{"id":6608,"date":"2011-07-25T09:00:32","date_gmt":"2011-07-25T08:00:32","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.badreputation.org.uk\/?p=6608"},"modified":"2011-07-25T09:00:32","modified_gmt":"2011-07-25T08:00:32","slug":"the-importance-of-being-amy-amy-jade-winehouse-1983-2011","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/badreputation.org.uk\/2011\/07\/25\/the-importance-of-being-amy-amy-jade-winehouse-1983-2011\/","title":{"rendered":"The
Importance of Being Amy: Amy Jade Winehouse,
1983-2011."},"content":{"rendered":"
<p>
  <span class=\"embed-youtube\" style=\"text-align:center; display:
  block;\"><iframe
    class="youtube-player"
    width="640"
    height="360"
    src="https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/CajpSeUvCPY?version=3&#038;rel=1&#038;showsearch=0&#038;showinfo=1&#038;iv_load_policy=1&#038;fs=1&#038;hl=en-US&#038;autohide=2&#038;wmode=transparent"
    allowfullscreen="true"
    style="border: 0"
    sandbox="allow-scripts allow-same-origin allow-popups allow-presentation"
    ><\/iframe><\/span><\/p>\n
    <p>
      <a href=\"http:\/\/www.amywinehouse.com\/\" target=\"_blank\">Amy
      Winehouse<\/a>, for all the typically Machiavellian marketing behind her
      early development and signing, was an atypical star to launch, even before
      the drink, drugs, bisexuality, tattoos and self-harm and sprawling
      domestic disharmony on the streets of Camden set in. 2003 was a year of
      slickly manufactured, crowdpleasing pop anthems spawned by reality tv or
      established industry hit machines: Britney, Christina, Avril,
      Beyonc\u00e9, Sugababes, Rachel Stevens, Girls Aloud. In this climate,
      Winehouse&#8217;s debut
      <strong
        >Frank<\/strong>, an engagingly personal and subtly powerful blend of
        jazz, soul, dub and heavy drinking, stood out as an album of grit among
        gloss, accomplished and ambitious, recalling the eclectic and impeccably
        imperious style of Dinah Washington and Nina Simone.<\/p>\n
        <p>
          Equally, despite her status as a product of the Sylvia Young and Brit
          stage schools, Winehouse was hardly manufactured, having been a
          genuinely talented singer, guitarist and songwriter from a young age.
          The lyrics she produced and her delivery of them were cool, critical
          and cynical \u2013 <a
          href=\"http:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=iVaqQe3V498\"
          target=\"_blank\">&#8216;Fuck Me Pumps&#8217;<\/a> is a punchily sung
          and scathing dismissal of the dominant gold-digging paradigm. Her
          definitive, self-mythologising single <a
          href=\"http:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=5LTPRJqt2z4\"
          target=\"_blank\">&#8216;Rehab&#8217;<\/a>, despite its
          refrain&#8217;s predictable propensity to generate tasteless jokes and
          mawkish headlines in the wake of her death, is a staggering song of
          self-awareness, wiped clean of messy emoting or self-pity and
          resolutely swerving any courting of sorrow or sympathy. Its
          protagonist does not bewail her fate in the clasp of addiction but
          makes her refusal to be pathologised an active and empowering choice
          \u2013 &#8216;no, no, no&#8217; means no. Like much of
          Winehouse&#8217;s material, the song addresses and analyses addiction,
          dependency, depression and the complexities of female independence
          with a wry, arch, clear-eyed and mocking wit that could have leavened
          the weight of many a confessional memoir.<\/p>\n
        </p>
        <p>
          To evaluate Winehouse&#8217;s career as a story of potential
          unfulfilled, as many obituaries are doing, is to ignore the quality of
          second album
          <strong
            >Back to Black<\/strong>, with its clutch of BRITs, Grammys and Ivor
            Novellos, as well as the sheer depth of its influence.
