The Best (song)
| "The Best" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by Bonnie Tyler | ||||
| from the album Hide Your Heart | ||||
| B-side | "The Fire Below" | |||
| Released | 1988 | |||
| Recorded | 1988 | |||
| Genre | Pop rock | |||
| Length | 4:07 | |||
| Label | Columbia | |||
| Writer(s) | Mike Chapman, Holly Knight | |||
| Producer(s) | Desmond Child | |||
| Bonnie Tyler singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
| "The Best" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by Tina Turner | ||||
| from the album Foreign Affair | ||||
| B-side | "Bold and Reckless" | |||
| Released | September 2, 1989 | |||
| Format |
7" single 12" single CD single | |||
| Genre | Pop rock | |||
| Length | 4:09 | |||
| Label | Capitol | |||
| Writer(s) | Mike Chapman, Holly Knight | |||
| Producer(s) | Tina Turner, Dan Hartman | |||
| Tina Turner singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
| "(Simply) The Best" | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||||||||
| Single by Tina Turner & Jimmy Barnes | ||||||||||
| from the album Simply the Best | ||||||||||
| Released | 1992 | |||||||||
| Format | CD single | |||||||||
| Genre | Pop rock | |||||||||
| Length | 4:11 | |||||||||
| Label | Mushroom | |||||||||
| Writer(s) | Mike Chapman, Holly Knight | |||||||||
| Producer(s) | Dan Hartman, Chris Lord-Alge | |||||||||
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"The Best" is a song written by Mike Chapman and Holly Knight, originally recorded by Bonnie Tyler on her 1988 release Hide Your Heart. The single reached #10 in Norway and Portugal, #34 in Spain and #95 in the UK.
The single was released on a CD in 1988 along with two rare tracks that Tyler recorded; "The Fire Below" and "Under Suspicion".[1]
Cover versions
Tina Turner
The song was later covered by Tina Turner, and released as a highly successful single in 1989. It was included on her hit album Foreign Affair. The saxophone solo on Turner's version is played by Edgar Winter.
Holly Knight told Songfacts: "'Simply the Best' is one of those rare gems that's a positive song, and it's not cheesy. But the hard part is to write something in a positive mode that really is sincere — that's a tall order."[2]
In popular culture
In the United States
The song was used during the ceremony that the San Francisco 49ers held as they retired number 16 in honor of quarterback Joe Montana
The song was used during the ceremonies that the Pittsburgh Penguins held as they retired, un-retired, and re-retired number 66 for Mario Lemieux, as his surname means "the best" in French.
The song was played over the PA system at Madison Square Garden when Mark Messier was presented with the Stanley Cup after the New York Rangers' victory over the Vancouver Canucks in Game 7 of the 1994 Stanley Cup Finals. The Rangers listened to it before the game.[3] It was continued to be played as the Rangers skated around the ice at the Garden with the Stanley Cup.[4] On the CBC, Bob Cole and Harry Neale said that "the crowd responded"[4] when the song was played over the PA system when the players skated around the ice, as they had throughout the game.
Bonnie Tyler's version of the song was used in a tribute video for WWE wrestler Edge that aired on the July 20, 2007 edition of WWE Friday Night SmackDown.
Turner's version was used by NESN (New England Sports Network) on September 1, 2007, as a tribute when Boston Red Sox Rookie pitcher Clay Buchholz threw a No-Hitter at Fenway Park against the Baltimore Orioles in his second Major League start. This consisted of a 2-hour replay of the game, showing all 27 outs recorded for the night, as well as the 4 minute musical montage, entitled "Rookie Magic".
Additionally, Senator Joe Biden used Turner's recording as the theme song for his 2008 campaign for the presidency, and it was an unofficial anthem for the pharmaceutical company SmithKline Beecham.
Jim Carrey performed a few lines of the song in his tribute speech to Meryl Streep during her AFI Life Achievement Award ceremony in 2004.
Rush Limbaugh frequently plays Turner's version in his bumper music rotation.
In Europe
"The Best" became even more popular in the UK than in the US, becoming the theme song of the British world champion boxer Chris Eubank.
"The Best" is played at Ibrox Stadium, Scotland when the players of Rangers Football Club and the visiting team run on to the park.[5] On April 19, 2010 Rangers FC fans began a campaign to get "The Best" to number one in the UK Pop Charts.[5] It subsequently charted at number 1 in the Scottish Single Chart and number 9 in the UK Singles Chart.[6]
"Simply The Best" has become the slogan of loyalist paramilitary groups in Northern Ireland.[7]
In the original version of The Office, David Brent plays the Tina Turner version of the song at the end of a motivational speech, shouting, "I've been David Brent! You've been the best!"
