Musical TV!

In preparation for tonight’s musical episode of Grey’s Anatomy I decided to reflect on some of the best musical episodes of TV ever. In order to delve into this list, I really have to separate it into two categories, a) original music and b) singing other peoples music

I) Original Music:

1. Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Once More with Feeling: This is the standard in my opinion, to which all other musical episodes need to live up to. Yes the idea was silly, a demon who curses everyone into singing out their fears, desires, and basically everything on their minds (see “they got the mustard out”). Yet this musical was silly, fun, and actually had a soundtrack that I listened to repeatedly on my cd player and/or iPod.

2. Daria: Daria!:  I was one of those girls who LOVED Daria when it was on. I was an avid MTV watcher in my teen years. Daria’s sarcastic spirit was something I totally identified with, and also found hilarious. In this episode a hurricane is about to hit Lawndale (the fictional town of Daria), which resident Lawndale haters Daria and Jane would love. What ensues is a lot of silly, irreverent songs, in addition to a lot of talk-singing by Daria.

3. Scrubs: My Musical: Guy Love says it all. This episode which involved a patient hitting her head and imagining everyone singing at Sacred Heart couldn’t have been better. Not only did it involve a touchy-feely love number between JD and Turk, but it also involved a patter song with Dr. Cox and Janitor! I couldn’t ask for more
   
4. The Simpsons: A Fish Called Selma/Marge vs. the Monorail/Homer and Apu ETC: Technically these aren’t really musical episodes but the Simspons has created some really catchy tunes for their shows. Songs like Dr. Zaius (parody of Amadeus), Monorail Song, and Who Needs the Kwik E-Mart from the episodes listed above are particularly hilarious and fun, not to mention catchy!

II) Non-Original Music

1. That 70’s Show: That 70’s Musical: This 100^th episode of That 70’s Show featured Fez day dreaming about him and the rest of the band singing. The episode featured a ton of hit 70’s tunes and is both fun to watch and to sing a long to. I particularly love the group sitting around the table, high, singing Steve Miller Band’s The Joker.
   
2. Xena Warrior Princess: Lyre Lyre Hearts on Fire: This episode is just plain hilarious. I know some people were down on Xena’s campy vibe, but that is what made the show great, and this episode about a battle of the bands is no exception. The episode begins with Xena breaking up a fight between Amazons singing the song War by Edwin Star and it just goes uphill from there.

3. Curb Your Enthusiasm: The Producers: Jason was kind enough to show me this amazing episode this past year. I’m not a huge fan of Curb usually because I always feel extremely awkward during Larry’s awkward encounters. But this broadway themed episode was an actual show within a show performance of the broadway hit The Producers and featured cameos from Mel Brooks and his wife Anne Bancroft.
   
4. Pushing Dasies: Dummy/Pigeon/Comfort Food/Window Dressed to Kill: I basically listed all episodes in which Olive (Kristin Chenowith) sings, because they are just that great. She is such a talented person, it was only a matter of time before the show evolved to let her sing more and more often. In these episodes she sings Hopelessly Devoted to You, Birdhouse in Your Soul, Eternal Flame, and Hello respectively.

Did I miss your favorite episodes? List them below!

Actors Who Sing: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

Since Gwenyth Paltrow has had so much success on Glee (see Forget You), it got me to thinking about other actors who have attempted* to sing in movies, TV, or with their own solo music careers. This is strictly a list of actors who began their career acting, not singing.

The Goods:

Jared Leto: I was a sucker for Jordan Catalano. He was pretty dreamy to look at and definitely carried that dumb bad boy act far. But, where Jared really shines is being the lead singer of rock band 30 Seconds to Mars. I like the hardness of the band’s alt-heavy songs like Closer to the Edge and Kings and Queens.

Ewan Mcgregor: Sigh, Swoon. I nearly gushed when Ewan opened his mouth for the opening bars of Your Song in Moulin Rouge. Up until this point he was Obi Won Kenobi in my mind, but with his singing voice he definitely emerged as potential crush worthy material and also as a versatile actor. 

Zooey Deschanel: When she sang Baby It’s Cold Outside in Elf you knew there was something special about Zooey aside from her stunning blue eyes. Her band She and Him is indie folk at its best. Songs like Why Do You Let Me Stay Here and In the Sun are really fun and frothy, and worth a listen if you haven’t heard them.

Jamie Foxx: After singing in Ray, I was impressed. With the release of Blame It I was hooked (as was pretty much everyone in America). Jamie definitely shows talent, and knows how to use the right amount of Autotune to make the track work perfectly.

The Bad:

Scarlett Johansson: It's not that Scarlett is actually a bad singer. Rather her debut album Anywhere I Lay My Head was just sleepy, boring, and uninspired. She is obviously not bad enough to be put on our worst list because she at least has some (albeit minimal) voice training. See song Falling Down as an example.  

Peter Gallagher: Don’t get me wrong, Peter Gallagher can sing, evidenced by his stint as Sky Masterson in the 1992 revival of Guys and Dolls. But again, his debut album 7 Days in Memphis was boring at best. He even sang a supremely boring son on the OC called Don’t Give Up on Me which was one of the most mind-numbing performances the OC ever had.

