Man Crush of the Day: ‘Brothers & Sisters’ star Jeremy Davidson

If you’ve been watching the new season of Brothers & Sisters you may have noticed Jack, Kitty’s new love interest on the show. Jack is a handyman who’s romancing the now widowed Kitty after her last hunkalicious husband [SPOILER ART] bit the dust at the start of the season (though the last we saw of him was the season finale of last season). Now poor Kitty has hunky Jack, played by Jeremy Davidson, to put up with. Poor Kitty Walker!

You may recognize Jeremy Davidson from Army Wives where he played Delta Force soldier and total DILF Chase Moran. He’s popped up on various shows in guest roles on Boston Legal, Without a Trace, The Practice, JAG, Crossing Jordan and Roswell and had a part in the Angelina Jolie film Salt. Beyond that there’s not a lot out there on this actor beyond the fact that he was born in Vestal, New York, does some theater work and is totally steaming up Brothers & Sisters.

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Album Review: Bon Jovi’s Greatest Hits – The Ultimate Collection [2 CDs]

Greatest Hits – The Ultimate Collection [TRACKLISTING]
DISC 1:
1. Livin’ On a Prayer
2. You Give Love A Bad Name
3. It’s My Life
4. Have A Nice Day
5. Wanted Dead Or Alive
6. Bad Medicine
7. We Weren’t Born To Follow
8. I’ll Be There For You
9. Born to Be My Baby
10. Blaze of Glory
11. Who Says You Can’t Go Home (Duet with Jennifer Nettles)
12. Lay Your Hands On Me
13. Always
14. Runaway
15. What Do You Got? (New)
16. No Apologies (New)

DISC 2:
1. In These Arms
2. Someday I’ll Be Saturday Night
3. Lost Highway
4. Keep the Faith
5. When We Were Beautiful
6. Bed of Roses
7. This Ain’t A Love Song
8. These Days
9. (You Want To) Make a Memory
10. Blood on Blood
11. This Is Love This Is Life (New)
12. The More Things Change (New)

If there’s one group that’s endured over the years when others have fallen to the wayside it’s Bon Jovi. The New Jersey-based rock/pop group who dominated the 1980s and consists lead singer Jon Bon Jovi, guitarist Richie Sambora, keyboardist David Bryan, and drummer Tico Torres have been around for nearly three decades and have continued to have success and maintain their fame over the years. On November 9 their second greatest hits album, Greatest Hits – The Ultimate Collection will be released. This career-spanning collection of their music from the ’80s, ’90s and 2000s does what few greatest hits collections can pull off – it actually features the real and essential hits from the group! I’ve purchased dozens of so called “greatest hits” packages from artists and groups that always leave me wondering why this or that song was left off or feeling like it was incomplete, perhaps because something better was in the works years from now. Not so with this collection. Here you have the best of Bon Jovi and two options for an album – a standard edition and the “ultimate” which I actually recommend. The ultimate collection comes with 28 tracks, 4 which are completely new songs exclusive to this collection. The standard comes with 16 and while adequate, come on, shell out the extra dollar or two and get the ultimate collection that really does cover all the bases in terms of a collection celebrating Bon Jovi and what’s made them so popular over the years.

The New Tracks:
The only thing one can really review with this collection is the new tracks. I have to say, this was the one area I wasn’t too impressed by. Don’t get me wrong – I’m glad the group and their label decided to include a few new tracks amongst all of the familiar ones like “Livin’ on a Prayer”, “Bad Medicine”, “It’s My Life” and “Blaze of Glory” but these new tracks pale in comparison to the true “greatest hits”. Each of them sounds a bit like leftover, unfinished, demo tracks from past recording sessions and lack the tenacity and punch of their older material. “What Do You Got?” is the first single released from this collection. It’s probably the best produced track of the new songs and features the group’s signature optimistic, peppy lyrical styles with a message meant to pull you up out of depression and make you realize there’s better days ahead. “No Apologies” starts off with promise but slips into “been there, done that” territory with lyrics about being defiant, sure of yourself and just gets pretty monotonous after a minute or two.

The second disc ends with “This Is Love This Is Life” and “The More Things Change”. “This Is Love This Is Life” sounds like a mix of “Livin’ On A Prayer” and “Have A Nice”. It does have a bit of an edge to it and like the classic Bon Jovi songs has the vocorder/computer voice popping up throughout the track. Of all the bonus tracks this one probably feels more like classic Bon Jovi than the others. “The More Things Change” is very light and is in the style of “Who Says You Can’t Go Home?”. It’s okay but to me represents Bon Jovi’s step down from rock in the mid 2000s that made them a bit too pop and less rock.

