Glee: The Music, Volume 1 is the debut soundtrack album by the cast of the musical television series Glee, which aired on Fox in the United States. It features cover versions from the first nine episodes of the first season and was released on November 2, 2009 by Columbia Records and 20th Century Fox Television Records. The album received mixed reviews from critics, with many praising large ensemble numbers, but comparing it to karaoke tracks. It went to number one on album charts in Ireland and the United Kingdom, and peaked at number three in Australia and number four in both Canada and the United States. Volume 1 has been certified platinum in these five countries.

All non-bonus tracks from the album have been released as digital singles. The cast's debut single, a cover of Journey's "Don't Stop Believin'", charted within the top five in many countries and has sold over one million copies in the US. Other high-charting and best-selling singles include the covers of Queen's "Somebody to Love", Neil Diamond's "Sweet Caroline", and "Defying Gravity" from the musical Wicked. Glee Live! In Concert! saw the cast tour the US in promotion of the series' first season and its musical releases. The album earned a nomination for Grammy Award for Best Compilation Soundtrack Album for a Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media for the 2011 ceremony.

Glee debuted in America on the Fox network on May 19, 2009. Series creator Ryan Murphy planned to include five to eight musical numbers per episode, and to release accompanying soundtrack albums every few months. In the week prior to the broadcast of the pilot episode, Murphy stated that seven different companies had bid on the rights to the series' first soundtrack. The contenders were narrowed down to four labels, with Fox ultimately signing a deal with Columbia Records as a result of chairman Rob Stringer's belief that Glee would be a success. Stringer appreciated the series' use of both classic and contemporary pop music. He suggested that other record labels underestimated the potential of Glee's musical releases as they are all cover versions.

Murphy was responsible for selecting all of the songs covered on the album, and strove to maintain a balance between show tunes and chart hits. He was surprised at the ease with which use of songs was approved by the record labels approached, and explained, "I think the key to it is they loved the tone of it. They loved that this show was about optimism and young kids, for the most part, reinterpreting their classics for a new audience." Music supervisor P.J. Bloom cleared the song rights with their respective publishers, and music producer Adam Anders rearranged the tracks for the Glee cast. "Take a Bow" was offered for use at a reduced licensing rate, which surprised Murphy, who had believed he would not be able to afford the rights given that it had been a number one hit for Rihanna. Neil Diamond had some reluctance over licensing "Sweet Caroline" to the show, and retracted clearance after it had already been recorded. Bloom was able to convince him to reverse his decision, and Diamond went on to also license his song "Hello Again" for use on the show at a later date.

Stringer did not expect the success of Glee Cast single releases, and estimated that four million copies would be sold by Christmas 2009. He was unsure whether the high sales figures would help or hinder the release of Glee: The Music, Volume 1, and as such, was eager for its release in order to gauge the physical and digital market response. The 17 tracks selected for the album were considered amongst the series' most popular, with Columbia and Fox aiming to attract casual buyers as well as Glee fans. Geoff Bywater, head of Fox's music department, anticipated considerable sales from impulse buyers in retail stores. Instrumental versions of some songs were included as bonus tracks, based on a trend of fans recreating the musical numbers in tribute to the show.

In May 2010, the Glee Cast undertook a US tour entitled Glee Live! In Concert!, performing tracks from the first season's musical releases. From Glee: The Music, Volume 1, "Don't Stop Believin'", "Push It", "Sweet Caroline", "Defying Gravity", "Bust Your Windows" and "Dancing with Myself" were included on the setlist, with "Somebody to Love" as an encore performance.

Metacritic gave the album a Metascore—a weighted average based on the impression of eight critical reviews—of 60 percent, signifying "mixed or average reviews". Both Emma Wall of The Daily Telegraph and Christopher John Farley of The Wall Street Journal expressed approval of the choral arrangements, though Wall review observed that some of the ballads lack potency without their episodic context. Farley appreciated the "emotional backstory" given to the album by the television series, writing that it would "evoke fond memories of favorite episodes" for Glee fans. He found the better songs to be the ones which do not seem "too polished", giving them a karaoke appeal. Entertainment Weekly's Leah Greenblatt wrote that the soundtrack is essentially a karaoke album, describing the songs as "unapologetically sincere"—lacking the series' subversive wit, but with "a giddy sort of 'let's put on a show' charm". Billboard's Mikael Wood deemed the most successful tracks those which seem least suited to the series, such as the rock ballads "Don't Stop Believin'" and "Can't Fight This Feeling". Wood commented that "Take a Bow" and "Bust Your Windows" are also enjoyable, but "lack a certain revenge-of-the-nerds triumph."

The Independent's Andy Gill was apathetic towards the album, which he too deemed "karaoke-pop". He praised Riley's rendition of "Bust Your Windows", calling it the album's "most compelling moment", but criticized Morrison's rapping as "the least convincing [...] in recording history." Gill found Agron's cover of "You Keep Me Hanging On" to be "irritatingly anonymous", but otherwise felt the album contained little of note, either positive or negative. Jon Dolan of Rolling Stone shared Gill's sentiments with regards to Morrison's rapping and Riley's "Bust Your Windows", also deeming "Don't Stop Believin'" "a triumphal moment against which resistance is futile." Dan Cairns of The Times described the album as "music of catch-in-the-throat, quick-fix, talent-show emotion" variety, calling it "undeniably effective" but "utterly nauseating."