Paris Hilton: Paris, capitalizing on her success in The Simple Life and various random roles in TV and film decided to come out with the reggae pop single Stars are Blind. Yea this song kinda sucks, yet, it was a number 1 hit in 17 countries. As such Paris is in the Bad section not the Ugly section.

Patrick Swayze: She’s Like the Wind. Need I say more?

The Ugly:

Lindsay Lohan: Oh LiLo. Do you think capitalizing on your post mean girls success to become a singer was a good idea? Obviously you did because your debut album Speak came right on the heels of that film, and SUCKED. Rumors is a terrible, terrible song which shows no vocal ability whatsoever, and it is appalling to me that your album went platinum.

David Hasselhoff: We all know David’s singing career did not take off in America, but it did make it big in Germany! I’m pretty sure “hits only popular in Germany” qualifies for the ugly list. See Looking For Freedom and Jump into My Car.

Stephen Collins: Stephen Collins has not one, but two albums out! And starred in a few Broadway shows! Unbelievable. His songs leave MUCH to be desired, although he can play the guitar fairly well. I often judge a celebrity based on how many youtube videos they have of them singing and sadly for Rev. Camden there is but one. See it for yourself here.

Steven Segal: He is Steven Segal. Need I say more? Ok fine. Girl Its Alright. Better?

Did I miss your favorites/ Least Favorites? Comment Below!

Ireland Rocks!

Happy St. Patty’s day! In honor of this amazing Irish day of fun, drinking, and green clothing wearing, I’d like to dedicate my post to the top Irish rock bands/artists.

1. U2- Oh Bono and The Edge, your names are so silly, but also synonymous with good rock music. I almost feel bad for your fellow band mates who have normal average names that no one remembers. In any situation, this band was one of the biggest successes to come out of Ireland. They are consistently making new hits (if you don’t count the Spiderman musical) and have won a total of 22 Grammys. Favorite songs of theirs include I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For, Sunday Bloody Sunday, and City of Blinding Lights.
2. Snow Patrol- Snow patrol used to be my favorite band ever. I’m not really sure who takes that title today but I digress. When I first heard this Irish band’s catchy single Spitting Games I was hooked. They followed up with goodies like Chocolate and Run on their album Final Straw and only grew in my estimation from there. Their follow up album Eyes Open gained commercial acclaim due to the presence of their song Chasing Cars on ABC’s Grey’s Anatomy. However these  rockers have a lot more to offer then their one time hit, songs like You’re All That I Have, Disaster Button, and Set Fire to the Third Bar really show their range and rock edge.
3. The Script: This newish Irish band burst onto the scene with their radio smashing song Breakeven. Yet songs like The Man Who Cant Be Moved, Before the Worst, and For the First Time are the crux of who these guys are as a band. When I first heard them they felt like a mix of John Legend and One Republic- aka an unbeatable combination. I can only hope that the Script will continue to show us their amazing ability in future tracks.
4. The Cranberries: This Irish Rock band was one of the most successful bands of the 90’s. With hits like Dreams and Linger this fact isn’t all that surprising. This band, in my opinion, is the most “Irish” sounding of all the bands, and when I say Irish I mean Celtic. With their harder edged songs like Zombie this band definitely knows how to rock. 
5. Glen Hansard/The Frames: If you have read some of my earlier posts (for example my soundtrack post) you would know that I LOVE the movie Once. The first time I saw this “band fairytale” I cried and also gushed. When they won the Oscar for best song, I also cried, and gushed. Glen Hansard, 1/2 of the duo that makes up the movie, is Irish born, and an amazing performer. He originated in the band The Frames and took his chance at a solo career with this movie as a payoff. Favorite songs include: Falling Slowly, his cover of Britney Spears’ Everytime, and The Frames’ Song for Someone.
6. Van Morrison- Yes, this rock legend is from Ireland! I couldn’t believe it myself. With hits like Gloria and Brown Eyed Girl I probably would never have known that he was an Irish import. Without Van Morrison the 60’s would have lacked a signature Celtic and hypnotic flair.

Did I miss your favorites? Write them below!

Too risqué for the radio?

Today while rocking out to Rhianna’s S & M on the radio I thought about what could be considered too inappropriate for popular child consumption. Rhianna sings “ I may be bad but I'm perfectly good at it/ sex in the air I don’t care I love the smell of it/sticks and stones may break my bones but chains and whips excite me.” From previous experience, my nieces, nephews, and 3rd grade campers all listen to popular pop radio (like z100). When songs like Katy Perry came on to the scene with I Kissed a Girl it was semi amusing to see 7 year old girls singing about experimentation, but also a tad inappropriate. When my nephew sang Brittney Spears If You Seek Amy I was a little sad (after I finally realized what was wrong with the song). My problem is, yes people are censoring songs left and right, like Cee Lo’s F*** You, but the topic of sex is apparently not worth censoring. It makes me laugh thinking about how back in the day Elvis was considered too risqué because he exuded sex and used his hip thrusts to prove it. I wonder what my grandmother’s generation would say about Lady Gaga’s constant crotch grabbing and studded bikini outfits. My question is, when do we say these things really shouldn’t be out there for popular consumption, and am I the only one who feels this way? If you wouldn’t take your child to a rated R movie which is rated R for nudity, why is letting them watch music videos or listen to risqué lyrics appropriate?