My Best Days Are Ahead of Me

"My Best Days Are Ahead of Me"
Single by Danny Gokey
from the album My Best Days
Released	December 26, 2009 (2009-12-26)
Format	Music download, airplay
Genre	Country
Length	3:07
Label	RCA Nashville/19 Recordings
Writer(s)	Kent Blazy Marv Green[1]
Producer	Mark Bright
Danny Gokey singles chronology
"My Best Days Are Ahead of Me" (2009) "I Will Not Say Goodbye" (2010)

"My Best Days Are Ahead of Me" is the title of a song written by Marv Green and Kent Blazy, and recorded by American Idol season 8 finalist Danny Gokey. The song was released in December 2009 and served as the lead-off single to his debut album My Best Days, which was released on March 2, 2010 via RCA Nashville.

Content

In "My Best Days Are Ahead of Me," the narrator looks back at the mistakes he has made in his life, but realizes that his "best days are ahead of [him]."^[2]

History

Originally, Gokey's first single was slated to be "It's Only," written by Charles Kelley and Dave Haywood of Lady Antebellum. This song was withdrawn as a single in November 2009 and replaced with "My Best Days Are Ahead of Me."^[1]

Critical reception

Karlie Justus of The 9513 gave the song a thumbs-down. Her review called it "a believable, earnest effort that’s bland and entirely forgettable," and criticized it for a lack of narrative.^[3] Matt Bjorke described the song positively in his review of the album, saying that its positive message "aligns nicely with [Gokey]."^[2] Deborah Evans Price of Billboard praised Gokey's vocal performance and called the song "the feel-good country song of 2010." ^[4] Brian Mansfield of USA Today gave a positive review, saying, "With its uptempo tone of tempered optimism, My Best Days Are Ahead of Me is just the right kind of introductory single for Danny."^[5]

Music video

The music video was filmed at a warehouse in Nashville, Tennessee^[6] and directed by Wes Edwards. It contains footage of Gokey performing the song, interspersed with motivational messages that appear on the screen.^[6] Gokey told Country Weekly magazine that he was comfortable filming the video: "I felt like American Idol gave me some experience in being in front of a camera."^[6]

Chart performance

"My Best Days Are Ahead of Me" debuted at #55 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs charts dated for the week ending December 26, 2009. The song entered the country Top 40 at #39 on the chart dated for the week ending February 20, 2010. The song also debuted at #82 on the Billboard Hot 100 for the week ending March 20, 2010. The song reached its peak of #24 on the country chart in May 2010.

Chart (2009-2010)	Peak position
US Billboard Hot 100[7]	82
US Country Songs (Billboard)[8]	24

References

1. ^ ^{a b} "Danny Gokey switches singles". USA Today. 19 November 2009. http://content.usatoday.com/communities/idolchatter/post/2009/11/danny-gokey-switches-singles/1. Retrieved 2 March 2010. 
2. ^ ^{a b} Matt Bjorke (1 March 2010). "My Best Days review". Roughstock. http://www.roughstock.com/reviews/danny-gokey-my-best-days. Retrieved 2 March 2010. 
3. ^ Karlie Justus (7 January 2010). "Danny Gokey — "My Best Days Are Ahead of Me"". The 9513. http://www.the9513.com/danny-gokey-my-best-days-are-ahead-of-me/. Retrieved 2 March 2010. 
4. ^ http://www.billboard.com/new-releases/danny-gokey-my-best-days-are-ahead-of-me-1004067720.story#/new-releases/danny-gokey-my-best-days-are-ahead-of-me-1004067720.story
5. ^ "Danny Gokey's 'My Best Days': Track-by-track". USA Today. 2 March 2010. http://content.usatoday.com/communities/idolchatter/post/2010/03/danny-gokeys-my-best-days-track-by-track/1. Retrieved 19 May 2010. 
6. ^ ^{a b c} "Deep Freeze Day: Danny Gokey's video for "My Best Days Are Ahead of Me" is shot on a cold day in Nashville.". Country Weekly 17 (9): 40–41. 1 March 2010. 
7. ^ "Danny Gokey Album & Song Chart History" Billboard Hot 100 for Danny Gokey. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved January 22, 2011.
8. ^ "Danny Gokey Album & Song Chart History" Billboard Country Songs for Danny Gokey. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved January 22, 2011.