Friday , March 29 2024
The Glee Cast goes back to basics with the first handful of tracks from season three.

Music Review: Glee Cast – “The Purple Piano Project”

Season three of Glee kicked off last week, which means my love for Gleeked out cover songs is on like Donkey Kong!

The music from the season premiere, “The Purple Piano Project,” included songs from The Go-Go’s, Barbra Streisand, Tom Jones, Anything Goes, Annie Get Your Gun, and Hairspray.

The Go-Go’s’ “We Got The Beat” features Lea Michele (Rachel), Naya Rivera (Santana), and Heather Morris (Brittany) on lead vocals. All of the ladies sound pretty fantastic. As much as I enjoy Michele’s voice. It was nice to hear her share the vocal spotlight with Rivera and Morris. Overall, what I really enjoy about this track is that it feels that Glee is going back to basics with this season’s music by making songs from the 1980s staples in our iTunes playlists.

Keepin’ it real, I have to admit that I did not watch much of The Glee Project this summer. I maybe caught about four episodes, so it shouldn’t surprise you that I had no idea what to expect when Lindsay Pearce (Harmony) took her turn in the spotlight this week.

Pearce took on a mash-up of “Anything Goes”/“Anything You Can Do” from Anything Goes and Annie Get Your Gun. Oh my gosh. I truly hope this isn’t the last we hear from Pearce this season, because her voice is phenomenal! The closing notes on the song give me chills just thinking about it. Definitely check out her track this week.

Another great vocal performance came from Darren Criss (Blaine), who took on the Tom Jones’ track, “It’s Not Unusual.” I would say that Criss has definitely solidified his heartthrob status for season three. I thought the song was a great choice to introduce Blaine as the new member of the New Directions.

I love that the show finally tackled a song from Hairspray. I loved the Glee twist on “You Can’t Stop The Beat,” with the slowed down, almost ballad-like first verse sung by Lea Michele. Amber Riley (Mercedes) vocally just went for it during her verses. Definitely a favorite from last week’s batch of tracks.

Hands down, my very favorite track of the week is Barbra Streisand’s “Ding Dong! The Witch is Dead” taken on by Michele and Chris Colfer (Kurt). The track is just full of personality, plus it’s always wonderful to hear Michele tap into her Broadway roots. Honestly, I could go for a Michele/Colfer duet every week this season. Did you hear that, Ryan Murphy?

I really think Glee is working to redeem itself from last season, and so far, I’m impressed. I really enjoyed all the song choices from this week. I like the lack of current Top 40 music. That was something that I felt the show went overboard with last season. Trying to capture some of the season one magic can only bring good things this season.

Songs from “The Purple Piano Project” are available on iTunes.

About Kirsten Coachman

Kirsten Coachman is a writer and editor from the San Francisco Bay Area. Visit her long-running music blog, Wait...WHAT, at waitwhatmusic.net. Follow Kirsten Coachman on Twitter: @KirsCoachman

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