"GREY'S ANATOMY: THE MUSIC EVENT" SOUNDTRACK
TOPS THE BILLBOARD CHARTS AND SURGES ON iTUNES


Only one day after the debut of the "Grey's Anatomy: The Music Event" soundtrack on March 31, the album climbed to No. 3 on iTunes, surpassing other TV cast albums, and hit No. 1 on the iTunes top-selling soundtracks. By the end of the week, the soundtrack was No. 24 on Billboard's Top 200 Albums, and No. 2 on the Top Soundtrack chart. "The Story," one of the singles off the album, made the Billboard Hot 100 at No. 69.

The highly talked-about Music Event of "Grey's Anatomy," entitled "Song Beneath the Song," aired on ABC on Thursday, March 31 to the show's best numbers since the season premiere, drawing 12.7 million Total Viewers, spiking 30% from the week prior in Adults 18-49, and standing as the night's No.1 scripted TV show among young adults. The ratings success translated to the Billboard charts, as the entire soundtrack for the episode, featuring songs that have been the heart of the show throughout the years, was released on iTunes the same day. "How to Save a Life" (The Fray), "Chasing Cars" (Snow Patrol) and "The Story" (Brandi Carlile) are among the songs featured on the soundtrack as performed by the "Grey's Anatomy" cast, which includes Tony Award winner Sara Ramirez, Chandra Wilson, Chyler Leigh and Kevin McKidd.

For more information on the "Grey's Anatomy: The Music Event" soundtrack please visit ABC Music Lounge on ABC.com.

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It took a live performance by the show's star Kevin McKidd for the network to sign off on the idea, which was written by showrunner Shonda Rhimes.

“The network executives couldn't picture it,” McKidd told The Hollywood Reporter during a recent set visit. “The easiest way Shonda felt to do that was to present a portion of it. So we put a band together to play this live gig with narration in between the songs of a very sketched out early version of [the episode]."

McKidd, who played the guitar while he and his musician friends performed “Chasing Cars” and Gomez’s “How We Operate,” says “It was actually kind of scary, [but] it was cool to be involved at that level, that very early stage.”

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‘Grey’s’ Kevin McKidd sings praises of musical episode By Mark A. Perigard Thursday, March 31, 2011

Are you ready for the singing surgeons of Seattle Grace?

ABC’s “Grey’s Anatomy” goes “Glee” — sort of — tonight at 9 on WCVB (Ch. 5) in “The Song Beneath the Song,” an episode that is anything but lighthearted.

After ramming into the back of a truck last week, Callie (Sara Ramirez) has been thrown through the windshield. (The opening moments are graphic and frightening.) As her friends scramble to save her and the life of her unborn child, Callie has an out-of-body experience in which she hears her colleagues vocalizing their emotions.

Good news for fans: Dr. Owen Hunt — and actor Kevin McKidd — is featured prominently in the musical hour.

Owen has been on the back burner as McKidd directed the “Grey’s” webisodes and a TV episode. “We haven’t seen me onscreen as some would like,” he told the Herald earlier this week, but that’s about to change.

He, along with Ramirez and Chandra Wilson, has an extensive theatrical background and was a natural to step into tonight’s spotlight. He even has a solo number — “How We Operate” — though the actor warned that he’s not sure how much will air. (The entire cast album will be available on iTunes.) Shooting took twice as long as a regular episode because the cast needed intensive rehearsals to get the timing right to match the vocals.

The Scottish actor said he had no problem singing with an American inflection. “A couple of times, my accent slipped, but it was no big deal.”

Other songs tonight: “Running on Sunshine,” “Grace,” “Chasing Cars,” “Breath” and, naturally, “How to Save a Life,” with McKidd, Ellen Pompeo, Kim Raver and almost the entire cast sharing vocals.

Last week, Owen became responsible for picking the new chief resident, the job his wife, Cristina (Sandra Oh), wants. “It’s definitely going to lead to some heated moments between the two of them.”

That’s just the beginning.

“Cristina and Owen have been in a happy place for a time, and we need trouble for the storytelling, and they hit a bit of a snarl-up. It becomes complicated this year.”

Reflecting on the couple’s popularity, he said, “People are always worried the writers are going to break them up. On paper, Cristina and Owen don’t make sense, and yet they do make sense and I couldn’t imagine Cristina and Owen with anyone else.”

To many fans, McKidd will always be remembered as the Roman soldier Lucius Vorenus in HBO’s late, lamented “Rome.” Addressing long-standing rumors of a big-screen cast reunion, he said, “(Creator) Bruno Heller has a script drafted, and I would love to do it. It’s a question of getting the money (to finance it). There’s such an appetite for that show, I think at some point it will get done. I’m ready to put my sandals back on.”

Off-set, McKidd is busy providing one of the voices in an upcoming Disney

Pixar film “Brave.”


He’s also been approached about starring in a Broadway musical opening later this year. “I’m just looking at the timing,” he said. “It’s the next box in a list that hasn’t been ticked off.” He also will be visiting Mozambique to support the grassroots charity, Partners for Pediatric Progress, designed to lower childhood morbidity in third world countries.

As for tonight’s episode, “Glee” comparisons aren’t apt. “It’s not like we’re doing tap dance routines. We’re saving that for the special ‘Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon’ episode next year,” he joked.

Grey’s Anatomy” is taking the songs which have filled fans ears now for seven years and creating their very own cast rendition in upcoming “Song Beneath the Song” episode.


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“How to Save a Life,” the song that brought an audience to the Fray from its placement in ABC’s “Grey’s Anatomy,” will be treated to a group sing-along in the show’s musical episode airing March 31.

With a Tony Award winner in the cast, Sara Ramirez, it’s no surprise she receives the bulk of the solos on the drama’s first musical episode. As Dr. Callie Torres, she sings lead on Kate Havnevik’s “Grace” and Brandi Carlile’s “The Story” and shares lead duties with Jessica Capshaw on KT Tunstall’s “Universe & U.” The show will feature nine songs closely associated with the show.

Chandra Wilson, who starred in “Caroline, or Change” on Broadway, sings lead on Get Set Go’s “Wait.” Only one of the songs, Gomez’s “How We Operate,” will feature a lead male voice, that of Kevin McKidd who portrays Dr. Owen Hunt.
 
The ensemble of Ramirez, McKidd, Daniel Sunjata, Scott Foley, Justin Chambers, Chandra Bailey, Kim Raver and Jessica Capshaw gets two numbers: “How to Save a Life” and Jesus Jackson’s “Running On Sunshine.”

A video of Ramirez, who won her acting Tony for the musical “Spamalot,” McKidd and Bailey singing Snow Patrol’s “Chasing Cars” is featured in a promo for the drama. The show returns to original episodes March 24.

The show’s creator Shonda Rhimes and director Tony Phelan had the songs selected and written into a script in November when Chris Horvath was brought in a music director. He spent about two months on arrangements and rehearsing musicians; the vocals were recorded over four days.

“When we started I knew we had four people who had serious vocal talent, some had a little bit of experience and some had barely sung in the shower,” Horvath tells Billboard. “There was some pushback from some of the cast …  but I was impressed by how everybody responded.”

Jessica Capshaw, for example, worked with a vocal coach and came up “with some really cool qualities” in her voice, Horvath said. He was also impressed with Chyler Leigh, another non-singer.

Horvath, a composer, producer and arranger, is putting the finishing touches on the soundtrack, which will be digitally available on March 31.

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