Few could’ve predicted the impact that Tame Impala’s Kevin Parker would have upon the direction of contemporary music throughout the 2010s.

After winning the hearts of day trippers the world over with the blunted, guitar-driven psych-rock revival of Tame Impala’s 2010 full-length debut InnerSpeaker, Parker became increasingly infatuated with the notion of making pop music. He set about incorporating woozy electronics, sugary songwriting and explosive production onto subsequent Tame Impala efforts to establish himself as one of the most capable sonic architects in the industry.

By the middle of the decade, Parker found himself behind the boards working on major releases for a number of chart-dominating heavyweights like Mark Ronson, Lady Gaga, Kanye West, Rihanna and beyond – his melodic sensibilities and multi-instrumental prowess making him a go-to collaborator.

Now, I’m diving deep into Kevin Parker’s publishing catalogue to assess his collaborative talents, sorting the good from the not-so-good to discern the impact he’s had over the charts throughout the past decade.

For brevity’s sake, I’ll be leaving out his production and engineering contributions on records from the likes of POND and Melody’s Echo Chamber, as well his previous remixes or songs he’s been sampled on. So, without any further ado, let’s get stuck in.

Pardon the pun, but if there’s any feature that Kev’s just phoned in over the course of his career, it’s this one in my opinion. Sure, The Streets are iconic and it makes sense for Parker to link up with Mike Skinner for this track, but it’s just simply… not good.

Released back in 2008, “Big City Lights” marks Parker’s first noteworthy appearance as a feature artist on another track, so we can excuse this one for sounding a little rough around the edges. The production is pretty cool but Kevin’s vocal performance and sloppy guitar licks in the second half leave a lot to be desired.

An oddball moment from a short-lived project between French dance producers Pilooski and Pentile, “Aydin” is a dissonant, metallic number that pairs Kevin’s distinctive falsetto with lurching post-punk drums and freaky strings. It’s certainly unique, but not exactly memorable, and Parker’s vocals feel like an oddity over the top of such a haunting groove.

On paper, the prospect of Kendrick Lamar spitting bars over the top of a Tame Impala instrumental sounds wonderful, but in reality, “Backwards” falls short of all expectations. This tune, featured on the Divergent OST (now there’s a throwback!) is basically just a weird revamp of “Feels Like We Only Go Backwards” that sees Kendrick channel 2Pac’s flow and lyricism throughout his verses, and while the sentiment of the track is commendable, it’s just a bit too vanilla to really make much of an impact.

Following on from his contribution to “Big City Lights”, Parker reunited with Modular Recordings label mates Canyons to lend a hand on two songs from their 2011 LP Keep Your Dreams. On “Tonight”, the two meld much more cohesively, with Kevin’s vocal harmonies sounding much sharper and adding some serious harmonic depth to the breezy, echo-drenched instrumental.

The weakest of three songs Kevin donated to Mark Ronson’s Uptown Special, “Leaving Los Feliz” combines the typically phased-out Tame Impala sound with an upbeat brand of West Coast pop-rock. It’s fun, but just doesn’t really go anywhere – I guess you could call it ‘a vibe’..?

Another Keep Your Dreams cut, “When I See You Again” pairs abstract electronics with a jangly, Go Betweens-esque strum pattern to serve up supple slices of early ’10s space-disco. Beneath that bed of sound, Parker lays down a memorable bridge that sees him go full Beatle mode before delivering the chorus refrain to see the song out in style.

Despite bearing so much potential, “My Life” falls flat for me by the time it reaches its climax. A shame, as the synth sequence that starts the song is strong, Kevin’s vocal contributions are pretty impressive and there’s some seriously great sonic elements peppered throughout. Unfortunately, it just doesn’t ever really hit its peak.

The indie world had a mini freakout when it was revealed that Mark Ronson, Kevin Parker and Queens of the Stone Age’s Josh Homme had contributed to “Perfect Illusion”, the lead single from Lady Gaga’s fifth LP Joanne. However, the song proved to be incredibly divisive upon dropping: Gaga’s vocals are disconcertingly raw for a pop song of this ilk, and the song’s muddy mix and buried production totally betray its bombastic instrumentation. That being said, the music video does feature Gaga ripping Kevin Parker’s head off, and that’s definitely still cool enough for me.

A synthwave banger with one of the most charismatic, and sorely under-appreciated, rappers of the 2010s? Now we’re talking. Parker’s gleaming falsetto and upbeat keys really add a layer of disco steez to Theo’s sung-rap vocal, and the crunchy drums and synth bass throughout the track is just downright nasty.

