You're the Best Thing

Not to be confused with You're the Best Thing That Ever Happened to Me, You Are the Best Thing, or U R the Best Thing.

"You're the Best Thing" is a song by English band the Style Council which was their sixth single to be released. It was composed by lead singer Paul Weller, recorded at Weller's own studio Solid Bond Studios, and was released in 1984. It is the second single from the band's début album, Café Bleu (1984). Café Bleu was renamed My Ever Changing Moods in the United States to capitalise on the success of the first single. It spent five weeks on the US Billboard Hot 100, peaking at number 76 the weeks of July 28 and August 4, 1984.^[1][2]

"You're the Best Thing"
Single by the Style Council
from the album Café Bleu
B-side	"The Big Boss Groove"
Released	18 May 1984
Genre	Blue-eyed soul pop rock
Length	5:45 (original album version) 4:18 (single version)
Label	Polydor
Songwriter(s)	Paul Weller
Producer(s)	Paul Weller Peter Wilson
The Style Council singles chronology
"My Ever Changing Moods" (1984) "You're the Best Thing" (1984) ""Shout to the Top!" (1984)

Versions

The 7-inch single version of the song adds a saxophone solo that is not present in the original album version. Certain editions of the My Ever Changing Moods album in the U.S. feature this single version in place of the full-length album version that appeared on all editions of Café Bleu.

In the UK and Australasia, the song was released as a Double A-sided single with "The Big Boss Groove". In the UK it was officially an EP titled Groovin'. Edited versions of both songs appeared on the 7-inch release.

Compilation appearances

As well as the song's single release, it has featured on various compilation albums released by The Style Council. The song was included on The Singular Adventures of The Style Council, The Complete Adventures of The Style Council, and Greatest Hits.

Music video

The music video for "You're the Best Thing" was directed by Tim Pope.^[3]

Track listings

7-inch single (UK)

1. "You're The Best Thing" — 4:18
2. "The Big Boss Groove" — 3:40

12-inch single (UK)

1. "You're The Best Thing" (Long Version) — 5:41
2. "You're The Dub Thing" — 4:58
3. "The Big Boss Groove" — 4:39

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (1984)	Peak position
Australia (Kent Music Report)[4]	17
Canadian Hot 100	97
Irish Singles Chart[5]	5
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[6]	7
UK Singles Chart[7]	5
U.S. Billboard Hot 100[8]	76
U.S. Billboard Adult Contemporary[9]	31

Year-end charts

Chart (1984)	Position
Australia (Kent Music Report)[10]	92
United Kingdom (Gallup)[11]	92

Certifications

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI)[12]	Silver	200,000‡
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

References

1. The Style Council, Billboard Hot 100 – Billboard.com. Retrieved January 6, 2025.
2. Billboard Hot 100, Week of August 4, 1984 – Billboard.com. Retrieved January 6, 2025.
3. "The Style Council: You're the Best Thing (1984)". IMDb. Retrieved October 25, 2019.
4. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. St Ives, NSW: Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
5. "The Irish Charts - All there is to know". www.irishcharts.ie. Retrieved 2023-07-13.
6. "charts.nz The Style Council – "You're The Best Thing"" (ASP). Hung Medien. Recording Industry Association of New Zealand. Retrieved 8 April 2017.
7. Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 537. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
8. Whitburn, Joel (2013). Joel Whitburn’s Top Pop Singles, 14th Edition: 1955-2012. Record Research. p. 813.
9. Whitburn, Joel (2002). Top Adult Contemporary: 1961-2001. Record Research. p. 236.
10. "Kent Music Report No 548 – 31 December 1984 > National Top 100 Singles for 1984". Kent Music Report. Retrieved 23 January 2023 – via Imgur.com.
11. "Top 100 Singles 1984" (PDF). Music Week. Retrieved 13 September 2022.
12. "British single certifications – Style Council – You're the Best Thing". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 2 December 2022.