What’s Missing?
While this collection does a good job of showcasing the entire career of Bon Jovi it does have one big, glaring omission: what happened to having tracks from the Bounce album? I expected to see at least one track from this album – whether it be “Undivided” or “Everyday” but this entire album is omitted from the “greatest hits” while tracks from their album just released last year are included. I’ll even make the argument that a live track, or perhaps a track from This Left Feels Right should have been included just to toss in something unexpected.  The sequencing of the album is a bit odd as well, though in the digital age I suppose it doesn’t matter since many may organize the tracks to his or her own preference. The first CD of the 2 CD edition is mainly their upbeat, rock tracks. The second is composed of their love songs. For a greatest hits, I think it’d been interesting to show a progression and have the tracks in order from when they were released or by album.

In all, if you’re a Bon Jovi fan or are wanting to get the best from the group, pick up this album. It’s a nice career-spanning album (with the exception of it not featuring any tracks from Bounce) and has a few new tracks for your listening pleasures.

Listen to These: “This Is Love This Is Life”, “What Do You Got?”

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Man Crush of the Day: Designer John Gidding

Ty Pennigton, Carter Oosterhouse, Nate Berkus – what do all of these guys have in common? They’re among America’s favorite fixer-upper men. All are talented, all are pretty hot but there’s one guy who’s sort of under the radar that you should keep an eye on: John Gidding. I was watching Rachel Ray the other day and he was on modeling an apartment. Truth be told, I could barely focus on his design and decorating skills thanks to his dashing looks, his super tight pants and his swoon-worthy grin.

You probably have seen John on HGTV’s Designed to Sell and Curb Appeal: The Block. As for who this hot shot designer is: John Gidding was born in Istanbul, Turkey. He graduated from Yale University with a B.A. in architecture  and later got his masters at the Harvard Graduate School of Design. We’re not the only ones swooning over his looks: he’s made a couple “hot” lists including Rumpus Magazine’s “Yale’s 50 Most Beautiful People” in 1999, one of “Boston’s Most Eligible Bachelors” in The Improper Bostonian in 2002 and “Atlanta’s 50 Most Beautiful People” in Jezebel Magazine in 2008. His design talents were acknowledged by Atlanta Homes and Lifestyles when he made their 2008 “Emerging Talent: Twenty Under 40” list. In 2000 while in grad school he dabbled in modeling (no surprise) and walked the runway for Armani, Gucci and Hugo Boss before being represented by Wilhemenia Models in New York. Finally, he moved to New York and started John Gidding Design, Inc. and started with HGTV. Oh, did we mention he’s openly gay? Sorry girls, this one plays for our team.

You can follow him on Twitter @JOHNGIDDING and on Facebook. In the meanwhile, take a little time to enjoy the view below:

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The “Ab-ulous” Chord Overstreet in Glee’s Rocky Horror Episode

Well, we’re done with yet another “Glee” tribute episode and I must say that though I love Rocky Horror and Glee, I didn’t really like the results of the two coming together. As pointed out many times in the episode it’s hard to capture the essence of such a raunchy and sexually-charged musical like Rocky Horror in a high school setting. That being said … I f*cking loved all the Chord Overstreet ab and shirtless moments scattered throughout the episode. If “The Rocky Horror Glee Show” did anything right it was to shine a light on male objectification. I noticed that Chord really didn’t have much rhythm when it came to doing the Time Warp choreography but Lord knows he can do the pelvic thrust in my direction any day, time, place or way. Can we take a moment out of our busy lives to fawn over the hotness of Sam Evans/Chord Overstreet?

We also got to see yet another Matthew Morrison (Will Schuester) shirtless moment. Anyone else a little hot for teacher?

And honorable mention goes to Cory Monteith (Finn). Lord knows he tried to keep up. Boy gets an “Eh” for effort:

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Glee: Quotes from “Rocky Horror Glee Show”

Did you check out my review of the 7-track album released in an-tici…. pation of this very special tribute episode of “Glee”? If not, then you can read our review of the music from the episode here. Here are a few of our favorite quotes from Glee’s “Rocky Horror” episode.

Kurt: “So what are you gonna be for Halloween this year?”
Brittany: “I’m going as a peanut allergy.”

“No … there’s no way I’m playing a transvestite in high heels and fishnets and red lipstick.” — Kurt turning down the role of Frank-N-Furter.

