Know It All," "What Doesn't Kill You (Stronger)," and originals "You Love Me" and "Hello" make this a strong album.
Although there's nothing as alluring as "My Life Would Suck Without You" (from 2009's All I Ever Wanted) on her new disc Stronger (19/RCA), there's still plenty to recommend. But you have to hand it to her because she's managed to turn such a disgrace into a successful and rewarding recorded music career. Constant denial of lesbian rumors aside, she will forever be linked, as the first season's champ, with second-rate network Fox's American Idol, the 21st-century version of low-rent talent competition shows such as Star Search. If McKinley were a real high school (and it's good that it's not), someone would be expelled for plagiarism. But worst of all is the blatant (and uncredited) rip-off of Greg Laswell's brilliant arrangement of the Cyndi Lauper hit "Girls Just Want to Have Fun," originally heard in Laswell's version on the Confessions of a Shopaholic OST (search it on YouTube). "Constant Craving" is too faithful to the original, although the duet on "Somewhere" featuring Idina Menzel isn't too bad.
As covers of Coldplay's "Fix You" go, the Glee rendition doesn't hold a candle to the one performed by the senior citizens in the doc Young Heart. Uninspired performances combined with pointless song selection ("Hot for Teacher" and "Uptown Girl," really?) earn this one an F.
Fox's cash calf Glee hits a new low with the seventh installment of its Glee: The Music (Columbia) series of soundtracks.