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Cell Block Tango from Chicago is featured in Choke, the eighteenth episode of Season Three. It is performed by Brittany, Mercedes, Santana, Sugar and Tina, along with Mike and Rory as dancers.

Cell Block Tango is the second number in the episode and is sung after Sue and Roz tell the five girls to sing a song about empowering women to leave abusive men as their assignment following Santana's comment about Cooter hitting Beiste. It begins in the auditorium, and is intercut with scenes of Beiste and Cooter at home, showing Cooter being abusive to her. Beiste leaves the auditorium, near tears, halfway through the performance. Roz says that the girls are absolutely 'cray-cray' and explains to them that they have failed to understand their assignment.

Lyrics[]

Mercedes:
And now, the six merry murderesses
Of the Cook County Jail
In their rendition of

Brittany:
Uh uh!

Mercedes:
"The Cell Block Tango"

Tina:
Pop!

Sugar:
Six!

Brittany:
Squish!

Sugar:
Uh uh!

Santana:
Cicero!

Sugar:
Lipschitz!

Tina:
Pop!

Sugar:
Six!

Brittany:
Squish!

Sugar:
Uh uh!

Santana:
Cicero!

Sugar:
Lipschitz!

Tina:
Pop!

Sugar:
Six!

Brittany:
Squish!

Sugar:
Uh uh!

Santana:
Cicero!

Sugar:
Lipschitz!

Tina:
Pop!

Sugar:
Six!

Brittany:
Squish!

Sugar:
Uh uh!

Santana:
Cicero!

Sugar:
Lipschitz!

Santana and Tina with New Directions Girls:
He had it coming, he had it coming
He only had himself to blame
If you'd have been there, if you'd have seen it

Santana:
I betcha you would have done the same

Tina:
Pop!

Sugar:
Six!

Brittany:
Squish!

Sugar:
Uh uh!

Santana:
Cicero!

Sugar:
Lipschitz!

Tina:
Pop!

Sugar:
Six!

Brittany:
Squish!

Sugar:
Uh uh!

Santana:
Cicero!

Sugar:
Lipschitz!

Tina (New Directions Girls):
(He had it coming) You know how people have these little habits (He had it coming)
That get you down? Like Bernie... (He only had himself to blame)
Bernie, he likes to chew gum, (If you'd have been there)
No, not chew, pop! (If you'd have seen it)
So I came home this one day and I'm really irritated (I betcha you would have done the same)
And I'm looking for a lil' bit of sympathy (He had it coming)
And there's Bernie lyin' on the couch, (He had it coming)
Drinkin' a beer and chewin' (He only had himself to blame)
No, not chewin', poppin'! (If you'd have been there)
So, I said to him, I said (If you'd have seen it)
"You pop that gum one more time," (I betcha you would have done the same)
Haiz... And he did (He had it coming)
So I took the shotgun off the wall (He had it coming)
And I fired two warning shots (He only had himself to blame)
Into his head

Santana and Tina with New Directions Girls:
He had it coming, he had it coming
He only had himself to blame
If you'd have been there, if you'd have heard it
I betcha you would have done the same

Sugar (New Directions Girls):
(He had it coming) I met Ezekiel Young from Salt Lake City (He had it coming)
About two years ago, and he told me he was single (He only had himself to blame)
And we hit it off right away (If you'd have been there)
So, we started living together (If you'd have seen it)
He'd go to work, he'd come home,
I'd fix him a drink, and we'd have dinner. (I betcha you would have done the same)
(He had it coming) And then I found out, (He had it coming)
Single, he told me. Single, my butt! (He only had himself to blame)
Not only was he married, oh no, he had six wives (If you'd have been there, if you'd have seen it)
One of those Mormons, you know (I betcha you would have done the same)
So that night, when he came home from work (He had it coming)
I fixed him his drink (He had it coming)
As usual (He only had himself to blame)
You know, some guys just can't hold their arsenic

Santana and Tina (New Directions Girls):
He had it coming (Pop! Six! Squish!), he had it coming (Uh-Uh! Cicero! Lipschitz!)
He took a flower (Pop! Six! Squish!) in its prime (Uh-Uh! Cicero! Lipschitz!)
And then he used it (Pop!) and he abused it (Six!)
It was a murder (Squish! Uh-Uh! Cicero! Lipschitz) but not a crime

Santana:
Now, I'm standing in the kitchen
Carvin' up the chicken for dinner, mindin' my own business
In storms my husband Wilbur in a jealous rage
"You been doin' the milkman"
he says
He was crazy and he kept on screamin'
"You been doin' the milkman"
And then he ran into my knife
He ran into my knife ten times

Brittany and Sugar:
The dirty bum (Tina: bum, bum, bum, bum)
The dirty bum (Tina: bum, bum, bum, bum)

Sugar:
They had it comin', (Tina: They had it comin')

Santana:
They had it comin', (Sugar: They had it comin')

Tina:
They had it comin' all along, (Santana: They had it coming' all along)

Sugar:
'Cause if they used us (Santana: Cause if they used us)

Tina:
And they abused us (Sugar: And they abused us)

Santana and Tina with New Directions Girls:
How could you tell us that we were wrong?
Could you tell us that we were wrong?

Trivia[]

  • Unlike the original, which is over 7 minutes, this version is nearly 4 minutes long. Due to this, the remaining three verses and additional parts were cut.
  • Amber Riley, who was featured in the song, filmed a Disney villain-inspired parody of the Cell Block Tango entitled the Spell Block Tango by Todrick Hall, which, coincidentally, also featured Adam Lambert, who portrays Elliott Gilbert.
  • This is the third time that Glee has used a song from the musical Chicago. The first was Mr. Cellophane in Season One, the second was Nowadays/Hot Honey Rag in Season Two. They later used All That Jazz in Season Four.
  • Ironically, Harry Shum Jr. has said that his pet peeve is people who pop their gum.
  • Each of the girls takes a different role seen in Chicago:
    • Tina as Liz
    • Sugar as Annie, Hunyak, Mona
    • Brittany as June
    • Santana as Velma and June's verse
    • Mercedes as the Narrator

Gallery[]

Videos[]

Chicago_-_Cell_Block_Tango-2

Chicago - Cell Block Tango-2

GLEE_-_Cell_Block_Tango_(Full_Performance)_HD

GLEE - Cell Block Tango (Full Performance) HD

Cell_Block_Tango_-_Glee_HD_Full_Studio

Cell Block Tango - Glee HD Full Studio

Navigational[]

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