“I’d like to preserve you. In a jar. In my basement.” — Mercedes to Rachel

“You know, Halloween is fast approaching. The day when parents encourage little boys to dress like little girls and little girls to dress like whores and go door to door brow-beating hard working Americans into giving them free food. Well you know what, western Ohio? We’ve lost the true meaning of Halloween: fear. Halloween is that magical day of the year when a child is told their grandma is a demon who’s been feeding them rat casserole with a crunch garnish of their own scabs. Children must know fear; without it they’ll try frenching a grizzly bear and will consider living in Florida.” — Sue Sylvester

“Yeah, earlier today Artie asked if he could make a gigantic omelet when I’m done with the ostrich eggs I’m smuggling in my bra.” — Santana

“It’s going to be abulous.” — Sam on dawning he iconic golden underwear for the Rocky role

“I appreciate how Rocky Horror pushes boundaries.” — Sue Sylvester

“I should have known; people who dress like librarians – all sex addicts.” — Sue to Emma

Carl: “You all have a hole to fill and I’m just trying to help fill it.”
Santana: “Wanky.”
Emma: “Santana!”

“These are really short and I’m afraid I’m gonna show off some nuttage.” — Sam

“Just because you’re free to say whatever you want doesn’t always mean you should. Artist are free to push boundaries to make art but when pushing boundaries is their only aim the result is usually bad art.” — Sue Sylvester

“Give me some chocolate or I will cut you!” — Becky

To quench your thirst for all things Glee and Rocky Horror related, here’s our “Chord Overstreet’s barely clothed” moment of the week:

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Album Review: Mariah Carey’s ‘Merry Christmas II You’

Ah, Mariah Carey tries to out do herself and pretty much fails miserably.

Don’t get me wrong – Merry Christmas II You is not entirely bad. On that note, it’s far from the spectacular iconic first Christmas album from Carey and leaves much to be desired. Like most sequels, Merry Christmas II You has a lot to live up and expectations are high. The moment it was apparent that Mariah’s last album Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel was a bit less than saintly and was panned by many (though I actually liked it a lot), she seemed to go into attack mode. Release another album? Go into hiding as she did with the Glitter fiasco? No, she’d do another Christmas album! The first question on everyone’s mind is a resounding “Why?!” Mariah’s 1990s Merry Christmas is one of those must own albums that is iconic, full of great singing, those mind-numbing high notes and is simply a well produced album. Fast forward to now: Merry Christmas II You is a bit less than perfect. Let’s not even discuss the atrocious cover. Some of the songs just sound entirely too dull and are sung with little feeling; others are unintentionally amusing.

Track by Track:
Perhaps what keeps this album from being so great is the song selection. These songs are just mediocre and most do not require Mariah to rise above her penchant for raspy/whispering singing that she seems to be a fan of these days. First, there’s no singing on “Santa Claus Is Coming To Town (Intro)” and really, there’s not even a reason to listen to it. The album really starts with “Oh Santa!” which is one of the original tracks and is very fun, lively, festive with Mariah’s quirky diva humor, tongue-in-cheek lyrics and urban/hip hop flare. Really, it’s one of the few tracks that was really fun and feels worthy of repeating so I can easily see why it was chosen as the first single. “O Little Town of Bethlehem / Little Drummer Boy (Medley)” is another good track; while Mariah does really do more than sing the “rumpa-bum-bum” line, this is probably as close to old school classic Mariah as we’ve gotten in ages. This track and its production is really exemplary and it feels as if it could have easily been part of the first Christmas album, Merry Christmas.

The album hits a bit of a snag with “Christmas Time Is In the Air Again”. It’s a decent song but style wise it doesn’t suit Mariah or this album well. Who does she think is buying her album, my grandmother? It sounds entirely too dated and reserved. Again, she really didn’t show off her vocals and it feels like a performance lacking any real emotion. “The First Noel / Born Is the King (Interlude)” is a song that I’d expect Mariah to really tear up with some ridiculous vocal runs and high notes and go all diva on. Instead, it’s sung straight forward with little decoration and never really takes off … until the breakdown when it gets interesting with a bit of a R&B breakdown reminiscent of the Butterfly era of her career. Really, I wish she’d have taken a bit more of a chance with the entire song rather than saving it for the last minute or so of the song/interlude.

