| "Every Time Two Fools Collide" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single by Kenny Rogers & Dottie West | ||||
| from the album 'Every Time Two Fools Collide' | ||||
| B-side | "We Love Each Other" | |||
| Released | January 1978 | |||
| Format | 45 rpm | |||
| Recorded | 1977 | |||
| Genre | Country | |||
| Length | 2:59 | |||
| Label | United Artists Records | |||
| Writer(s) | Jan Dyer, Jeff Tweel | |||
| Producer | Larry Butler | |||
| Kenny Rogers & Dottie West singles chronology | ||||
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"Every Time Two Fools Collide" is a country music song written by Jan Dyer and Jeff Tweel, and recorded by Kenny Rogers and Dottie West. Released in 1978, the song reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles chart that spring, and established Rogers and West as a popular male-female duo pairing in country music.
"Every Time Two Fools Collide" was meant to be recorded only by Dottie West, as a follow-up to her previous hits from 1977 under her new record company United Artists. Kenny Rogers was under the same label as West at the time, and they were both being produced under Larry Butler. According to legend, West was recording the song in the United Artists studio, when Rogers turned up early to meet West. However, this was disputed by Rogers. According to him, West was supposed to have finished recording material at 10:00 AM, and Rogers was to have started at the same time. When West's session ran over, Rogers ended up sitting in the studio waiting. They began talking about recording a duet, and West suggested "Every Time Two Fools Collide". They both agreed, and together West and Rogers made the song a duet recording.
Released in early 1978, the song hit No. 1 on the Hot Country Songs list that year, for two weeks, and became West's first No. 1 [1] and one of Rogers' many No. 1s. The song became one of the pair's best-known songs, and also became one of Country music's classic duet recordings. That year, they released an album of the same name, West's first and only Gold-certified album. Their association would last three years, setting the trend for a string of country hits, including 1981's "What Are We Doin' in Love". Thanks in part to the success of this song, Rogers and West won the CMA Awards' coveted Vocal Duo of the Year award later that year.
In 2004, CMT hosted a duets special titled, 100 Greatest Duets. "Every Time Two Fools Collide" was listed among their Top 10 list, and was also performed on their special. However, country singer Lee Ann Womack took the place of West's part in the song, as West died in an automobile accident in September 1991.
| Chart (1978) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard Hot Country Singles | 1 |
| U.S. Billboard Bubbling Under Hot 100 | 1 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks | 44 |
| Canadian RPM Country Tracks | 1 |
| Canadian RPM Adult Contemporary Tracks | 12 |
| Preceded by "Someone Loves You Honey" by Charley Pride |
Billboard Hot Country Singles number-one single April 22-April 29, 1978 |
Succeeded by "It's All Wrong, But It's All Right" by Dolly Parton |
| RPM Country Tracks number-one single May 13, 1978 |