I must admit: I absolutely love FOX’s hit television show Glee. The Wild Heart is well-aware that, yes, some of the singers need a little “help” in the form of autotune and some of the themed episodes (such as the Britney Spears tribute episode “Brittany/Britney”) are a bit vapid. However, one of the best things about Glee is that the show is introducing classic rock and pop songs to a brand new generation as well as current hit songs. It’s also getting this new generation excited about performing once again.
Glee uses both classic and current pop/rock to tell the story of the teenagers that perform with the New Directions glee club at Mckinley Highschool. Some of these performances can be breathtakingly great, such as their performance of New York by Alicia Keys. Some can be funny, such as Finn and Quinn’s impending birth announcement to Quinn’s parents by using the Paul Anka classic Having My Baby - which of course gets Quinn kicked out of her parent’s house. Others can be rather touching, such as Puck’s performance of Waiting For A Girl by Foreigner to his two-year-old daughter.
Since the show hit the airwaves in 2009, not only have some artists seen both a sales resurgance and renewed interest into their music (such as Fleetwood Mac, who saw a 1,951 % increase in record sales for their landmark 1977 release Rumours) Other artists such as Britney Spears also saw a spike in record sales too.
However, artists such as Slash (of Guns & Roses fame) and the Kings of Leon have laid down the law and said “no” when it comes to using their music. I think that these artists are failing to see that teenagers and other audiences can rediscover their music. By these artists doing this, they are denying this discovery.
Additionally, Glee is inspiring kids to make music once again. When I was in highschool, it was the ‘uncool’ thing to be in the choir or glee club (mine wouldn’t let me in, just so you know). Now, enrollment in such activities has doubled. Additinally, applications to arts colleges have seen a spike too.
One thing, however, that I would like to see with the show is this: have them release an album that contains the original recordings of the songs that are performed each season. Don’t get me wrong: it’s okay that they release their album of songs as featured and sung on the show. But I think this would be a better way to introduce some of the older music and newer music to a new generation. Also, as a viewer I would like to see more guest spots of the artists that you cover. For example: when one of the characters covered the Fleetwood Mac classic Landslide, Stevie Nicks paid a personal visit to the cast. Why not try to writer her into the actual episode – like she could be Puck’s mother or whatnot. Same goes for the members of Van Halen – whose song Hot For Teacher was recently covered on the show. Perhaps a cameo from Eddie Van Halen would be just fine.