            Winehouse&#8217;s international success began a scramble by record
            companies to scrounge up similar eclectic and experimental female
            artists. It is perhaps unfortunate that all this process actually
            got us was an indistinguishable female-centred quirk-quake comprised
            of <a
            href=\"http:\/\/entertainment.timesonline.co.uk\/tol\/arts_and_entertainment\/music\/article6725104.ece\"
            target=\"_blank\">Little Pixie Roux and the Machine for Lashes<\/a>,
            as well as current favourites Adele and Duffy \u2013 both
            well-behaved, clean and immaculately blue-eyed biters of a vintage
            musical style which Winehouse had almost singlehandedly
            reinvigorated. For all their undoubted technical ability, such
            singers purvey blandly perfect reproductions of retro soul, whereas
            Winehouse was able to inhabit past musical modes like she wore her
            Ronettes-inspired beehive, investing them with something
            contemporary and compelling through that awesome, syrupy, rolling
            contralto. Her aesthetic \u2013 glamorously grubby, leonine and
            Cleopatra-eyed \u2013 was similarly inimitable and atypical. Even
            Lady Gaga <a
            href=\"http:\/\/www.popeater.com\/2009\/03\/16\/lady-gaga-loves-strange-girls-like-amy-winehouse\/\"
            target=\"_blank\">credited <\/a>Winehouse with smoothing the path to
            mainstream success for other &#8216;strange girls&#8217;.<\/p>\n
            <p>
              The tributes to Amy Winehouse clotting the front pages this past
              weekend reflect the other aspect of her fame: the purpose she
              served as media cipher. The narrative into which she was coralled
              \u2013 discovered, lauded, rewarded, exploited, drug-ravaged and
              wrung dry by the cynics and sycophants around her \u2013 is a
              traditional trajectory for women in the public eye, from Marilyn
              to Britney. Mixed in with the <a
              href=\"http:\/\/www.guardian.co.uk\/commentisfree\/2009\/may\/06\/amy-winehouse-jean-rhys-addiction\"
              target=\"_blank\">clich\u00e9s <\/a>of the demon-driven artist,
              Winehouse&#8217;s dedication to the life of a good-time girl
              provided an obvious temptation for the press to shoehorn the
              shapeless and slippery business of living into a rigid mould of
              Meaning, to make her a signifier of the plagues afflicting modern
              womanhood &#8211; not all of modern womanhood, of course, just
              those of us susceptible to the lure of urban independence and its
              giddy, glittering thrills.<\/p>\n
            </p>
            <p>
              There is an obvious irony in the fact that the media&#8217;s very
              concentration on her as a reliably scandalous page-filler embedded
              her in public consciousness as not an artist but a cautionary tale
              of misjudged relationships and worse-judged substance indulgence,
              eliciting a weird and volatile mixture of compassion and contempt.
              There was, too, a ghoulish and lascivious edge to public concern
              over Winehouse &#8211; as there was, back in the day, over
              Courtney Love and, latterly, Britney Spears &#8211; which is
              seldom present in attitudes to their male counterparts. The same
              organs which engorged themselves with pictures of Winehouse in her
              various stages of decline, distress and debauchery are continuing
              to objectify and sensationalise her as, inevitably, a
              &#8216;brilliant but troubled&#8217; combination of tragic loss
              and dreadful warning. She deserves a better class of
              memorialist.<\/p>\n
            </p>
            <p>
              <span class=\"embed-youtube\" style=\"text-align:center; display:
              block;\"><iframe
                class="youtube-player"
                width="640"
                height="360"
                src="https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/ojdbDYahiCQ?version=3&#038;rel=1&#038;showsearch=0&#038;showinfo=1&#038;iv_load_policy=1&#038;fs=1&#038;hl=en-US&#038;autohide=2&#038;wmode=transparent"
                allowfullscreen="true"
                style="border: 0"
                sandbox="allow-scripts allow-same-origin allow-popups allow-presentation"
                ><\/iframe><\/span> <\/p>\n
                <p>*<\/p>\n</p>
                <p>
                  Rhian Jones also blogs at <a
                  href=\"http:\/\/velvetcoalmine.wordpress.com\">Velvet
                  Coalmine<\/a>.<\/p>\n<div class=\"sharedaddy
                  sd-sharing-enabled\"><div class=\"robots-nocontent sd-block
                  sd-social sd-social-icon-text sd-sharing\"><div
                  class=\"sd-content\">
                </p>
                <ul>
                  <li class=\"share-twitter\"><a rel=\"nofollow noopener
                  noreferrer\" data-shared=\"sharing-twitter-6608\"
                  class=\"share-twitter sd-button share-icon\"
                  href=\"https:\/\/badreputation.org.uk\/2011\/07\/25\/the-importance-of-being-amy-amy-jade-winehouse-1983-2011\/?share=twitter\"
                  target=\"_blank\" title=\"Click to share on Twitter\"><span
                    >Twitter<\/span><\/a><\/li><li class=\"share-facebook\"><a
                    rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\"
                    data-shared=\"sharing-facebook-6608\" class=\"share-facebook
                    sd-button share-icon\"
                    href=\"https:\/\/badreputation.org.uk\/2011\/07\/25\/the-importance-of-being-amy-amy-jade-winehouse-1983-2011\/?share=facebook\"
                    target=\"_blank\" title=\"Click to share on Facebook\"><span
                      >Facebook<\/span><\/a><\/li><li class=\"share-reddit\"><a
                      rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\" data-shared=\"\"
                      class=\"share-reddit sd-button share-icon\"
                      href=\"https:\/\/badreputation.org.uk\/2011\/07\/25\/the-importance-of-being-amy-amy-jade-winehouse-1983-2011\/?share=reddit\"
                      target=\"_blank\" title=\"Click to share on Reddit\"><span
