

However, the lyrics make clear that "Tribute" sounds nothing like the song they came up with to please the demon as Black describes: "And the peculiar thing is this, my friends: The song we sang on that fateful night - it didn't actually sound anything like this song." Given the "Stairway to Heaven" interlude in the original TV series version, along with the similarity of the chord progression in both songs, "Tribute" at first implies that the best song in the world is indeed that song.

Having nothing to lose from trying, they play "the first thing that came to heads", which "just so happened to be the best song in the world." The song chronicles the band members' encounter with a demon who demands the duo play "the best song in the world" or have their souls eaten. The two songs are both in A minor and have very similar chord progressions, and critics have said the songs sound alike. During earlier performances of this song Kyle Gass played the opening to "Stairway to Heaven". The song, like many other songs that were recorded on Tenacious D, was originally performed on their short-lived HBO TV series.

"Tribute" was the first song Black and Gass played live as Tenacious D. The song is certified Platinum in Australia and Gold in New Zealand and the United Kingdom. In Europe, the single charted in the Netherlands, reaching number 25 on the Dutch Top 40, and in the United Kingdom, where it peaked at number 84 in May 2012. Upon its release, "Tribute" failed to make a commercial impact in the United States, but it became a hit in Australia and New Zealand, peaking at number four on the Australian Singles Chart and number nine on the New Zealand Singles Chart. The song is a tribute to what Kyle Gass and Jack Black refer to as "The Best Song in the World" (often confused as the song's title), which Tenacious D themselves came up with but have since forgotten. "Tribute" is the first single of Tenacious D's self-titled debut album, released on July 16, 2002.
