Artists whose career high point was on someone else's track

[peanutbutter]

Some obvious commercial ones:
AZ's verse on Life's A Bitch being one of the best verses on Illmatic, his solo career was alright but never had a moment like that again and it probably haunted his entire career a bit
LV, the other guy on Gangsta's Paradise
Evanescence featuring Paul McCoy, I can even remember on one music video show after a few weeks they ditched the "feat. Paul McCoy" from the title


More subjectively:
Kendrick Lamar managing to pull off vocals over Never Catch Me is almost hard to comprehend. One of the best rappers ever in the middle of the hottest spell of any rapper ever just fucking blitzing it on top of a beat that seems impossible to keep up with

[Natnar]

Bono on Clannad's In A Lifetime.

[buttgammon]

Busta Rhymes on ATCQ's Scenario. His appearance on Do It Now by Mos Def is great too.

[A Hat Like That]

John Barnes.

[Better Midlands]

RikRok on Shaggy's - It Wasn't Me, sings the chorus/hook - would make a good pub quiz question.

[chveik]

Pharoah Sanders on Coltrane's 'Consequences'

[Auntie Beryl]

MC Mikee Freedom on (I Wanna Give You) Devotion.
Gary Haisman on We Call It Aciiied.
Kim Basinger on Shake Your Head.

[Video Game Fan 2000]

More subjectively:
Kendrick Lamar managing to pull off vocals over Never Catch Me is almost hard to comprehend. One of the best rappers ever in the middle of the hottest spell of any rapper ever just fucking blitzing it on top of a beat that seems impossible to keep up with

Wouldn't call it his career high point or anything, but Kendrick put one of his finest and most personal verses in Pusha's Nosetalgia

[Video Game Fan 2000]

This one seems unfair because Scrawl are so overlooked and forgotten these days, but Marcy Mays on the Afghan Whigs' My Curse is one of the best vocal performances on a big 90s alt rock song.

[Pauline Walnuts]

JC 001 on Killing Joke's Stay One Step Ahead Curve's Ten Little Girls

[McChesney Duntz]

This kinda doesn't count, since I wouldn't trade EBTG for anything, but the truth remains that two of my favorite Tracey Thorn performances are on the Style Council's "The Paris Match" and Massive Attack's "Protection."

[Sebastian Cobb]

Nate Dogg on Area Codes.

Although with the exception of Regulate most of his most famous work was guesting.

[Sebastian Cobb]

Dresta and B.G. Knocc Out's most recognisable work:

[Video Game Fan 2000]

I agree with Protection, but it feels bad saying it for the same reason as it feels bad shouting for My Curse.

Robert Fripp on Eno's The Big Ship/Baby's On Fire, and if it counts Belew on the Talking Heads Great Curve

[rue the polywhirl]

Might as well on the same tangent say Elizabeth Fraser's career high point is on Massive Attack's Teardrop which later became their career high-point of House Theme.

Twista's career high point was on Kanye West's Slow Jamz.

Kanye West's career high point was on Estelle's American Boy.

Estelle's career high point is still due. Guest spot on some amazing Billie Eilish track beckons. Onwards and upwards.

[peanutbutter]

Twista's career high point was on Kanye West's Slow Jamz.

This was actually a Twista single from 2003 featuring Kanye West, came out on his 2004 album a few weeks before College Dropout too. Early sign of West's egomania with him putting it on his own album there, arguably, realising he's already big enough he can retroactively claim it as his own (and it is 90% a Kanye song, in fairness)

[Sebastian Cobb]

Estelle's career high point is still due.

Incorrect
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k3g0II40U24

[phantom_power]

Nicky Minaj on Monster

[willbo]

guitar player Steve Vai on the M83 album. Apparently he has a fanbase who listen to entire records of his self indulgent whiddlings (only joking, I'm sure he's a genius and his solos are gonna connect us to aliens and create world peace some day)

[rue the polywhirl]

guitar player Steve Vai on the M83 album. Apparently he has a fanbase who listen to entire records of his self indulgent whiddlings (only joking, I'm sure he's a genius and his solos are gonna connect us to aliens and create world peace some day)

Definite artistic high point but Steve Vai's career high point is playing with Frank Zappa.

[SpiderChrist]

I'd rather listen to Steve Vai with PiL than with Zappa. Not a career high point, I guess. I imagine playing for Zappa trumps (oops) playing for Lydon.

https://youtu.be/WrFtPjltNAw

[earl_sleek]

Dido on Eminem's Stan. 'Thank You' on it's own is a painfully average, drippy bore-fest, but it becomes quite haunting and melancholy in a new context.

[buzby]

Isaac Bello/MC Bello B of the Outlaw Posse on What Time Is Love? (he got two bites at it too - the Live at Trancentral version, and the 'America' version)

[Sebastian Cobb]

I dunno about highest point because she does have a respected solo career but I can't be the only one whose favorite work of Beth Orton is with the Chemical Brothers, namely Alive Alone and One too Many Mornings.

Gary Lightbody's best work is with Cut La Roc though:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yXMjn-vve-E

[Kankurette]

Dido on Eminem's Stan. 'Thank You' on it's own is a painfully average, drippy bore-fest, but it becomes quite haunting and melancholy in a new context.

Same. I was disappointed when I heard Thank You. So tedious.

[Video Game Fan 2000]

No way is Teardrop the best song Liz Fraser ever sang on.

[lankyguy95]

No way is Teardrop the best song Liz Fraser ever sang on.

I agree but I'm presuming rtp meant from a commercial/popular point of view. Cocteau Twins never had a song anywhere near as successful as that one.

[willbo]

The singer from Blind Melon was on a song on Guns N' Roses Illusion albums. Nothing against Blind Melon but I think that must be the widest audience a song featuring him had seeing as they never sold GnR numbers.

[Dr Rock]

Sheena Easton - Prince: U Got The Look

[holyzombiejesus]

No way is Teardrop the best song Liz Fraser ever sang on.

No, it's Primitive Painters.