"The Best Day" is a song written by

Dean Dillon Dean Dillon (born Larry Dean Flynn; March 26, 1955) is an American country musician and songwriter. Between 1982 and 1993, he recorded six studio albums on various labels, and charted several singles on the '' Billboard'' country charts. Since 1 ...

and

Carson Chamberlain Carson Chamberlain (born in Berea, Kentucky) is an American songwriter, record producer and session musician who works mainly in the field of country music. He worked as a bandleader and steel guitarist for Keith Whitley until Whitley died in 1 ...

, and recorded by American

country music Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, ...

singer

George Strait George Harvey Strait Sr. (born May 18, 1952) is an American country music singer, songwriter, actor, and music producer. Strait is considered one of the most influential and popular recording artists of all time. In the 1980s, he was credited for ...

. It was released in January 2000 as the first single from his compilation album ''

Latest Greatest Straitest Hits ''Latest Greatest Straitest Hits'' is the fifth compilation album by American country music artist George Strait. It was released on March 7, 2000 by MCA Records. The album represents his greatest hits since the release of his 1995 box set ''Str ...

''. The song reached the top of the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

Hot Country Singles & Tracks Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States. This 50-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly by collecting airplay data from Nielsen BDS along with digital sal ...

chart.

Content

The song is about a father, who recalls his son describing the activities of his life. The first verse recalls a father-son

campout Camping is an outdoor activity involving overnight stays away from home, either without shelter or using basic shelter such as a tent, or a recreational vehicle. Typically, participants leave developed areas to spend time outdoors in more natur ...

, and the young man looks forward to a weekend of

fishing Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment, but may also be caught from stocked bodies of water such as ponds, canals, park wetlands and reservoirs. Fishing techniques inclu ...

conversation Conversation is interactive communication between two or more people. The development of conversational skills and etiquette is an important part of socialization. The development of conversational skills in a new language is a frequent focus ...

, bonding, and other camping-related activities. The second verse shows a young man becoming a teenager, and getting a

Chevrolet Corvette The Chevrolet Corvette is a two-door, two-passenger luxury sports car manufactured and marketed by Chevrolet since 1953. With eight design generations, noted sequentially from C1 to C8, the Corvette is noted for its performance and distinctive ...

. The third and final verse is set on the son's

wedding A wedding is a ceremony where two people are united in marriage. Wedding traditions and customs vary greatly between cultures, ethnic groups, religions, countries, and social classes. Most wedding ceremonies involve an exchange of marriage vo ...

day. As they stand in a room of the

church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a building for Christian religious activities * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian communal worship * Chris ...

with our tuxes on, the son learned in childhood applied to his new marriage: "I'm the luckiest man alive, this is the best day of my life". The song is in the key of

A major A major (or the key of A) is a major scale based on A, with the pitches A, B, C, D, E, F, and G. Its key signature has three sharps. Its relative minor is F-sharp minor and its parallel minor is A minor. The key of A major is the only k ...

with a 4/4

time signature The time signature (also known as meter signature, metre signature, or measure signature) is a notational convention used in Western musical notation to specify how many beats (pulses) are contained in each measure (bar), and which note value ...

and a slow tempo of about 66

beats per minute Beat, beats or beating may refer to: Common uses * Patrol, or beat, a group of personnel assigned to monitor a specific area ** Beat (police), the territory that a police officer patrols ** Gay beat, an area frequented by gay men * Battery ( ...

. Its intro uses the pattern A-Aaug-D-E7, and the verses use a pattern of A-D-E-A.

Critical reception

Larry Flick, of ''

'' magazine reviewed the song favorably, calling it a "well-written tale that listeners will find easily relatable, and the chorus makes this the ultimate feel-good tune to kick off the millennium." He goes on to say that Strait's "warm-throated delivery is all honest emotion."''

'', January 15, 2000

Chart performance

The song entered the

chart at number 48 on the chart dated January 1, 2000, and spent 29 weeks on the chart. The song also climbed to number 1 after spending 17 weeks on the chart, where it held number 1 for three weeks on the chart dated April 22, 2000. In addition, this song became Strait's 36th ''

'' Number One as a solo artist.

Peak positions

End of year charts

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Best Day Songs about parenthood 2000 singles 2000 songs George Strait songs Songs written by Dean Dillon Song recordings produced by Tony Brown (record producer) Songs written by Carson Chamberlain MCA Nashville Records singles Songs about fathers