Razor sharp, Amy Winehouse changed the music scene for ever
There's no point seeking someone to blame - Winehouse’s extraordinary insecurity lay at the heart of her troubles. Sophie Heawood recalls a difficult, funny, gifted and charming woman.
It is hard to believe that Amy Winehouse is dead. Yes, it was something people had speculated upon for some time. Yes, you might even suggest that if somebody takes that many hard drugs, drinks that much liquor and punishes their young flimsy body to that extent, death is not so much a tragedy as an inevitability. You can even point out that at 27, Amy’s death puts her in the morbid hall of rock'n'roll deaths about which conspiracy theorists love to ponder. Janis Joplin, Kurt Cobain, Jimi Hendrix and Jim Morrison all destroyed themselves at the same point in their lives - something that Cobain's mother described, after her son's passing, as “joining that stupid club”.
But the death of Amy Winehouse was not inevitable, and it is pretty hard not to think of it as tragic. Keith Richards has lived through such physical self-destruction to tell the tale. And so we hoped, hoped desperately, that Winehouse would too. Surprisingly, the tabloid reports were not unduly sensationalist - she really was that much of a mess.
She was sharp; had a way with words, as well as song. And, oh boy, the songs - the accolades, the awards and the artistic attention was all justified too. Back to Black, her second album, with its six Grammy nominations and five wins when she was only 24, changed the music scene for eve. Songs such as “You Know I’m No Good”, and “Love is a Losing Game” provide as good an insight into Amy’s life as any biography could offer.
It just isn't true that nobody offered her the help she needed. She just couldn't quite accept it. Her biggest hit, the endlessly catchy song “Rehab”, was not just a bunch of fun rhyming lyrics. When she sang “They tried to make me go to Rehab, and I said no, no, no,, she meant it - and that was written before her biggest successes and her worst excesses had even begun. There were many subsequent attempts to quit herself of drugs and booze for ever. She tried in the UK, she tried overseas. Her stays in these places never lasted long, because Winehouse's real problem was self-belief, an insecurity only compounded by the extraordinary worldwide success of Back to Black, which left her less sure of herself than ever before. — The Independent
But the death of Amy Winehouse was not inevitable, and it is pretty hard not to think of it as tragic. Keith Richards has lived through such physical self-destruction to tell the tale. And so we hoped, hoped desperately, that Winehouse would too. Surprisingly, the tabloid reports were not unduly sensationalist - she really was that much of a mess.
She was sharp; had a way with words, as well as song. And, oh boy, the songs - the accolades, the awards and the artistic attention was all justified too. Back to Black, her second album, with its six Grammy nominations and five wins when she was only 24, changed the music scene for eve. Songs such as “You Know I’m No Good”, and “Love is a Losing Game” provide as good an insight into Amy’s life as any biography could offer.
It just isn't true that nobody offered her the help she needed. She just couldn't quite accept it. Her biggest hit, the endlessly catchy song “Rehab”, was not just a bunch of fun rhyming lyrics. When she sang “They tried to make me go to Rehab, and I said no, no, no,, she meant it - and that was written before her biggest successes and her worst excesses had even begun. There were many subsequent attempts to quit herself of drugs and booze for ever. She tried in the UK, she tried overseas. Her stays in these places never lasted long, because Winehouse's real problem was self-belief, an insecurity only compounded by the extraordinary worldwide success of Back to Black, which left her less sure of herself than ever before. — The Independent
THE ‘27 CLUB’
Robert Johnson (Augt 16, 1938)Known as king of the blues and the grandfather of rock'n'roll to others. Died after drinking whiskey laced with strychnine.
Brian Jones (July 3, 1969)The Rolling Stones' guitarist was found drowned in his swimming pool. Some claimed suicide, others murder.
Jimi Hendrix (Sept 18, 1970)One of the greatest electric guitarists. Choked to death on his vomit after binging on red wine and taking sleeping pills.
Janis Joplin (Oct 4, 1970)Lead vocalist and songwriter for Big Brother and the Holding Co, the Kozmic Blues Band and Full Tilt Boogie Band. She died of a heroin overdose combined with excessive amounts of alcohol.
Jim Morrison (July 3, 1971)Lead singer in the Doors. Morrison mistook heroin for cocaine and suffered an overdose that triggered the heart failure given as the official cause of death.
Kurt Cobai ( April 5, 1994)Lead singer in Nirvana. Found dead at home with a shotgun wound to the head, after apparently taking his own life.
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