Glee

You may have already seen the advanced preview ads for this new comedy musical on E4 who aired a taster of the show yesterday (15th December). Already developing a cult following in America after the first series was aired on Fox, Glee follows the exploits of a high school show choir (or glee club) called 'New Directions!' who, with the aid of a new director, aim to restore their status by making it to coveted nationals competition.

Usually the first to tug on the fire exit doors at the first signs of a musical, I'll admit I was already sceptical about a soundtrack of covers sung by the stars of the show. The show has drawn parallels with High School Musical, but with Nip/Tuck director Phil Murphy at the helm, you're sure of getting some of the quality deadpan humour to attract fans of the former as well as the music and drama that'll bring in new crowds but unfortunately, you can't do the show justice from the soundtrack alone.

The covers are executed faithfully from old classics like 'Lean on Me' to more modern hits like 'Crush' and 'I'll Stand By You' by more than competent vocalists (obvisouly, or they wouldn't be in a musical). It's obviously something I can't sell you on if you're not already a fan, nor do I intend to. Fans of the show have already swamped iTunes with over 2.5 million downloads of the songs after the first eight episodes alone and unless you are a fan yourself, you'll obviously have very little interest in downloading covers of songs you can readily download in their original form, sung by actors and actresses you've never heard of. I'd recommend you watch the show, then decide if you want a souvenir of your experience.


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