Most critics agreed that the song was good, but some claimed that the song did not live up to its title. For example, Will Hermes fromRolling Stone gave "Best Song Ever" a score of 4 out of 5 stars, describing the track as "pretty irresistible".[2] Lewis Corner atDigital Spy also awarded the song 4 out of 5 stars, writing: "Sure the lyrics are cheesier than a 6-pack ofWotsits, and yes the sentiment is cornier than aDisney Channelrom-com, but as far as boyband pop anthems go it skirts dangerously close to fulfilling its title."[3]
In the course of a debate onTwitter, it was noted the song's basic structure was similar to "Baba O'Riley" (1971) bythe Who. Fans suggested the "Best Song Ever" was copied from the Who's song. Who guitaristPete Townshend responded to the claims by denying that the Who were pursuing legal action, and stated that he was a fan of One Direction's single and was happy that One Direction appeared to have been influenced by the Who, just as he had been by his own guitar heroes such asEddie Cochran.[4]
The music video for "Best Song Ever" was directed by Ben Winston and written by comedianJames Corden.[5] Filmed over two days atThe Temple House inMiami Beach,Florida,[6] the video was released on the band'sVevo channel on 22 July 2013.
The video is over six minutes long and features the band arguing with clueless studio executives in a battle over the band's new image.Niall Horan plays studio executive Harvey (Harvey Weinstein),Louis Tomlinson plays studio executive Jonny (modelled afterTom Cruise's characterLes Grossman in the movieTropic Thunder), andZayn Malik plays "The Sexy Assistant", Veronica. The studio executives are stoked to take the band to the proverbial next level, but they proceed to bring in an under-qualified crew consisting of Marcel, "The Marketing Guy" (Harry Styles) and Leeroy, "The Choreographer" (Liam Payne). Interspersed with scenes from their filmOne Direction: This is Us, the band are shown wreaking havoc throughout the office and even throwing in a few dance moves for good measure.[7]
The music video won a British Video at the2014 Brit Awards on 19 February 2014.
The video broke the Vevo 24-hour record with 12.3 million views, surpassing the 10.7 million views ofMiley Cyrus' "We Can't Stop" in June, although the record was later broken again by Cyrus' follow-up music video "Wrecking Ball", which garnered 19.3 million views.[8]
The video and song were previewed during the premiere for theDisney Channel Original MovieTeen Beach Movie 3 days ahead of the songs release. The band also filmed promotional videos that aired during the films commercial breaks.[9]
The group performed "Best Song Ever" live for the first time on 30 July 2013 at theSAP center in San Jose, California during theirTake Me Home Tour concert until their final live at Japan. The song was subsequently added to the set list to all proceeding shows of the American leg. The group's first televised performance of the single was at the2013 Teen Choice Awards on 11 August. The group also performed the song, along with some of their other hits, onThe Today Show on 23 August, onAmerica's Got Talent on 28 August, and again onThe X Factor Australia on 27 October. On 15 November, the group performed "Best Song Ever" for the first time on British television atChildren in Need 2013. Since its release, the song closed out all concerts for the 2014Where We Are Tour and the 2015On the Road Again Tour.
* Sales figures based on certification alone. ‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. † Streaming-only figures based on certification alone.