                        >Reddit<\/span><\/a><\/li><li class=\"share-tumblr\"><a
                        rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\" data-shared=\"\"
                        class=\"share-tumblr sd-button share-icon\"
                        href=\"https:\/\/badreputation.org.uk\/2011\/07\/25\/the-importance-of-being-amy-amy-jade-winehouse-1983-2011\/?share=tumblr\"
                        target=\"_blank\" title=\"Click to share on
                        Tumblr\"><span
                          >Tumblr<\/span><\/a><\/li>
                          <li>
                            <a href=\"#\" class=\"sharing-anchor sd-button
                            share-more\"><span
                              >More<\/span><\/a><\/li><li
                              class=\"share-end\"><\/li><\/ul><div
                              class=\"sharing-hidden\"><div class=\"inner\"
                              style=\"display: none;\">
                              <ul>
                                <li class=\"share-linkedin\"><a rel=\"nofollow
                                noopener noreferrer\"
                                data-shared=\"sharing-linkedin-6608\"
                                class=\"share-linkedin sd-button share-icon\"
                                href=\"https:\/\/badreputation.org.uk\/2011\/07\/25\/the-importance-of-being-amy-amy-jade-winehouse-1983-2011\/?share=linkedin\"
                                target=\"_blank\" title=\"Click to share on
                                LinkedIn\"><span
                                  >LinkedIn<\/span><\/a><\/li><li
                                  class=\"share-email\"><a rel=\"nofollow
                                  noopener noreferrer\" data-shared=\"\"
                                  class=\"share-email sd-button share-icon\"
                                  href=\"https:\/\/badreputation.org.uk\/2011\/07\/25\/the-importance-of-being-amy-amy-jade-winehouse-1983-2011\/?share=email\"
                                  target=\"_blank\" title=\"Click to email this
                                  to a friend\"><span
                                    >Email<\/span><\/a><\/li><li
                                    class=\"share-end\"><\/li><li
                                    class=\"share-print\"><a rel=\"nofollow
                                    noopener noreferrer\" data-shared=\"\"
                                    class=\"share-print sd-button share-icon\"
                                    href=\"https:\/\/badreputation.org.uk\/2011\/07\/25\/the-importance-of-being-amy-amy-jade-winehouse-1983-2011\/\"
                                    target=\"_blank\" title=\"Click to
                                    print\"><span
                                      >Print<\/span><\/a><\/li><li
                                      class=\"share-end\"><\/li><\/ul><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
                                      <p>
                                        She deserves a better class of
                                        memorialist.<\/p>\n<div
                                        class=\"sharedaddy
                                        sd-sharing-enabled\"><div
                                        class=\"robots-nocontent sd-block
                                        sd-social sd-social-icon-text
                                        sd-sharing\"><div class=\"sd-content\">
                                      </p>
                                      <ul>
                                        <li class=\"share-twitter\"><a
                                        rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\"
                                        data-shared=\"sharing-twitter-6608\"
                                        class=\"share-twitter sd-button
                                        share-icon\"
                                        href=\"https:\/\/badreputation.org.uk\/2011\/07\/25\/the-importance-of-being-amy-amy-jade-winehouse-1983-2011\/?share=twitter\"
                                        target=\"_blank\" title=\"Click to share
                                        on Twitter\"><span
                                          >Twitter<\/span><\/a><\/li><li
                                          class=\"share-facebook\"><a
                                          rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\"
                                          data-shared=\"sharing-facebook-6608\"
                                          class=\"share-facebook sd-button
                                          share-icon\"
                                          href=\"https:\/\/badreputation.org.uk\/2011\/07\/25\/the-importance-of-being-amy-amy-jade-winehouse-1983-2011\/?share=facebook\"
                                          target=\"_blank\" title=\"Click to
                                          share on Facebook\"><span
                                            >Facebook<\/span><\/a><\/li><li
                                            class=\"share-reddit\"><a
                                            rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\"
                                            data-shared=\"\"
                                            class=\"share-reddit sd-button
                                            share-icon\"
                                            href=\"https:\/\/badreputation.org.uk\/2011\/07\/25\/the-importance-of-being-amy-amy-jade-winehouse-1983-2011\/?share=reddit\"
                                            target=\"_blank\" title=\"Click to
                                            share on Reddit\"><span
                                              >Reddit<\/span><\/a><\/li><li
                                              class=\"share-tumblr\"><a
                                              rel=\"nofollow noopener
                                              noreferrer\" data-shared=\"\"
                                              class=\"share-tumblr sd-button
                                              share-icon\"
                                              href=\"https:\/\/badreputation.org.uk\/2011\/07\/25\/the-importance-of-being-amy-amy-jade-winehouse-1983-2011\/?share=tumblr\"
                                              target=\"_blank\" title=\"Click to
                                              share on Tumblr\"><span