Again plucked from Uptown Special, “Summer Breaking” sees Parker and Ronson’s styles meld much more cohesively across this smooth, subtly jazzy ode to ’70s yacht-rock. It’s probably the closest thing to Steely Dan that Kevin’s ever done, and the songwriting smarts exemplified throughout the tune make it a slept-on entry into his canon of contributions.

During the height of his pre-Slow Rush Top 40 songwriting fling, Parker was contacted by Kanye West’s team asking him to submit a number of samples for consideration on his then-forthcoming album, Ye. In response, Kevin shot back a folder full of ideas which somehow found their way onto the album closer “Violent Crimes”.

It’s an endearing piece of songwriting that sees Kanye promise to right his wrongs and be a better father for his two young daughters.

The sonic DNA of the Flaming Lips is scattered across every major Tame Impala project to date, and given both acts’ penchant for collaboration, it makes sense that the two parties would unite at some stage. A woozy, staggering cut packed with sputtering synths and droning strings, “Children of the Moon” might be a little sloppy, but it’s a cosmic kind of slop. Besides, hearing Kevin Parker and Wayne Coyne duet is a truly sensational thing to experience.

Another retro-flavoured jam alongside Theophilus London, “Only You” is addictive as hell, with rose-tinted retro keys colliding with a four-to-the-floor groove and a rave-ready bassline in spectacular fashion. Keep your ears out for some killer chorus harmonies layered in the background.

Popping up towards the tail end of The Weeknd’s chart-conquering 2020 album After Hours, “Repeat After Me (Interlude)” is textbook Tame Impala, and it’s incredibly satisfying to hear Abel display his vocal acrobatics over the track. A saturated drum machine rattles steadily as Kevin’s trademark synths dip and weave throughout the mix, and Parker even contributes a rare (albeit typically garbled) spoken word introduction to the track to really make his presence felt.

The Kevin Parker touch doesn’t get much more glitzy than this. A standout moment from Ronson’s 2019 disco heartbreak opus Late Night Feelings, “Find U Again” features a sensational vocal feature from Camila Cabello, who easily navigates the song’s intricate song structure. The subtle flourishes of vocoder work a charm over the track, and again, those crunchy drums make an all-too-satisfying appearance to make this one a certified banger.

The product of a spontaneous studio session with SZA and Mark Ronson, “Together” is an unfettered, unashamed disco romp, with SZA delivering one of her most confident vocal performances yet across its squelchy dance floor groove. Parker and Ronson initially debuted this track at a Governor’s Ball DJ set in 2017, and while it hasn’t yet received an official release – yet – a groove this good is just too hard to overlook.

On “Tomorrow”, Parker’s sparse funk guitars and blooming synthesisers work in tandem to provide a pillowy instrumental for Kali Uchis to shine atop of. The song takes several psychedelic detours over the span of its short run time but there’s some serious chemistry between Uchis and Parke. We’ve got our fingers crossed there’s a reunion on the cards for us all again soon.

A standout moment from ASTROWORLD that sees Kevin Parker lend his magic touch to Travis Scott’s futuristic trap universe, “Skeletons” is sublime from start to end. Gliding basslines collide with haunting harpsichords while a lumbering breakbeat sets a rock solid foundation, and The Weeknd and Pharrell Williams even manage to work their way onto the track. It’s short but sweet, yet shows just how savvy Travis is at pulling the best out of his collaborators.

A squiggly psych-funk cut that’s vaguely reminiscent of the Grateful Dead’s “Shakedown Street”, “Daffodils” is without a doubt the best track on Ronson’s Uptown Special (cop that, “Uptown Funk”). Assembled with a crack team of studio hounds - among them Jeff Bhasker, James Ford, Steve Jordan and Australia’s own Kirin J Callinan, who slices through the middle with an absolute screamer of a guitar solo – “Daffodils” is unashamedly buoyant and irresistibly fun. Parker’s strutting guitar and sugary lead vocals make for one of his best features to date.

“Same ‘Ol Mistakes” is more a cover than a collab, but you’d be silly to understate just how much this co-sign from Rihanna contributed to Tame Impala’s exposure among global audiences.

As the story goes, Rihanna was introduced to Tame Impala’s music through SZA – in a studio session with Kendrick Lamar, nonetheless – which led her to rework Currents closer “New Person, Same Old Mistakes”. The cover appeared on her own 2016 release Anti, and it’s safe to say that mainstream audiences gobbled it up in their masses.

Hearing RiRi put her vocals to Parker’s lucid psych-pop instrumental proved to be a penny drop for those within the industry, establishing the West Australian sensation as one of pop’s most in-demand collaborators and arguably asserting his status as one of the most influential crossover acts of the decade.

This is an opinion piece written by Will Brewster, a Melbourne-based writer and producer. Follow him on Twitter @_willbrewster.

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