Jimmy Fallon and Stephen Colbert team up for moving musical duet

By Meredith Blake

Feb. 22, 2013 12 AM PT

One thing Stephen Colbert and Jimmy Fallon have in common — other than being late-night hosts with Ben & Jerry’s flavors named after them, that is — is the important role music plays on their respective shows .

On “Late Night,” Fallon’s joyful classroom-instrument covers are already the stuff of legend, as are his musical mash-ups in the style of classic rockers like Bob Dylan. For his part, Colbert has never been shy about strapping on a guitar and singing along with his musical guests, no matter how legendary.

So when Colbert paid a visit to “Late Night” on Thursday, it perhaps wasn’t a huge surprise that the two hosts teamed up on a duet for the ages. After a setup involving a spat over rival Oscar parties, Colbert and Fallon sat down together at a gleaming white grand piano to perform a little number called “Ivory and Ivory” about their decision to politely tolerate each other.

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It was a novel spin on “Ebony and Ivory,” Stevie Wonder and Paul McCartney’s ode to cross-racial friendship, though the lyrics were decidedly less inspirational (e.g. “If Rihanna and Chris Brown can be friendly, why can’t we?”; “Your ice cream tastes just like Al Roker’s Depends, but we’re still good friends.”)

While late-night crossover appearances are almost always amusing, this one was particularly special. The fun begins at 2:30.

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