“When Christmas Comes” is stylistically similar to her 2005 track “Fly Like a Bird”; it has a chorus backup, hints of “Jingle Bells” woven throughout the track, but it doesn’t feel very inspired. She does make an attempt to actually sing rather than whisper throughout the track but the track overall left me feeling a bit uninterested and chilly. “Here Comes Santa Claus (Right Down Santa Claus Lane) / Housetop Celebration” is a bit hip-hop and has a bass beat that sounds very similar to “Another One Bites the Dust.” I liked this track mainly because it feels a bit more “Mariah” than some of these other lethargic tracks. It’s bouncy, it’s a bit noisy and would make a good background track for a party. Then there’s “Charlie Brown Christmas.” Seriously, were there no other Christmas songs to cover? The first half of the track is the Charlie Brown theme with people chatting and laughing; the rest is Mariah singing the theme from “A Charlie Brown Christmas.” Really. It feels weird and awkward and as if she was scraping the bottom of the barrel for a song.

“Oh Come All Ye Faithful / Hallelujah Chorus” is probably among the albums best. It features her mother Patricia Carey singing the chorus of “Hallelujah” in her operatic voice and when it’s paired with Mariah finally stepping up to the plate and belting out this song with all the octaves and style she’s known for, it makes for a pretty spectacular vocal treat. The track is more gospel than anything and really,  this is what the entire album should have been like. “O Holy Night” is pretty similar to the version from her first Christmas album only this time it’s a live track and reminded me a lot her famous MTV Unplugged session. It was nice to hear her sing live, though the bass/treble on the track seemed to be really loud and created a bit of a distorted sound. “One Child” reminded me a lot of “Jesus Born on This Day” from the first Merry Christmas album. It has a children’s choir and attempts to tug at our hearts but really it had me waiting for her to actually get to singing … which she does little of on this track.

Of course, we’re served another helping of her iconic “All I Want For Christmas Is You” which is tagged as being “extra festive” this go around. Well, it sounded pretty darn close to the original to me with perhaps a little more jingle and piano than the original version. The album ends with “Auld Lang Syne (The New Year’s Anthem)” ends the album on a real festive note: it’s basically a 1990s techno-influenced take on the old holiday classic. Now really, this track is truly festive and is only ruined by Mariah talking toward the end and asking, “Does anyone really know the words? Might as well sing a long.” Now if only she’d put this much festivity and personality into half of the other tracks!

In Conclusion:
Though I’m a bit let down overall by this effort, I’m glad Mariah put out another CD this year and that she didn’t completely go hip-hop or too urban on it. I would have preferred a bit more of the old school Mariah who’d tear up each track and perhaps a bit more of the gospel treatment that made 1994’s Merry Christmas such a stand-out album. There are a few really good tracks – “O Come All Ye Faithful / Hallelujah Chorus” is really the Mariah Carey we’ve been missing all these years – no hip-hop, no autotune, no special effects just “the voice” completely dominating on a track. Still, this would make a great album to have playing in the background at a party because it feels a bit more geared as background music than something you’d sit down and listen to on your own.

Listen to These: “O Come All Ye Faithful / Hallelujah Chorus (Featuring Patricia Carey”, “Auld Lang Syne (The New Year’s Anthem)”, “O Little Time of Bethlehem / Little Drummer Boy (Interlude)”, “Oh Santa!”

Man Crush of the Day: ‘A-List: New York’ star Derek Lloyd Saathoff

I’ve got to admit – I’m a fan of Logo’s gay take on The Real Housewives … series titled The A-List: New York. Even though it’s pretty much devoid of any diversity and is full of stereotypes and cliches, The A-List is a guilty pleasure that I take part in each week. I mean, what gay guy doesn’t love a little drama and bitchiness? Though Rodiney Santiago (who we blogged about a little while ago here) is definitely the eye candy of the show and his boyfriend Reichen is certainly nice to look at, I’m sorry, but my heart belongs to Derek. He’s the twinkish model manager who definitely doesn’t let his small frame and suave looks hold him back from being the show’s true HBIC. In the first few episodes we’ve seen him go up against Austin and put him in his place. We’ve also seen him spray tan and dawn itty-bitty blue speedos. He boasts about being best friends with Lindsay Lohan, which was definitely a laugh out loud moment for me. Still, we like this pint-sized bitchy little femme queen’s attitude and we’re sticking our seal of approval on his little blue speedo clad bottom. Follow Derek on Twitter and Facebook.

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Update: Look at what we saw on Facebook. Seems like Derek is a fan of our humble little blog!

