Music is an integral part of any film. However, in A Star is Born [1], the music is the film [2]. Bradley Cooper [3] spent three years perfecting his voice, guitar skills, and songwriting abilities [4] for his role as rock star Jackson Maine opposite up-and-comer Ally, played by arguably the voice of our generation, Lady Gaga [5]. Along with collaborators Lucas Nelson, Mark Ronson, and more came a soundtrack where any song could easily be at the top of the Billboard Hot 100. Country, rock, pop, soul — it's all there in its finest form. Cooper notes in the "Creating the Sound" featurette [6], "There's no point in the movie where any lyric is sung that isn't directly related to exactly what their fear is, their hope, their dream," but as Gaga also reveals in the same clip, there are many songs on the soundtrack that didn't make it into the movie.

The songs not featured in full still reveal something about the characters and the story. The songwriting process helped connect the actors to what their personas were going though, how they were feeling, and how they were processing the emotions — they just didn't all get a starring role in the film. Through the bonus tracks on the soundtrack, you get a deeper understanding of Ally and Jackson's relationship to each other and their music and ultimately a fuller experience of the film's meaning. Oh yeah, and you're also missing out on some KILLER tracks.

Warning: A few spoilers for A Star Is Born ahead!

Hair Body Face

We hear this song play briefly while Ally is in dance rehearsal and Jackson comes to visit. The entire song is so fun and danceable, but the lyrics offer insight into Jackson's main criticism of Ally as she sings, "Sayin' that if I care what they think I'll never succeed."

Too Far Gone

You can hear this track playing in the background of the cop bar Jack takes Ally to, but we are much too focussed on her right hook to notice how painful of a song it really is. He clearly has been battling addiction for a long time, and the lyrics have him begging in the chorus, "Set me free, oh, oh."

Diggin' My Grave

We hear the first line of this banger at Jackson's mic check for the concert where he and Ally sing together for the first time. However on the soundtrack, "Diggin' My Grave" is a duet between the two. Lady Gaga [7] is an absolute powerhouse on it, and Bradley's gruff voice is the perfect base. As we unfortunately come to find in the movie's final scenes, the two truly were digging each other's graves, both figuratively and literally. Their tumultuous relationship is summed up in the line, "You're just another nail on my, my coffin lid."

Before I Cry

The soundtrack comes interspersed with dialogue scenes from the film taking the listener along for a narrative ride, as well as a musical one. This tearjerker comes after the dialogue where Jackson, drunk and jealous, tells Ally she is ugly and untalented. We can only assume then, since the actual song is not in the movie, this was the song she wrote after their painful fight. Music is the way these characters cope, and this song has her asking all the questions she is scared to: "Have you said what you wanted to say?/Did you say what you wanted to say?"

Is That Alright?

It took me a few listens to really hear this one through my crying, but finally I got through it and can confidently say this will be playing at every wedding for the next decade. It's used as the credits song, but I bet no one actually paid attention to it because, well, emotions. The soundtrack reveals, through the dialogue interludes, that this song actually served as Ally's (postwedding) vows to Jackson: "I want you/At the end of my life/Wanna see your face/When I fall with grace/At the moment I die/Is that alright?" Here come the waterworks again.

I'll Never Love Again (Extended Version)

There is something so, so special about the cut to Jackson singing this song to Ally right before the climax of the song, and that version is on the soundtrack, of course. But, there is something almost more special right after it — an extended version with an entire minute more of Gaga leaving her heart on the studio floor. Oh, and that big build up you were expecting? She DELIVERS. They dig the knife in deeper with Gaga crooning, "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."

Honourable Mention: Music to My Eyes

Yes, this song is technically in the movie when Jackson wakes Ally up at her house to take her on tour with him, but we only hear Bradley's half of it. While that is more than lovely, this duet is made up of beautiful metaphors, and Lady Gaga [8] sounds simply angelic. The entire thing is worth the listen for this line: "I wanna sing you a sunrise/And be the dawn I know will move you."