Released 30 May 1989 Genre Pop | Recorded March–April 1989 Label EMI | |
B-side Move It / Lindsay Jane (all)
High Class Baby (12" & CD) Format 7", 12", Cassingle, CD Single | ||
"The Best of Me" is a song originally by David Foster and title-track of his debut solo album in 1983. The song was composed by David Foster, Jeremy Lubbock and Richard Marx. It has since been recorded by numerous artists, the most notable being Cliff Richard, who chose it for his 100th single milestone in 1989.
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Kenny Rogers version
Kenny Rogers recorded a version with George Martin as producer for his 1985 album The Heart of the Matter.
David Foster & Olivia Newton-John version
David Foster re-recorded the track with Olivia Newton-John for his 1986 self-titled solo album. It was released as a single and made #6 on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart and #80 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.
Cliff Richard - 100th single
Cliff Richard selected the song for the his milestone 100th single in 1989. Released on 30 May 1989, the song debuted at #2 on the UK Singles Chart and stayed there another week in it's 7 week run on the chart. It was certified Silver by the BPI for sales over 200,000.
Before releasing his 100th single, Richard invited 2,000 British fans to the London Palladium for a preview of six songs from his forthcoming album (which would be Stronger), to vote on which one they liked most as possible 100th single. Ironically, "The Best of Me" came second to "Stronger Than That", but Richard had also revealed by mistake that the latter was composed by Alan Tarney who had written most of Richard's biggest hits since 1979. Regardless, it was enough confirmation for Richard to choose "The Best of Me" with its fitting lyrics as a tribute to his audience. Coming third in the vote was "I Just Don't Have the Heart", ahead of "Joanna" and "Lean on You".