her musical chops

she can sing! actress jennifer aniston appeared on ‘the ellen degeneres show’ today to promote her latest flick, ‘love happens.’ after some chitty chatting, ellen inquires about jen’s upcoming project called ‘the goree girls,’ which calls for aniston to sing. ellen coaxes the lovely lady to serenade the audience, and she obliges with a sultry rendition of ‘i’ve got a crush on you.’ pretty good if you ask me! check out the clip above.

‘the goree girls’ is based on the book by john lee hancock which centers around the true-life story of eight female inmates who form a country bank in texas back in the 1940′s. aniston is set to produce and star in the film, with michael sucsy (‘grey gardens’) directing. this should definitely be interesting, as we have rarely seen aniston in anything outside of romantic comedies.

director sucsy says of the flick:

“these women learned to harmonize and they learned to play instruments. they weren’t these amazing, accomplished singers who banded together. that’s what’s interesting about it. it’s not just like, ‘hey, you can play the guitar, i can play the piano, i can play the harmonica. let’s put a band together.’ it’s like, ‘we have to get out of jail, and if we have to put a band together to do that, then that’s what we’re going to do.’ “

jennifer will also have to learn to play the dobro (a guitar) for her starring role. sucsy plans on casting real musicians to play alongside aniston. ‘the goree girls’ is due out sometime late next year.

glee-less

gleeslider

last may, fox was convinced they had a hit with their latest tv show, ‘glee.’ viewers were ecstatic over the preview of this musically-inclined sitcom. naturally, fox jumped for joy over the ratings & fast-tracked the show into a fall premiere. but they might want to wait on the congratulatory champagne.

the next set of reviews are in. and variety has ripped the hopeful hit to shreds! “talk about one-hit wonders,” the mag writes, ”the promise & energy associated with the debut of ‘glee’ last spring largely evaporates.” the review purports that the series will be short-lived, to say the least.

did ya miss the preview last spring? lemme catch you up. it’s a look at romance through a high-school glee club. misfit singers, star quarterbacks, cheerleaders & awkward teachers fill the cast – with the group occasionally bursting into song & dance. variety says that while the cast has a whole lot of talent, it seems to be crushed alongside the show’s “jokey, cartoonish, wildly uneven tone.” we’ll see if audiences buy into the new show come this season. ‘glee’ premieres on fox sept. 9th at 9pm. i’ll leave you with this parting shot from variety: in order for the show to last, “they’re gonna have to croon a tune helluva lot better than this!”

speaking her mind

gagatorislider

veteran singer tori amos has enjoyed an almost 20-year career – a feat not often found in the musical world. amos took time out of her schedule to share her opinion on why pop sensation lady gaga might not be so lucky. she shared with british tabloid the sun that gaga’s popularity is only fleeting.

“she’s what i call a meteor – singers who entertain people for a while. hey, there’s nothing wrong with that. but then there are people like neil young who show up at glastonbury 40 years into their career. and that’s a very different kind of artist.”

she goes on to explain that perhaps the economic crisis is the reason for lady gaga’s success. ”she wants to entertain people. right now, half the world is depressed and they need to be entertained. so her timing’s perfect.” well, that may be true, but gaga is certainly making a run for it. she’s supremely confident in her rise to fame. only time will tell if she lasts!