Cadbury's used this song in their Keep Team Britain Pumped adverts with Olympic swimmer Rebecca Adlington.
The theme song of Besti Flokkurinn, an Icelandic political party standing in the 2010 Reykjavik local council elections, was "Simply The Best" by Tina Turner. Prior to the 2010 election the party published a localized version of the song with new lyrics.
Other
Japanese pro-wrestler Osamu Nishimura currently uses the song as an entrance theme.
It also became the theme song for the Brazilian Formula One racer Ayrton Senna. Senna surprised Turner by showing up on stage during her concert in Adelaide, Australia in late 1993, after Senna won the Australian Grand Prix earlier in the day. Turner had already sung "The Best" earlier in the concert but decided to play it again as a tribute to Senna immediately after he left the stage.
Versions and remixes (Tina Turner version)
- 7" Edit - 4:11
- Album Version a.k.a. Extended 12" Mix - 5:28
- Extended Mighty Mix - 6:35
- Single Muscle Mix - 4:16
- Extended Muscle Mix - 5:28
- "(Simply) The Best" (with Jimmy Barnes, 1992) - 4:11
- "(Simply) The Best" (Extended Mix) (with Jimmy Barnes, 1992) - 5:29
Chart performance
- Bonnie Tyler
| Chart (1988) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Portuguese Singles Chart | 10 |
| Norwegian Singles Chart[8] | 10 |
| UK Singles Chart[9] | 95 |
| Spanish Singles Chart[10] | 34 |
- Tina Turner
| Chart (1989) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Austrian Singles Chart | 2 |
| Polish Singles Chart | 2 |
| Spanish Singles Chart | 2 |
| Belgium Singles Chart[11] | 2 |
| Swiss Singles Chart | 3 |
| Australian Singles Chart | 4 |
| Canadian Singles Chart | 4 |
| German Singles Chart | 4 |
| Irish Singles Chart | 4 |
| Dutch Singles Chart | 5 |
| Norwegian Singles Chart | 5 |
| UK Singles Chart | 5 |
| US Rock Chart | 6 |
| Italian Singles Chart | 7 |
| Swedish Singles Chart | 11 |
| Japanese Singles Chart[11] | 13 |
| US Billboard Hot 100 | 15 |
| French Singles Chart | 23 |
| New Zealand Singles Chart | 28 |
| Chart (2009) | Peak position |
| Swiss Singles Chart[12] | 92 |
| Chart (2010) | Peak position |
| Scottish Singles Chart | 1 |
| UK Singles Chart | 9 |
| UK Download Chart | 9 |
Tina Turner & Jimmy Barnes version
| Chart (1992) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| New Zealand Singles Chart | 11 |
| Australian Singles Chart | 13 |
Chart procession and succession
2010
| Preceded by "This Ain't a Love Song" by Scouting for Girls |
Scottish Singles Chart number-one single 1 May 2010 - 8 May 2010 |
Succeeded by "Good Times" by Roll Deep |
References
- ↑ BONNIE TYLER The Best (Rare 1988 UK 3-track CD single including The Fire Below and Under Suspicion (by Jim Steinman). eil.com. Retrieved 13 March 2013
- ↑ "The Best". Songfacts.com. Retrieved 2010-05-07.
- ↑ New York Rangers Hockey: Game 7 of the 1994 Stanley Cup Finals (television). MSG Network. 1994-06-14. "Tina Turner's song, 'Simply the Best,' blaring over the loudspeakers. That's the song the Rangers listened to before the game."
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Hockey Night in Canada: Game 7 of the 1994 Stanley Cup Finals (television). CBC. 1994-06-14.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 "Rangers fans launch bid to get Tina Turner hit Simply The Best to No.1". The Daily Record. April 21, 2010. Retrieved August 9, 2010.
- ↑ "Rangers fans prove Simply the Best, taking Tina Turner hit back into the Top Ten". The Scotsman. April 26, 2010. Retrieved August 9, 2010.
- ↑ Mad Dogs and Ulstermen: the crisis of Loyalism (part one)
- ↑ Steffen Hung. "Bonnie Tyler - The Best". norwegiancharts.com. Retrieved 2010-06-07.
- ↑ "Bonnie Tyler - The Best". Chart Stats. 1988-01-30. Retrieved 2010-06-07.
- ↑
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 "Song Artist Tina Turner". Retrieved 4 February 2012.
- ↑ "Tina Turner - The Best - Music Charts". Acharts.us. Retrieved 2010-06-07.
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