 

Man Crush of the Day: ‘90210’ Bad Boy Matt Lanter

We’ve been gone for a minute but now we’re back with our usual man crush feature. What better way to get back into the habit than with actor and model Matt Lanter. If you’re unaware of this actor, we’re about to clue you in. Matt plays troubled teen and resident bad boy with on the CW’s ‘90210’. Liam is much like the original’s Dylan: pure eye candy, misunderstood, brooding and gets all the girls (and boys) hot under the collar when he goes shirtless and shows off his muscles and abs (which he does quite often, thank goodness). To catch you up on his character: Liam came to West Beverly High and immediately caught the eye of Noami; then he realized being Noami’s boyfriend came with too much headache and drama and eventually dumped Noami after she accused him of sleeping with Annie (he didn’t sleep with Annie – he slept with Noami’s sister, Jen); Noami and Liam made-up but soon broke up again. Now he’s interested in Annie but his half brother has already set his sights on Annie. Poor Liam! All the girls seem to neglect him. Hey, maybe he needs to check out West Bev’s new token gay, Teddy!

Anyways, as for a real bio: Matt Lanter was born in Ohio in 1983. He moved to Georgia when he was young and got into sports and eventually got into acting. His credits include roles on Point Pleasant, 8 Simple Rules, HBO’s Big Love, ABC’s Commander In Chief and the animated film Star Wars: The Clone Wars among other guest roles. I must admit that I’m a bit partial to Trevor Donovan but Matt and his not-so-lucky Liam character is definitely growing on me – and watching shirtless Liam scenes definitely makes a few things on me grow. Oh, ahem … nevermind. You can follow him on Twitter @mattlanter.

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Album Review: Rod Stewart’s “Fly Me To The Moon … The Great American Songbook Volume V”

“Fly Me to the Moon … The Great American Songbook Volume V” Tracklisting:
1. That Old Black Magic (4:35)
2. Beyond The Sea (3:25)
3. I%27ve Got You Under My Skin (3:50)
4. What A Difference A Day Makes (3:22)
5. I Get A Kick Out Of You (3:32)
6. I%27ve Got The World On A String (2:52)
7. Love Me Or Leave Me (3:07)
8. My Foolish Heart (3:37)
9. September In The Rain (2:55)
10. Fly Me To The Moon (2:45)
11. Sunny Side Of The Street (2:56)
12. Moon River (2:48)

Oh, Rod Stewart, what’s happened to you? I miss the Rod Stewart of yesteryear – the rocker, party-animal and bad boy who gave us such hits as “Hot Legs”, “Rhythm of my Heart”, “Forever Young”, and “Do Ya Think I’m Sexy.” Now we’re left with a cover artist who’s traded in everything that made him a star and appealing who churns out albums full of cover songs of old American classics. “Fly Me to the Moon … The Great American Songbook Volume V” is really not that different from the first four albums of the American Songbook series. For one album, the one where he covered classic rock songs, there was a hint of the old Rod Stewart but now we’re back to this crooner imitation that Stewart’s been playing with for the past few years.

In listening to this album, I wanted to break down this review by tracks. Then I realized that there really was nothing great to say about the individual tracks on this album. I will start off by saying one good thing: thank goodness the music of this release is more upbeat and overall happier than the tracks chosen for the other songbook volumes. That simple change of going for the most swing/upbeat orchestral arrangement of the songs makes “Fly Me to the Moon” stand out in the series.

Now, for the bad news. My problem with “Fly Me to the Moon” and the other four volumes of this American Songbook series is that it is really lacking in Rod Stewart. I’ll explain. I get it – as artists get older, they want to change or do something differently musically. This thing of covering old American classics, however, has been dragged out entirely too long in my opinion and is truly killing the musical legacy Rod Stewart made. These tracks are nothing more than high profile karaoke. Where’s the feeling? Where’s the emotion, the spark that makes you nod your head in appreciation of the sentiment and emotion; the unique spin that makes you feel like you’re listening to Rod Stewart? This album, and the others of this American Songbook series are pretty annoying and disappointing because every track is sung almost entirely the same as the next. There’s no real emotional exploration going on or personalization happening. To me, the tracks sound very similar and therefore feel uninteresting because it feels like Rod Stewart or his record company realize they’ll make money with him being a cover artist either way and he’s grown very comfortable not investing himself into the music or songs because they’re already familiar to most of his audience.

