"I'll Never Love Again" is a song performed by Lady Gaga from the soundtrack to the 2018 musical A Star Is Born. The track was written by Lady Gaga, Natalie Hemby, Hillary Lindsey and Aaron Raitiere, and produced by Gaga and Benjamin Rice.
The film's soundtrack has two versions of the song: a film version performed by Gaga featuring Bradley Cooper, and an extended version performed only by Gaga.
Background and composition
At least some content in this article contains spoilers.
In the song, Ally (Lady Gaga) sings about her late husband Jackson (Bradley Cooper) who recently committed suicide in their garage while Ally performed her final concert on the tour.
It is later revealed that this song (which was written by Jack) was intended to be a duet with Ally. However, due to the embarrassment of Ally at the Grammy’s earlier in the movie, the song had no chance of boosting Ally’s popularity.
When Gaga was getting ready to film the final scene of A Star Is Born, where she sings "I'll Never Love Again", she got a telephone call that her childhood friend Sonja Durham was in her last moments of Stage IV cancer. Gaga left the set and drove to meet Durham, but she was late by 15 minutes after her friend passed away. Durham's husband consoled her and asked to return for filming.
In an interview for Front Row Japan (recorded on November 26th, 2018), Lady Gaga talked about the song and what she wanted to convey with this song.
“ | We had a tall order, you know, I sort of walked in and said, 'Okay... we have to write a song that's bigger than "I Will Always Love You" [smiles] ...from the The Bodyguard.' And that's actually an impossible task and it can never be done. But, you know, that was sort of like the idea behind this end moment. And what I thought was so interesting about this song is that, you know, in a way it's kind of a negative title, 'I'll Never Love Again,' it's like, 'Of course you will! We all will!' But sometimes the heartbreak is so, so powerful, that you'll never love again in the same way. And I really love, I really love this song. And I remember when we were working on, it was very important to me that there was repetition in the chorus: 'Don't want to feel another touch / Don't want to start another fire / Don't want to know another kiss / No other name falling off my lips / Don't want to give my heart away / To another stranger / Or let another day begin / Won't even let the sunlight in / No I'll never love again!' I mean, to me, it was very very much about, like, this drive of, like, 'I don't want this! I don't want that! I don't! I don't! I don't!' because I'll never have what I had with him. | ” |
—Lady Gaga on Front Row Japan |
Lyrics
Film Version
Wish I could
I could have said goodbye
I would have said what I wanted to
Maybe even cried for you
If I knew it would be the last time
I would have broke my heart in two
Tryin' to save a part of you
Don't want to feel another touch
Don't want to start another fire
Don't want to know another kiss
No other name falling off my lips
Don't want to give my heart away
To another stranger
Or let another day begin
Won't even let the sunlight in
No I'll never love again
I'll never love again
Oh, oh, oh
Oh
When we first met
I never thought that I would fall
I never thought that I'd find myself lyin' in your arms
Mmmm mmmm
And I wanna pretend that it's not true oh baby that you're gone
Cause my world keeps turnin' and turnin' and turnin' and I'm not movin' on
Don't want to feel another touch
Don't want to start another fire
Don't want to know another kiss
No other name falling off my lips
Don't want to give my heart away
To another stranger
Or let another day begin
Won't even let the sunlight in
No I'll never love
I don't wanna know this feeling unless it's you and me
I don't wanna waste a moment
Hoooo ouuu
And I don't wanna give somebody else the better part of me
I would rather wait for you
Hoooo ouuu
Don't want to feel another touch
Don't want to start another fire
Don't want to know another kiss
Baby unless they are your lips
[Outro: Bradley Cooper]
Don't want to give my heart away
To another stranger
Don't let another day begin
Won't let the sunlight in
Oh I'll never love again
Never love again
Never love again
Oh I'll never love again
Extended Version
Wish I could
I could have said goodbye
I would have said what
I wanted to
Maybe even cried for you
If I knew it would be the last time
I would have broke my heart in two
Tryin’ to save a part of you
Don’t want to feel another touch
Don’t want to start another fire
Don’t want to know another kiss
No other name falling off my lips
Don’t want to give my heart away
To another stranger
Or let another day begin Won’t even let the sunlight in
No I’ll never love again
I’ll never love again Ooouuu ooou oou
Oh
When we first met
I never thought that I would fall
I never thought that I’d find myself lyin’ in your arms
Mmmm mmmm
And I wanna pretend that it’s not true oh baby that you’re gone
Cause my world keeps turnin’ and turnin’ and turnin’ and I’m not movin’ on
Don’t want to feel another touch
Don’t want to start another fire
Don’t want to know another kiss
No other name falling off my lips
Don’t want to give my heart away
To another stranger
Or let another day begin
Won’t even let the sunlight in
No I’ll never love
I don’t wanna know this feeling unless it’s you and me
I don’t wanna waste a moment
Hoooo ouuu
And I don’t wanna give somebody else the better part of me
I would rather wait for you
Hoooo ouuu
Don’t want to feel another touch
Don’t want to start another fire
Don’t want to know another kiss
Baby unless they are your lips
Don’t want to give my heart away to another stranger
Or let another day begin
Won’t even let the sunlight in
Oooo I’ll never love again
Love again
I’ll never love again
I’ll never love
Again
I won’t I won’t
I swear I can’t
I wish I could but
I just won’t
I’ll never love again
I’ll never love
Again
Who oo oo oo oo Hmmm
Music video
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The music video premiered on Apple Music on October 19, 2018 and week later it was released on YouTube.
Credits
Written by | Lady Gaga, Natalie Hemby, Hillary Lindsey and Aaron Raitiere |
Produced by | Lady Gaga and Benjamin Rice |
Recorded by | Benjamin Rice at Shrine Auditorium, Los Angeles, CA Additional Recording at EastWest Studios, Los Angeles, CA and The Village Studios, Los Angeles, CA Assisted by Bo Bodnar and Alex Williams |
Mixed by | Tom Elmhirst at Electric Lady Studios, New York, NY Engineer for Mix by Brandon Bost |
Mastered by | Randy Merrill at Sterling Sound, New York, NY |
Track Participants | Drums by Chris Johnson Bass by Jon Drummond Keyboards by Brockett Parsons Guitars by Tim Stewart and Ricky Tillo Violins by Alyssa Park, Julie Gigante, Charlie Bisharat, Jessica Guideri, Bruce Dukov, Luanne Homzy, Benjamin Jacobson, Phillip Levy, Lisa Liu, Maya Magub, Lucia Micarelli and Josefina Vergara Violas by Robert Brophy, Andrew Duckles, Matthew Funes, Darrin Mccann and David Walther Celli by Steve Erdody, Jacob Braun, Eric Byers and Dennis Karmazyn Contrabass by Michael Valerio and Geoffrey Osika String Leader and Arranger - Stephan D. Oremus String Contractor - Peter Rotter |
Contains Audio from the Motion Picture, featuring Bradley Cooper and Lady Gaga | |
Published by |
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