associates Klaus Voorman and Billy Preston. In the end, however, Jim Price's brass drives this one home.
No. 37. "Walk a Thin Line" (1981)
Mick Fleetwood, with George Harrison
Fleetwood had only recently completed a touring cycle behind Fleetwood Mac's Tusk when he decided to rework one of its songs. He gave "Walk a Thin Line" a cool new international flair by recording with an African group called Adjo in Ghana. Then Fleetwood returned to the U.K. where Harrison added his parts.
No. 36. "Shoot Out on the Plantation" (1970)
Leon Russell, with George Harrison and Ringo Starr
Russell's self-titled debut included not one, but two former Beatles, long before he appeared on Harrison's charity single and concert for Bangladesh. They met when Russell and Harrison were part of a loose touring aggregation called Delaney & Bonnie and Friends in 1969 and 1970.
No. 35. "Stand for Our Rights" (1971)
Gary Wright, with George Harrison
Wright adopted Harrison's cast-of-thousands approach from All Things Must Pass on his next solo album, Footprint – and even included many of the same sidemen. The anthem "Stand for Our Rights" served as its lead single, with guitars and initially uncredited production from Harrison.
READ MORE: Top 10 Ringo Starr Solo Songs
No. 34. "Mrs. Mills" (2021)
Eddie Vedder, with Ringo Starr
When Pearl Jam's frontman decided to write a song in tribute to British music hall legend Gladys Mills, only one drummer would do. After all, the vintage 1905 Steinway upright she used for recording at Abbey Road in London had long been referred to, simply, as the Mrs. Mills Piano.
No. 33. "The Man" (1983)
Michael Jackson, with Paul McCartney
Like much of Pipes of Peace, "The Man" traced its origins back to sessions for 1982's Tug of War. McCartney brought a rough sketch to an initial 1981 demo session with Jackson, who wrote additional lyrics to complete a second demo. "The Man" wasn't completed until about four months before the LP arrived.
No. 32. "Bite My Head Off" (2023)
Rolling Stones, with Paul McCartney
The Beatles were contemporaries of the Rolling Stones, but McCartney didn't actually play with them until the 2020s. "After the day at the studio, people said, 'How was it?'" McCartney later told Mojo. "It was great! I mean, I was a session man with the Stones!"
No. 31. "Lucky That Way" (2012)
Joe Walsh, with Ringo Starr
By the time Starr joined Walsh for his long-awaited studio return on Analog Man, Walsh hadn't released a solo album in 20 years and Starr had become his brother-in-law. They bring a merry warmth to "Lucky That Way," which Walsh co-composed with Nashville songwriter Tommy Lee James.
No. 30. "A Love So Beautiful" (1989)
Roy Orbison, with George Harrison
Practically a Traveling Wilburys song, "A Love So Beautiful" is sung by Lefty (Roy Orbison), co-written by Orbison and Otis (Jeff Lynne) and co-produced by Lynne, with a turn on guitar by Nelson (George Harrison). Charlie T. Wilbury, Jr. (Tom Petty) appears elsewhere, along with their drummer Jim Keltner.
No. 29. "I Ain't Superstitious" (1969)
Howlin' Wolf, with Ringo Starr
Eric Clapton booked the Rolling Stones' rhythm section to support this Chess legend on the blues-rocking London Howlin' Wolf Sessions. Starr only got involved when Charlie Watts couldn't make it one day. The initial credits listed him as "Richie," however, so many never knew.
No. 28. "My Old Friend" (1996)
Carl Perkins, with Paul McCartney
Perkins memorably duetted with McCartney on "Get It" from Tug of War, but that wasn't the best moment these sessions produced. Perkins adapted the lyrics for "Dear Friend" from a story McCartney told him about his last conversation with John Lennon. The belatedly issued results reportedly moved McCartney to tears.
No. 27. "As I Come of Age" (1975)
Stephen Stills, with Ringo Starr
Featuring perhaps Starr's most complete drumming performance outside of the Beatles, "As I Come of Age" grew out of a lengthy period Stills spent in London in the early-'70s. It clearly meant a lot to Stills. At one point, this album was actually going to be titled As I Come of Age, before he decided on Stills instead.
No. 26. "Covered in You" (2026)
Rolling Stones, with Paul McCartney
A more nuanced leftover from the same Hackney Diamond sessions that produced "Bite My Head Off," "Covered in You" is spacious enough for McCartney to make concrete contributions on bass. Meanwhile, "Wait 'till they see the white of your asses" is just classic Mick Jagger nonsense.
