Released March 31, 2008 Genre Country Label BNA | Format CD single Length 4:12 | |
Writer(s) Scooter Carusoe
Lady Goodman | ||
"Better as a Memory" is a song written by Scooter Carusoe and Lady Goodman and recorded by American country music artist Kenny Chesney. It was released in March 2008 as the fourth and final single from his 2007 album Just Who I Am: Poets & Pirates. With a two-week stay, it became the fourteenth number-one hit of Chesney's career on the chart dated June 28, 2008.
Contents
Content
The song is a mid-tempo ballad in which the narrator addresses a lover with whom he is splitting with, but most likely warning her he is not the kind to get deeply involved with. He then lists a series of similes regarding himself (such as "built to fade like your favorite song", and "always sure until I doubt"), ultimately telling her that he is "better as a memory / than as [her] man".
The co-writers of the song are both pseudonymous: Scooter Carusoe is a pseudonym for Travis Hill, founder of Carnival Music, and Lady Goodman is a pseudonym of Holly Gleason, Chesney's publicist and a music critic.
Reception
Noted Nashville critic Robert K Oermann wrote <Music Row Magazine>, "...it could be the performance of his life, perhaps his career."
Leeann Ward, reviewing the song for Country Universe, gave it a B- rating. He said the lyrics seem to be somewhat "self-indulgent" but then said that "the production is nice and Kenny’s vocals are spot on."
Notable Performances
The song was performed with a string quartet on the 2009 Grammy Awards, where Chesney was introduced by Morgan Freeman. Later, it became the final performance in his Sony/Hot Ticket theatrical film "Kenny Chesney: Summer in 3-D."
Popular Culture
The tune was voted one of NSAI’s “Ten Songs I Wish I’d Written” in November 2008.