[7] An early version of the song (in a different key, with a faster tempo and sparer arrangement) simply titled "Good Riddance" appeared as a B-side to the European single for "Brain Stew/Jaded".

He sent the band to play foosball in another room while he recorded the strings, which took "like fifteen, twenty minutes, maybe a half an hour at the most.

"[7] In comparison to previous Green Day material, "Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)" features more mellow, contemplative lyrics with acoustic music.

[16] The music video was directed by Mark Kohr in Los Angeles in November 1997, and is based on a concept by Armstrong.

[17] The video features Armstrong singing and playing an acoustic guitar in an apartment (filmed in LA's Ambassador Hotel), intercut with "pull-in" shots of various people involved in mundane activities.

The song was also featured in the ending credits of Deadpool & Wolverine, playing with a montage of scenes and behind-the-scenes footage of several film adaptions, most noticeably from the X-Men film series[23] The song was played on ITV in 1998, when the England National Football Team was knocked out of the France 98 tournament, losing to Argentina.

[citation needed] On May 28, 2015, Rolling Stone named "Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)" as one of the 20 Best Graduation Songs of the Past 20 Years (1995–2015).