No. 25. "Hung Up and Overdue" (1996)
Tom Petty, with Ringo Starr
The Heartbreakers had lost Stan Lynch and turned to a series of guest drummers. None was a bigger name – or had a bigger impact - than Starr. "Hung Up and Overdue" was originally tracked for 1994's Wildflowers, which also featured Starr on "To Find a Friend," but didn't appear until She's the One.
READ MORE: Ranking Every Beatles Solo Album
No. 24. "Try Some, Buy Some" (1971)
Ronnie Spector, With George Harrison
It should have worked. This session held over a Harrison song, co-producer (and then-husband) Phil Spector, his Wall of Sound approach and many of the sidemen from the smash All Things Must Pass. Yet "Try Some, Buy Some" somehow fell flat with record buyers. So, Harrison took it back.
No. 23. "Tell the Truth" (1970)
Derek and the Dominos, with George Harrison
All Things Must Pass did more than kick off Harrison's post-Beatles solo career. It also provided a platform for the launch of Derek and the Dominos. Their first song together, an amped-up early version of "Tell the Truth" with Harrison and Dave Mason sitting in, was recorded during sessions for the triple-album set.
No. 22. "We Love You" (1967)
Rolling Stones, with John Lennon and Paul McCartney
Long before McCartney played bass to a pair of 2020s-era Rolling Stones songs, he and Lennon added background vocals to a thrillingly loopy single called "We Love You." The Stones also worked on the B-side, "Dandelion," during the same session – though it's unclear if Lennon and McCartney stuck around.
No. 21. "Run So Far" (1989)
Eric Clapton, with George Harrison
"Run So Far" became the eighth track on Harrison's Brainwashed, but not before his old friend Clapton made a pass at it. Harrison contributed both second guitar and harmony vocals. Interestingly, Clapton's version from Journeyman included a third verse not heard on Harrison's 2002 posthumous album.
No. 20. "That Kind of Woman" (1990)
Gary Moore, with George Harrison
Harrison's neighbor Gary Moore was turning away from the hard rock of his Thin Lizzy days to blues rock. This slide-driven Harrison original was the perfect fit, although Eric Clapton had earlier only selected "Run So Far" when offered a suite of new songs that included "That King of Woman."
No. 19. "Horse to the Water" (2001)
Jools Holland, with George Harrison
Harrison's final recorded song found him singing with the former Squeeze cofounder's Rhythm and Blues Orchestra. His son Dhani co-wrote "Horse to Water." Too weak from cancer treatments to play guitar, Harrison only contributed vocals to sessions held in early October 2001. He died the following month.
No. 18. "A Long Time Gone" (2001)
Electric Light Orchestra, with George Harrison
Maybe a dream come true for the Fab-loving Jeff Lynne but Zoom was, really, an Electric Light Orchestra album in name only. Harrison adds a weeping slide guitar to "A Long Time Gone," among others, while Starr is featured elsewhere. There were more former Beatles featured than original ELO members.
No. 17. "Far East Man" (1974)
Ron Wood, with George Harrison
Wood co-wrote this song with Harrison between tenures in the Faces and Rolling Stones, then released it a couple of months before Harrison's version arrived on 1974's Dark Horse. Bridging the eras, Harrison was joined on the Wood sessions by members of both the Faces (Ian MacLagan) and Stones (Mick Taylor).
No. 16. "Say Say Say" (1983)
Michael Jackson, with Paul McCartney
"Say Say Say" is everything the prosaic "The Girl Is Mine" was not. Mainly, it's a Michael Jackson song – and no one was hotter. He scored his seventh Top 10 hit within a year, and his sixth No. 1 U.S. single. In fact, "Say Say Say" topped the charts for six weeks. (Only Elvis Presley and the Beatles had previously done that.)
No. 15. "Roll It Over" (1970)
Derek and the Dominos, with George Harrison
The second original to emerge while recording All Things Must Pass better illustrates what Derek and the Dominos' emotionally charged blues-rock debut would sound like. Two instrumentals from the same summer 1970 sessions found their way onto the Apple Jam disc of Harrison's triple album.
READ MORE: Ranking Every Beatles Song
No. 14. "To Find a Friend" (1994)
Tom Petty, with Ringo Starr
Petty had already worked with Harrison, both with the Traveling Wilburys and as a solo artist. So, it made sense that he'd so easily mesh with Harrison's long-time bandmate Starr. The surprise is how dark, deep and dark, "To Find a Friend" becomes – even amid the eternal peace and love provided by Petty's fill-in drummer.
No. 13. "Veronica" (1989)
Elvis Costello, with Paul McCartney
Costello finally halted McCartney's '80s-era creative slide. He reanimated something that had been largely dormant since McCartney's split with the similarly acerbic Lennon, as at least 16 songs emerged from their brief partnership. "Veronica" was the highest-charting of them all in the U.S.
