The Very Thought of You

Bob and Barbra's intimate duet

The unlikely - on the surface - partnership of Streisand and Dylan on Streisand’s new album, The Secret of Life: Partners, Vol 2, was in fact decades in gestation. Dylan expressed his desire to collaborate with Streisand in the 70’s, famously sending her flowers along with a note written in crayons. They both had their earliest exposure to the public around the same time, in Greenwich Village in the 60’s, Dylan in the folk clubs and Streisand at the Bon Soir.

Finally here it happens, and the real miracle is that this song is performed by two artists in their eighties, Dylan 84, Streisand 83. Something has happened generationally, where the idea of a purposeful extended life has gone way beyond ocean cruises and shuffleboard. They are both vibrant performers, having deepened in their artistry with age.

The Very Thought of You / YouTube

The Ray Noble song finds Dylan once again in the comfortable (for him) area of crooning standards, as he did on Shadows of the Night and Triplicate. The song opens with a harmonica solo, a nod to Dylan, but this isn’t Dylan’s harmonica, it’s a harmonica doing the sax part, an intricate chromatic harmonica solo of the type Stevie Wonder would do. Dylan’s voice comes in first, soft and understated, Streisand’s answers, still the flute-like perfect instrument. Dylan’s voice has of course grown gravely and coarse, but his use of it is masterful, like the way in the line “For me, that’s everything,” he lands on the last word with emphasis, heart and conviction. Streisand’s voice is beautiful throughout, and both voices here show restraint, an intimate conversation, like two lovers over a candlelit dinner table, or whispering pillow talk. The harmonica comes in again for a solo, then the final verse leads to the last “my love,” sung together with a tenderness that feels earned and genuine.

The very thought of it working might seem odd, but it does, and marvelously.