Toby Keith had a major hit in 2005 with "As Good As I Once Was." The song, which Keith wrote with Scotty Emerick, was from Keith's Honkytonk University album. Perhaps surprisingly, the song was inspired by a line used by Burt Reynolds on a TV show, and one that Keith's father, Hubert K. Covel Jr., often used in conversation.
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"Burt Reynolds came and he sat down and said, 'You know, I'm not as good as I once was, but I'm as good once as I ever was,'" Scotty Emerick recalled to Songfacts. "That was on a rerun of a show from the '80s or something. I think that saying has been around a little bit. Which is cool, because we had never heard of it as a country song. But I had never heard of it that way, so that was Toby's idea."
The song, which Toby Keith performed regularly in his shows for the remainder of his career, was also one of the most successful singles he ever released. "As Good As I Once Was" reigned at the top of the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart for six weeks, and was named BMI's Country Song of the Year in 2006.
"[It's] probably my favorite song on the album," Keith later said (via American Songwriter). "If I hadn't come out of the box with 'Honkytonk U' I'd have come with this one. It didn't matter what order, they were going to be singles one and two. I can always tell when I've got a special one as soon as I get done. My dad used to say this line some. The first verse is about being with a woman, two is about fighting, and three is saying don't sell me short because I'll surprise you."
The Loss of Toby Keith
Toby Keith continued performing "As Good As I Once Was," including during what tragically became his final show, which was in Las Vegas, at the Park MGM on December 14, 2023.
The Oklahoma native passed away on February 5, 2024, after a lengthy battle with stomach cancer. Keith, who was diagnosed in 2022, was just 62 years old when he died.
"He fought his fight with grace and courage. Please respect the privacy of his family at this time," the family said when Keith's passing was announced.
In 2024, Toby Keith was posthumously inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame.
