Queen & National Philharmonic Orchestra

Who Wants to Live Forever

"Who Wants to Live Forever" is a song by the British rock band Queen. A power ballad, it is the sixth track on the album A Kind of Magic, which was released in June 1986, and was written by lead guitarist Brian May for the soundtrack to the film Highlander.

The band were backed by an orchestra conducted by film score composer Michael Kamen. The song was produced by Queen with David Richards and peaked at No. 24 in the UK charts.

Recording

In the 1986 film Highlander, starring Christopher Lambert, the song is used to frame the scenes in the film where Connor MacLeod must endure his beloved wife Heather MacLeod growing old and dying while he, an Immortal, remains forever young. Brian May wrote the song in the backseat of his car after seeing a 20-minute first cut of the scene of Heather's death. It was later used in the Highlander television series episodes "The Gathering", "Revenge is Sweet", "The Hunters", "Line of Fire", and "Leader of the Pack".

Critical reception

Upon its release, Robin Smith of Record Mirror praised "Who Wants to Live Forever" as "rather wonderful" and a "passionate epic, full to the brim with some glorious effects" and Mercury "bawl[ing] his little heart out". William Shaw, writing for Smash Hits, stated, "What we have here is an enormous orchestra sawing away while Freddie croons with exceptional sensitivity, finally building up to a stupendous climax where they unleash Brian May to do one of his legendary but now sadly rare searing axe solos".

Music video

The music video for "Who Wants to Live Forever" was directed by British director David Mallet and filmed in a (now demolished) warehouse at Tobacco Wharf at London's East End on 16 September 1986. It featured the National Philharmonic Orchestra with forty choirboys and several hundreds of candles which remain lit throughout filming as well as Mercury wearing a tuxedo suit.

Other notable covers

In 2002, Dutch symphonic metal band After Forever recorded a cover of the song as the B-side of their second single "Emphasis". The track can be found as a bonus track on the band's second studio album Decipher.