                                                >Tumblr<\/span><\/a><\/li>
                                                <li>
                                                  <a href=\"#\"
                                                  class=\"sharing-anchor
                                                  sd-button share-more\"><span
                                                    >More<\/span><\/a><\/li><li
                                                    class=\"share-end\"><\/li><\/ul><div
                                                    class=\"sharing-hidden\"><div
                                                    class=\"inner\"
                                                    style=\"display: none;\">
                                                    <ul>
                                                      <li
                                                      class=\"share-linkedin\"><a
                                                      rel=\"nofollow noopener
                                                      noreferrer\"
                                                      data-shared=\"sharing-linkedin-6608\"
                                                      class=\"share-linkedin
                                                      sd-button share-icon\"
                                                      href=\"https:\/\/badreputation.org.uk\/2011\/07\/25\/the-importance-of-being-amy-amy-jade-winehouse-1983-2011\/?share=linkedin\"
                                                      target=\"_blank\"
                                                      title=\"Click to share on
                                                      LinkedIn\"><span
                                                        >LinkedIn<\/span><\/a><\/li><li
                                                        class=\"share-email\"><a
                                                        rel=\"nofollow noopener
                                                        noreferrer\"
                                                        data-shared=\"\"
                                                        class=\"share-email
                                                        sd-button share-icon\"
                                                        href=\"https:\/\/badreputation.org.uk\/2011\/07\/25\/the-importance-of-being-amy-amy-jade-winehouse-1983-2011\/?share=email\"
                                                        target=\"_blank\"
                                                        title=\"Click to email
                                                        this to a friend\"><span
                                                          >Email<\/span><\/a><\/li><li
                                                          class=\"share-end\"><\/li><li
                                                          class=\"share-print\"><a
                                                          rel=\"nofollow
                                                          noopener noreferrer\"
                                                          data-shared=\"\"
                                                          class=\"share-print
                                                          sd-button share-icon\"
                                                          href=\"https:\/\/badreputation.org.uk\/2011\/07\/25\/the-importance-of-being-amy-amy-jade-winehouse-1983-2011\/\"
                                                          target=\"_blank\"
                                                          title=\"Click to
                                                          print\"><span
                                                            >Print<\/span><\/a><\/li><li
                                                            class=\"share-end\"><\/li><\/ul><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>","protected":false},"author":13,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"spay_email":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false},"categories":[11],"tags":[87,166,304,382,431,788,852,1071,1440,1444,1525,1661,1675,1744,1848,2113,2146,2260,2277,2279,2716,3005,3046,3386],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p2xLWb-1IA","jetpack-related-posts":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/badreputation.org.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6608"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/badreputation.org.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/badreputation.org.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/badreputation.org.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/13"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/badreputation.org.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6608"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/badreputation.org.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6608\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/badreputation.org.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6608"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/badreputation.org.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6608"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/badreputation.org.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6608"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}</span
                                                          ></span
                                                        ></span
                                                      >
                                                    </ul></span
                                                  >
                                                </li></span
                                              ></span
                                            ></span
                                          ></span
                                        >
                                      </ul></span
                                    ></span
                                  ></span
                                >
                              </ul></span
                            >
                          </li></span
                        ></span
                      ></span
                    ></span
                  >
                </ul></iframe
              >
            </p></strong
          >
        </p></strong
      >
    </p></iframe
  >
</p>