This feels like a lazy effort from Rod Stewart with no real creativity or talent being exhibited. There are a few tracks worth listening to: “Moon River,” “Sunny Side of the Street”, “Fly Me to the Moon” have traces of the old Rod Stewart but still, I find it hard to believe that the once rocker Stewart who in interviews likes to to point out how he doesn’t feel old or irrelevant has gone from being such a stand out artist to being nothing more than a good cover artist. I’d like to have heard a few original tracks mixed into this album; we haven’t been treated to truly new, original content from Rod Stewart in years and I believe all of this covering of the American classics he’s done over the years has made him a bit weak as an artist because he’s singing every song with the same emotion and tone and is showing little range. I say skip this. It’s really not anything new or anything unique worth throwing your money at.

Listen to These: “Fly Me to the Moon,” “Sunny Side of the Street,” “Moon River.”

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Listen to music from Glee’s Upcoming ‘Rocky Horror Glee Show’

We’ll have to wait until October 26 to see Glee’s much anticipated “Rocky Horror Picture Show” tribute but the music from the show is already hitting the web! Listen to “Damn It, Janet”, “Science Fiction Double Feature”, “Sweet Transvestite”, “There’s A Light (Over At Frankenstein Place)”, “Whatever Happened to Saturday Night?”, “Touch-a Touch-a Touch-a Touch Me” and “Time Warp” by clicking here.

** “Rocky Horror Glee Show” EP Album Review (Released October 19, 2010)
We’re still at the start of the second season of “Glee” and already have a second tribute episode. This album contains seven full tracks of music taken from “The Rocky Horror Picture Show” that will be featured in the October 26 episode. Since these seven tracks are taking on some pretty well-known territory, comparisons are unavoidable. What some will notice and complain about is that the tracks’ lyrics are somewhat changed or cleaned up to make them more suitable for network television. That being said, there are still some touchy, suggestive lyrics that should keep you pretty happy including “Sweet Transvestite” and the blush-worthy “Touch A Touch A Touch A Touch Me.” Still, while some may feel this is nothing more than karaoke, I feel there’s a lot of good in these seven tracks.

The Good: Since these are songs from a cult favorite and well known musical film, I think it’d been pretty difficult for “Glee” to get away with completely having their way with the music. One track that feels completely new and unique to “Glee” is “Sweet Transvestite” featuring the vocals of Amber Riley. When I found out this track was going to be included in the episode I, like many, thought it’d be a Kurt (Chris Colfer) number but was surprised to find it was actually a Mercedes number instead. She completely puts her own stamp on the song with big vocals that truly blew me away. It was fun hearing “There’s a Light (Over at Frankenstein Place)” done with the signature “Glee” harmonies of Lea Michele and Cory Monteith. It’s one of those under appreciated tracks from the Rocky Horror film and doesn’t feel completely overdone and thus works well on the soundtrack. John Stamos’ singing on “Whatever Happened To Saturday Night?” was fun and made what was always a dull track and moment in the film actually enjoyable. “Touch A Touch A Touch A Touch Me” is sung by Jayma Mays who plays the uptight obsessive compulsive Emma Pillsbury and considering her character’s history on the show felt like a really big moment and highlight for Emma and the show. In all, most of the tracks felt pretty well done. Vocally, there are few surprises but I didn’t feel like any of the songs were butchered.

The Bad: Having watched “Rocky Horror Picture Show” countless times and listened to the soundtrack, it’s hard not to compare the “Glee” versions of the songs to the originals. Naya Rivera’s (Santana) singing on “Science Fiction Double Feature” felt a bit weak and I wish she or the arranger of the song had chosen to really hit and enunciated certain lyrics or words as the original song did. “Time Warp” has been done so much that I wish they’d actually been bold and chosen to do something unique and different with the track. It’s pretty hard not to notice what “Rocky Horror” tracks didn’t make it into this episode including “I Can Make You A Man”, “Rose Tint My World”, “I’m Going Home” and “Super Heroes”. Price wise, I’m glad they’ve lowered the price considerably since there are so few tracks and the release is coming out an entire week before the actual episode airs (which in turn sort of kills the fun of watching the episode spoiler free (musically and show/plot wise). I also wondered why the producers chose to release this as the cast’s first album from season 2 but they didn’t choose a special release of the music from the Britney Spears tribute episode. To me, this would have been a great “double feature” opportunity to include tracks from both the Britney and Rocky Horror episodes since both are being promoted as tribute and special occasions.

In all, a fun release with good music. It’s one of the few soundtracks I’m able to listen to non-stop and repeatedly without it feeling old. There are a few flaws, as mentioned above but overall “Glee” seems to have musically honored “Rocky Horror Picture Show” in a great way.

Listen to These: “Sweet Transvesite”, “There’s a Light (Over At Frankenstein Place),” “Damn It, Janet”

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