Top 10: Songs From Glee, Season One
Published on Monday 28th June, 4.30pm, Written by Jonathan Dudley
Glee: 31 flavours of awesome
The Show and Stay team are — rather predictably — all big Glee fans. We’re happy to forgive the dreadful miming and to ignore the auto-tune rumours just to get our weekly fix of campy drama, showtunes, and pop song mashups.
Not since Fame has musical theatre seemed so cool and glamorous but alas, season one is over, regionals have come and gone, and now we have to wait until September for our next hit. Luckily, we don’t live in the dark ages, we’ve got DVD players and YouTube to ensure our Gleeky urges don’t go unsatisfied.
After a particularly lengthy Glee YouTube binge yesterday, I’ve taken it upon myself to list (in no particular order) the 10 best Glee songs currently on YouTube to help my fellow fans through the awful ‘between seasons’ period.
10. Defying Gravity — Kurt
At first, the idea of a male soprano version of Wicked’s mega smash-hit showtune seemed strange, not impossible, but distinctly odd. Fortunately there are male sopranos and then there’s Chris Colfer, whose incredible range makes the idea of musical gender boundaries seem utterly redundant.
9. Don’t Rain On My Parade — Rachel
Big, brassy, and very very Streisand; Rachel’s Don’t Rain On My Parade is essentially a study in how to sing a showtune properly. Lea Michele’s voice is clear, beautiful, and stunningly controlled. I’m certainly not the first to say that she’s like a younger, better Idina Menzel (they even look alike).
8. Dancing With Myself — Artie
Artie’s Dancing With Myself stood out as one of my very favourite Glee tracks of the first season. Kevin McHale’s voice isn’t jaw-droppingly different like Chris Colfer’s, or as perfectly polished as Lea Michele’s. Instead, he sounds like someone you know just singing for fun, which is very refreshing indeed.
7. Halo/Walking On Sunshine mashup — The Girls
Before Glee, I was firmly against the mashup in all its forms; sticking two songs together, the crossover episode, sweet sauce on savoury food, it was all lost on me.
I still think that barbecue sauce is the Devil’s own foul excretions but the Glee girls’ Halo/Walking On Sunshine combo changed my mind about musical mashups.
6. Like A Prayer — Full cast
No matter how much they deny it, almost everyone likes Madonna’s music. I have strong suspicions that even builders secretly smile when Like A Prayer comes on the radio so it’s no surprise that Glee did an entire (brilliant) Madonna episode. Like A Prayer showcases the best bits of all the cast members. Listen for yourself, you can pick each and every one of them out.
5. Bad Romance — The girls and Kurt
Recent pop songs have done very well in Glee but the showtunes and classic chart-toppers are almost always better. However, usual rules don’t really apply to Lady Gaga. Bad Romance gives Kurt yet another chance to shine and allows a few of the background Glee characters to have a turn in the spotlight, which is nice. We don’t always want Lea Michele being irritatingly perfect all over our screens.
4. Hate On Me — Mercedes
Mercedes (Amber Riley) was always going to do something very special when she wasn’t just standing in the background wailing on the last note. Bust The Windows was a bit of a non-starter (for me at least) but by crikey, Hate On Me is a big, brash, diva number worthy of St Aretha herself.
3. Proud Mary — Full cast
An inspiring song with lots and lots of Mercedes and Artie, a wheelchair dance routine, and a ‘doo doo doo’ bit (perfect for those of us who can’t sing to join in with); Proud Mary isn’t the best song the Glee cast have done so far, but it’s got to be in the top three.
2. Don’t Stand So Close To Me/Young Girl mashup — Mr Schuester
The songs in Glee are usually pretty relevant to the plot but Mr Shue’s mashup to repel Rachel’s affections was perhaps the cleverest example of the show using well-known songs to illustrate a point. The songs go together surprisingly well, too.
1. Journey Medley — Full cast
Don’t Stop Believing was good, maybe even great, but it has been criminally overplayed since the Glee gang sparked a mini Journey revival. Thankfully, rather than just belting out the Glee song in the season finale, the cast put on an extra special performance and reminded people that Journey actually have more than one song.
Special mentions
- Sue’s Vogue (for the “Will Schuester, I hate you” line).
- Rachel’s Smile (for proving that Lily Allen songs don’t work without the accent).
- Finn’s You’re Having My Baby (for redefining cringeworthy).
Don’t Rain on Me should be higher it was the perfect ending for the first 13.
Bad really Hate on Me or Proud Mary, just no.
And since Kurt’s Defying Gravity wasn’t evening the show no again. The duet fine the solo no.
I’ve taken it upon myself to list —> (in no particular order) < --- the 10 best Glee songs currently ---> on YouTube <—
Not sure if it is on You Tube as I haven’t looked, but I think I would have put To Sir With Love in there too, purely for Chris Colfer’s solo lines. Am not sure what I would have taken out though, so I think I would have to have a top 11.
How could you leave ‘Dream On’ Out of the list!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9tyzn2RVIlo
I must disagree with your selection there, where in gods name is POKER FACE????!!!?????
@Cundy I totally agree, Poker face should be up there too!