By Danielle Bettendorf, Living and Arts Editor
Next month marks a special anniversary for those who were teens in the late 2000s – on March 20, it will be exactly four years since “Glee” went off the air.
While “Glee” was famously known (and sometimes criticized) for primarily featuring covers, rather than original songs, an entire generation grew up on the New Directions singing, dancing and trying their best to get to Nationals. Like it or not, just like other tributes before the show, “Glee” was a monumental musical phenomenon that, though it should not come back, should be recognized for its place in pop culture. Because so many of the songs the show featured were generally unchanged for the cover, I’m going to highlight mashups that set the “Glee” cover apart from the original, counting down my top five.
At number five is “Thriller/Heads Will Roll.” While the show could have easily covered “Thriller” by itself, combining it with the Yeah Yeah Yeah’s song made it a catchy finale that is timely even outside of Halloween.
At number four is “Hit Me with Your Best Shot/One Way or Another,” set during the famous dodgeball scene between the New Directions and the Troubletones.
“One Way or Another” is a classic for mashups – just two years later One Direction famously covered it with “Teenage Kicks” for charity.
Both mashups are total earworms and have stayed timeless throughout the years.
At number three is “Anything Goes/Anything You Can Do” – the only song on the list both sung by one main person rather than a duet or group, as well as being the only one by a minor character.
The mashup was performed by Lindsay Pearce, who won a two-episode appearance after placing as a runner-up on “The Glee Project.”
Pearce’s vocals are incredibly strong and showcase the best parts of “Glee” – outside of all of the outlandish storylines and topics of the week, most everyone in the cast has professional singing experience. Many of the cast members acted on Broadway before starring on “Glee” and it really shows when they’re given the ability to prove their talent. This doesn’t necessarily apply to Pearce, but the mashup is a great reminder of what “Glee” was at its best, as well as a tribute to the theatre-kid audience that watched the show.
At number two is “I Feel Pretty/Unpretty,” one of the most heart-breaking songs on the entire show. Mashups were made for songs that wouldn’t normally go together and that’s exactly why the show’s pairing of a song from “West Side Story” and TLC clicks perfectly.
Though from two different eras, the mashup-duet showcases a problem that is timeless: if you’re happy with the way you look, are you happy with the way you feel? Paired with the topic of plastic surgery, the episode challenges viewers to ask themselves if doing what will make you fit in will actually make you happy – something that’s revisited time and time again on the show.
At number one is “Rumour Has It/Someone Like You,” the iconic Adele mashup that was talked about for years after. Taking place in the same episode as “Hit Me with Your Best Shot/One Way or Another,” the tribute packs a punch at the end of an episode that shows what “Glee” is really all about. The Troubletones perform knowing Santana has just been publicly outed and you can see the emotion in the actors’ faces while they perform. Outside of the performances that paid homage to what came before “Glee,” the show was at its best when the music and acting were in sync. Between Adele’s vulnerability and feeling of betrayal and Santana’s anger at being outed, you can see why for years people tuned in every week for “Glee.”
