friend and I can't hook up on xbl

My friend just got xbl gold and him and I can't play.  He can play with other people on live, and I can play with others, but we can't play together.  We can't prvt chat either.  Does anyone know why this is happening, or how it can be fixed?  I appreciate any feed back

Umm maby you told him your name wrong?MidnightSasha

No, he shows up on my buddy list and I show up on his, so that's not the problem. 

Make sure your 360 network settings are set to open. If not then port forward on your router.fieryfood_dude

i dont know whats wrong wih yours, i hook up with buddys on xbl all the timeitsme185

NAT problem