Glee: The Music, The Power of Madonna

Glee: The Music, The Power of Madonna Review

I had two reasons to be excited for this release. First and foremost, I am a major Madonna fan. Secondly, yes, I very much enjoy "Glee." It's such a happy, exuberant, and fun show. It's just one of those shows where you sit back and enjoy yourself. After a hard day at work, something like "Glee" is just what I need. So when it was announced that they were going to do a Madonna-themed episode, I was ecstatic. Singing along to whatever Madonna songs they wound up doing was going to be a treat.

The episode was fantastic. It was really fun to spot all of the references to Madonna, and the episode was just flat-out good in and of itself. But this is a review of "The Power Of Madonna" cast album, not the episode, so let's get started. Do they do better than Madonna herself? Of course not. There was no way that was going to happen. There is however a fun factor to this album that makes it a joy to listen to. Lea Michele really shines here, as usual. I did love her take on "Borderline" (one of my all-time Madonna favorites.) Amber Riley and Chris Colfer perform admirably on "4 Minutes," which I slightly prefer to Madonna and Justin Timberlake's version. It's a little more brassy and feels slightly less "produced" than the original version. I love Madonna's version too, but this version is slightly better, I feel. Johnathan Groff does a fantastic version of "Burning Up," which I guess is only available on Itunes. Shameful, since he sounds fantastic. This is just a fun album to listen to, and I do recommend it. Madonna fans will hopefully just get a kick out of this.

1. Express Yourself: This sounds a tad pedestrian to me. It's good, but awfully expected. It's just okay. (3/5)

2. Borderline/Open Your Heart: Lea Michele is fantastic here, and Cory Monteith does an admirable job. I thought blending "Borderline" with "Open Your Heart" was genius. (5/5)

3. Vogue: This is decent. Not great, though. It just lacks without visual accompaniment. Not bad, but not great either. (3/5)

4. Like A Virgin: I loved this! I liked that a whole group was singing, and it was nice to hear Jayma Mays sing a little bit in here. Great fun! (5/5)

5. 4 Minutes: Like I said, I actually prefer this to the original version. I like the brassier sound of it. (4.5/5)

6. What It Feels Like For A Girl: They did an interesting twist on this song, and had the men sing it. I thought that was a great idea. (4.5/5)

7. Like A Prayer: A fitting closing to the episode. This is just fantastic. (5/5)

8. Burning Up (Itunes Only): I love that they had Johnathan Groff sing this. It's slightly less rock-sounding than the original, but it still sounds great. (5/5)

Overall: (4.4/5)

Glee: The Music, The Power of Madonna Overview

GLEE is back! The hit series returns to Fox this spring with a host of new episodes and more new hit music! The show boasts winning ratings, critical acclaim, a rabid fan base of GLEEks, two certified Gold albums and more than 4.5 million song downloads. GLEE has won a Golden Globe for Best Television Series Musical or Comedy; a Screen Actors Guild award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series and a People s Choice Award for Favorite New TV Comedy.

Glee: The Music, The Power of Madonna will be released on April 20 to coincide with the Power of Madonna episode (airing Tues 9/8c) immediately following American Idol.

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