No. 12. "Every Little Thing" (1990)
Jeff Lynne, with George Harrison
Harrison's second turn on a song called "Every Little Thing" was nothing like the jaunty Lennon-McCartney original from 1964's Beatles for Sale. Lynne's song is a symphony of ELO-type tics, combining old radio-hit forms with huge production values. Harrison's backing vocals and acoustic are in there. Promise.
No. 11. "I Wrote a Simple Song" (1971)
Billy Preston, with George Harrison
Seven albums in, Preston left took over production duties. He also left the Beatles' Apple Records for A&M – but he kept Harrison as a key collaborator. The propulsive "I Wrote a Simple Song" featured Harrison on dobro, though its B-side – the funktastic clavinet-driven "Outta-Space" – eventually became the bigger hit.
No. 10. "You're Breakin' My Heart" (1972)
Harry Nilsson, with George Harrison
Despite a backing group that included Harrison, Klaus Voormann, Peter Frampton and Nicky Hopkins, the most approachable song on Son of Schmilsson was commercially dead on arrival. Moments into the song, Nilsson takes a stunning lyrical turn: "You're breakin' my heart, you're tearin' it apart – so, f--- you."
No. 9. "We Are Not Helpless" (1970)
Stephen Stills, with Ringo Starr
"We Are Not Helpless" will never be "Love the One You're With," the career-making lead single from Stephen Stills. It's better than that, less flippant, more nakedly emotional. Starr always shines in those situations. The result was a stirringly perfect album-ending song for Stills' debut.
No. 8. "Moment in Paradise" (2001)
Electric Light Orchestra, with Ringo Starr
"Moment in Paradise" feels like another layered Electric Light Orchestra studio creation. Incredibly, however, the basic track for this moving, so atmospheric song was recorded live, in Jeff Lynne's living room, with the ever-expressive Starr on drums and Marc Mann on rhythm guitar.
No. 7. "A Friend Like You" (2004)
Brian Wilson, with Paul McCartney
Wilson completed "A Friend Like You" for Gettin' In Over My Head with McCartney in mind. He was, nevertheless, blown away by the experience. "He came to the studio and that was one of the bigger thrills of my life to tell you the truth, to produce Paul McCartney," Wilson told CNN. "That was a thrill."
No. 6. "Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds" (1974)
Elton John, with John Lennon
Lennon had a complicated relationship with this fan favorite from the Beatles' Sgt. Pepper album. "It is a great track, a great song, but it isn't a great track because it wasn't made right," he said in 1980. Maybe what it needed was a little reggae? Elton John thought so, anyway.
No. 5. "Lift Me Up" (1990)
Jeff Lynne, with George Harrison
Collaborators like Harrison made this song's soaring emotion feel real for Lynne. "Maybe it's 'cause I was feeling so happy to be doing a solo album after not even imagining I'd ever do one," he later admitted. "And working with all these guys really helped me in lots of ways and gave me a lot more confidence."
READ MORE: Top 10 Beatles Guitar Solos Not By George Harrison
No. 4. "I Won't Back Down" (1989)
Tom Petty, with George Harrison
Wilburys bandmates Petty, Harrison and Lynne had a lot to live up to. Unfortunately, Petty was dealing with cold symptoms. "George went to the store and bought a ginger root, boiled it and had me stick my head in the pot to get the ginger steam to open up my sinuses," Petty told Mojo, "and then I ran in and did the take."
No. 3. "Day After Day" (1971)
Badfinger, with George Harrison
Guitarist and producer George Harrison ended up leading an veritable classic-rock orchestra. Badfinger's biggest hit at No. 4 also included Leon Russell on piano. Pete Ham added another slide, then he and Joey Molland tracked their acoustics four times. Finally, Todd Rundgren helping out with the final mix.
No. 2. "Fame" (1975)
David Bowie, with John Lennon
Bowie found his first widespread fame with a space-alien version of glam rock on 1972's The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust. Then he decided to leap off the bandwagon. Bowie was wary of his newfound celebrity, wary of being pigeonholed. Lennon helped him shape the resulting commentary.
No. 1. "Badge" (1969)
Cream, with George Harrison
An episodic song that could've been twice as long and never gotten old, "Badge" apparently got its title when Eric Clapton misread Harrison's annotation for the track. (He'd scrawled the word "bridge.") "L'Angelo Misterioso" previewed a riff that would propel the Beatles' "Let It Be" and Starr's "It Don't Come Easy."
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