“Dying to Live” is an original song from the feature documentary Billy Idol Should Be Dead. The track is one of 15 songs that advanced in the “Original Song” category for the 98th Academy Awards. Sixty-five songs were eligible in the category, and members of the Music Branch voted to determine the shortlist and the nominees.
“Dying to Live” was produced, engineered and arranged by J. Ralph, who also served as a co-writer and co-orchestrator on the track. Billy Idol performed the vocals, which detail the struggles he faced during his youth and his dream of becoming a rock star.
“The vision was to create a cinematic finale for the film built around visuals and a thematic orchestral piece featuring Billy’s voice and a string quartet,” J. Ralph explains. “Composing the song inside this sonic universe reveals every nuance and vulnerability of his vocals and lyrics in a way he had not yet expressed in his previous work. He was totally up for it and brought the same rebellious spirit and fearless energy that defines his life and the very essence of punk rock. We are extremely grateful that the Academy recognized the song with this honor.”
Photo (L-R): J. Ralph and Billy Idol (Credit: Mathieu Bitton)
According to J. Ralph, he watched a cut of the film and then called Idol to discuss the idea of creating an elaborate coda and set piece for the film.
“The orchestra’s boundless cinematic universe was the ultimate palette to help bring to life the odyssey of Billy’s journey and allow his voice and lyrics to be presented front and center, raw and vulnerable, in a way I had not hear him explore in his almost 50-year career,” says J. Ralph.
The two then collaborated with the film’s producers to create the visuals for the finale sequence, all built around the song, with lyrics presented visually based on Idol’s own handwriting.
“It was important that no other audio, dialogue or effects would be heard as the song plays during this finale sequence so the audience could absorb every nuance of Billy’s performance and focus on his extremely personal lyrics,” J. Ralph explains. “The strings and piano were recorded live at Sunset Sound Studio 2 featuring The Section Quartet, and the piano played by Jay Israelson, all of whom are long time collaborators of mine. The percussion was overdubbed. It was recorded in Pro Tools at 96kHz/32-bit float through a vintage Neve console using a variety of vintage tube microphones, such as Neumann and Telefunken 47s, Elam 250/251s, M50s, etc., and select ribbon microphones.”