The Best (song)

"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 number 10 in Norway and number 95 in the United Kingdom.

The single was released on a CD in 1988 along with two rare tracks that Tyler recorded, "The Fire Below" and "Under Suspicion".

Chart performance

Tina Turner version

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."

In 1992 Turner recorded "(Simply) The Best", a duet version of the song with Australian rock singer Jimmy Barnes, to promote that year's New South Wales Rugby League season in Australia. The single subsequently appeared on a limited edition bonus disc as part of the Australian release of her compilation album Simply The Best.

Greatest hits album

A greatest hits album, sometimes called a "best of" album or a catalog album, is a compilation of songs by a particular artist or band. Most often the track list contains previously released recordings with a high degree of notability. However, to increase the appeal, especially to people who already own the original release, it is common to include remixes and/or alternate takes of popular songs; even new material (previously unreleased). At times a greatest hits compilation is the original release for songs that have themselves been released as a single and charted successfully.

Notable compilations

Madonna's The Immaculate Collection is the best selling greatest hits compilation by a solo artist; all of the songs on it are presented in different versions than the original hit versions. The Eagles' Their Greatest Hits (1971–1975) is the best selling greatest hits compilation by a group and also one of the ten best selling albums in history. Greatest hits albums are typically produced after an artist has had enough successful songs to fill out an album release. Some artists, such as Mariah Carey, Madonna, Janet Jackson, Britney Spears, Elvis Presley, Michael Jackson, The Beatles, Kenny Rogers, Aerosmith, Kiss, U2, Dolly Parton, Journey, Los Tigres del Norte, Queen, Kylie Minogue and Billy Joel, have released multiple greatest hits albums through their long careers. Some greatest hits albums are released only at the end of the artist or group's career. For example, My Chemical Romance released a greatest hits album after they disbanded. Other artists, like Eminem have released hits albums in the center of their success. He released Curtain Call: The Hits in 2005 and then Shady XV as a compilation album in 2014.

The Best (Bonnie Tyler album)

The Best is a compilation album by Bonnie Tyler released by Sony Music International. The album was released in 1993, and different versions were only released in France and the UK. The back cover art differs in each version while the front cover is identical.

This compilation features another retrospective of Tyler's career. "It's a Heartache" and "Lost in France" are here, among other hits like "Total Eclipse of the Heart", "Faster Than the Speed of Night", "A Natural Woman", and the feature track "The Best". Some tracks also differ; the French version includes an extended version of "Band of Gold", while the UK edition features the Shakin' Stevens duet "A Rockin' Good Way", among other unique tracks.

The UK version is cited to have been re-released on February 2, 1999. Meanwhile, the French version is cited on AllMusic with an October 7, 1996 release date; the album cover clearly proves the AllMusic title incorrect.

Track listing

UK Version

The Best (UK TV series)

The Best is a British programme which aired for ten episodes in 2002 on BBC2. The series starred British cooks Silvana Franco and Paul Merrett and Australian Ben O'Donoghue, who participated in friendly competition to create the best dish for each of two given categories per half-hour episode. Judging was performed by a rotating panel of three judges, who were not told who created which dish.

The sixty recipes seen in the series were collected in a 2003 book, also titled The Best. (ISBN 978-0563488538)

References