Here’s a surprising duo for you: Legendary singer Bing Crosby joined forces with a young David Bowie to perform the beautiful Christmas song “Peace on Earth/Little Drummer Boy.” After a quick comedy sketch, they start off with a slow version of “Little Drummer Boy,” singing together at first. Then, Bowie’s voice rises to take the lead, while Crosby provides a deep baritone harmony.

During this part of the song, Bowie sings the words from “Peace On Earth,” while Crosby sings from “Little Drummer Boy” underneath, creating a unique blend that sounds really smooth. They recorded this song way back in 1977, but it has gained attention again this year because it was included in the Bing Crosby’s Christmas Gems collection. You can check out their duet in the video below.

The way this collaboration started is pretty unusual. Bowie, always one to stand out, showed up to film Crosby’s TV special with his wife Angie, and they both had matching bright red hair and full makeup. Crosby’s son Nathaniel mentioned that the session almost didn’t happen because the producers asked Bowie to remove his lipstick and earring. It was really surprising to see how different they looked!

But Bowie wasn’t finished making waves. Crosby’s musical directors, Ian Fraser and Larry Grossman, had planned for them to perform a straightforward version of “Little Drummer Boy.” However, Bowie had different ideas. Fraser remembered Bowie saying that the song didn’t really fit his voice and quoted him as saying, “I hate this song. Is there something else I could sing?” Another famous duet of Crosby’s is “White Christmas” with Frank Sinatra, which you can check out below.