Gleek your Library with Midwest Tape

Fox’s musical comedy sensation Glee is only in its second season but it is already a driving force in television. As a newly minted pop culture phenomenon, there is a high demand for all things Glee.

The Show
Glee follows high school teacher Will Schuester as he tries to resurrect McKinley High School’s less than favorable glee club, New Directions. Armed with funny one-liners and high school melodrama, the show delivers a story of hope as the group—comprised of socially and ethnically diverse students—prepares for and competes in choir competitions in the hopes of making it to Nationals.

While the major draw of the show has been its innovative catalog of Top 40, country, R&B, hip-hop, and Broadway tunes coupled with intricate dance numbers that smoothly fit into the context of the show, the breakthrough hit is more than just singing and dancing. Interspersed between the theatrical routines, Glee slyly tackles tough topics like teen pregnancy, bullying, sexuality, and religion.

Glee’s directors bypassed traditional casting calls, instead culling cast members straight from Broadway and saving guest spots from comedians, pop sensations, and Broadway stars for one-time appearances. The show has also dedicated entire episodes to singing inspirations like Britney Spears, Lady Gaga, Madonna, and the Rocky Horror Picture Show among others.

Accolades
Despite early critical skepticism, (a show featuring singing and dancing was unheard of during a time when hard-hitting dramas and established comedies dominated primetime television) Glee quickly proved itself a success.

In its first season, Glee was nominated for 19 Emmy Awards, four Golden Globes (winning the award for Best Television Series—Musical or Comedy), and six Satellite Awards.¹ The Glee cast has two certified gold albums (Glee: The Music, Volume 2 and Glee: The Music, Volume 3 Showstoppers), one certified platinum album (Glee: The Music, Volume 1) and has racked up more than 10 million song downloads.² Currently, Glee continues to rank as the number one entertainment program among adults aged 18–49 for the first six weeks of the 2010-2011 season.³

Glee has also become a commercial success thanks to dedicated fans who have coined themselves as “Gleeks”. The increasing popularity of the show has spawned a national tour, a young adult book series, an iPad application, a karaoke video game, stationery, greeting cards, apparel, jewelry and even the Glee Project--a reality series focused on finding the next Glee cast member through open casting calls

Midwest Tape is Here to Gleek Your Collection
Midwest Tape has created a collection of CDs featuring music from the show. We update the collection every Wednesday morning with CDs from original artists whose songs were featured on the previous night’s episode.

To find the collection Glee – The Music & More, click browse in the toolbar on the Midwest Tape website.

Select CD and browse by collection and then scroll through the collections to find Glee – The Music & More.

A feature panel on the Midwest Tape website will also redirect you to the collection. Click Next to flip through the panels until you find the one featured below.

Has your library experienced a large request for Glee related materials? What other pop culture materials are in high-demand at your library?

¹ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glee_%28TV_series%29
² http://www.fox.com/glee/about/
³ http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/2010/11/15/live-7-update-week-6-and-season-to-date-glee-remains-this-seasons-no-1-entertainment-program/72087