Amy Winehouse

[Ridha]

cremetangerine82 yes that is also used; Inna lillahi wa inna elaihi rajeoun (translation to English is as you said above) but also may he/she rest in peace. Most Facebook condolences of which there are an alarming amount these days will have both.

Will have to check out that YouTube link of Amy, whatever her demons she seemed v genuinely authentic and “dil phainkh” (throw heart) from whatever I saw her of in a way that Adele (who has a cultivated aiming for authenticity and real gal with the audience that doesn’t somehow ring true for me) for instance, doesn’t.

[cremetangerine82]

Those remarks are very kind, ridha. I'll be brutally candid (like Amy was) that her drinking and drug use (to deal with her stage fright, fame too fast and too soon, and discomfort in talking about herself in interviews) made her mean and physically violent, but otherwise the people who knew her repeatedly spoke of her selflessness and quick wit.

Also, Amy was absolutely robbed of a Grammy Album of the Year; I guess the RIAA board didn't want to reward a "tabloid train wreck" that they deliberated snubbed a win she definitely earned.

Amy Winehouse won big for her hit song "Rehab," but its parent album "Back to Black" also deserved recognition.
Back to Black was released on October 27, 2006. Universal Island Records Ltd.
Year: 2008, at the 50th Grammy Awards.
What beat it: River: The Joni Letters by Herbie Hancock
Yes, the Recording Academy's decision to reward Herbie Hancock for River: The Joni Letters in 2008 was so egregious that it warrants two separate critiques in this list. Graduation was a phenomenal piece of work, but the question of its legacy is divisive for West's fan base. The Mark Ronson-produced "Back to Black," on the other hand, is an undeniable, certified classic — and, in retrospect, Amy Winehouse's last chance to get the recognition she deserved. (She swept the other three main categories that year, and she deserved to sweep all four.) "The Grammys voting panel could not have known that Herbie would ultimately outlive her and that 'Back to Black' would become her final album," Dee Lockett noted for Vulture. "But they should've known then that while both albums were an homage to the past (Hancock was a Joni Mitchell covers album; Amy's a doo-wop and soul tribute though technically original work), they had different purposes. Amy's album proved her a once-in-a-generation talent, but Hancock's only reaffirmed the obvious: He's a legend," Lockett continued. "Except there are quite a few of his albums that do a better job of making that point. Amy would never have another."

She earned to win AOTY on her own merits, made history by being the first British artist to win five Grammies in a single (until Adele broke that record), the "we didn't know she was going to die young" is a weak argument: RIAA'S real reason(s) (not rewarding a "bad" woman and belatedly awarding two music legends) Her genuine excitement and humility, especially receiving Record of the Year from Tony Bennett, one of her idols, warmed my heart.

Speaking of Tony Bennett, the behind-the scenes of their duet of "Body and Soul", she was so nervous, berated herself to "get it right" repeatedly, and worried about "wasting" his time, which Mr. Bennett reassured her. She sounded great, especially after her "dad" Mitch said her voice was gone due to emphysema due to smoking crack cocaine in 2008. In the final version, she sounded fantastic, and reminded my mom (who had only heard "Rehab" before) of Billie Holiday (R.I.P., Lady Day).

P.S. - I never liked Adele because her "just a gal from North London" worked early in her career, but her recent actions and statements have taken the bloom off the rose for some of her most ardent fans.

P.P.S. - I re-listened to Back to Black during a car trip this week, and it hasn't aged a day. I fell in love again with the album and Amy's emotive and versatile voice.

P.P.P.S. - I'll start this by saying I LOVE Herbie Hancock and Joni Mitchell. I've listened to Herbie Hancock's River: The Joni Mitchel Letters three times and I liked it. The choices of songs eschews her biggest hits (except for "River", "Court and Spark", and "Both Sides Now"); I find Joni's jazzier work deeply underrated. I appreciate that Hancock and the other amazing instrumentalists (Wayne Shorter!) added some dissonance and over-blowing to avoid ear fatigue. but it doesn't escape the inoffensive coffee house background music sound (*coughNorahJonescough*). Sadly, I'll probably forget about this album in a week or two.

[Auroranorth]

Amy looks so nervous there, but sang just beautifully.

Herbie Hancock composed the score for Round Midnight, which IMO is the best jazz film to exist.

[cremetangerine82]

Feb 4, 2023 21:20:08 GMT -4 Auroranorth said:

Amy looks so nervous there, but sang just beautifully.

Herbie Hancock composed the score for Round Midnight, which IMO is the best jazz film to exist.

He should've won for that, not a covers album that is not his best work.

[Margo]

cremetangerine82, I agree with you about "Back to Black". It's a masterpiece, and Rehab is not even my favorite track on it. The tracks I love the most are "You Know I'm No Good" and "Love Is a Losing Game", and I can't even decide which one I like better.

ETA: I'm forgetting "Back to Black" the song. I like all 3 of these better than Rehab. Amy's sad songs are just so good. They touch me more than Adele's because of how flawed Amy is and how much the lyrics focus on that.

[cremetangerine82]

Feb 7, 2023 13:21:49 GMT -4 Margo said:

cremetangerine82 , I agree with you about "Back to Black". It's a masterpiece, and Rehab is not even my favorite track on it. The tracks I love the most are "You Know I'm No Good" and "Love Is a Losing Game", and I can't even decide which one I like better.

ETA: I'm forgetting "Back to Black" the song. I like all 3 of these better than Rehab. Amy's sad songs are just so good. They touch me more than Adele's because of how flawed Amy is and how much the lyrics focus on that.

Thank you! I love "Me and Mr. Jones" because of both the Billy Paul shout-out (R.I.P.) and my favorite phrase: "What kind of fuckery is this?!". That's why Adele's and Taylor Swift's music leave me cold; they seemed to only talk about their partners' flaws, but rarely own up to theirs. Amy was brutally honest enough to realize she is also part of the toxicity of her relationships, like in the aforementioned song. Yet the other two have at least one Grammy AOTY while Amy got shut out.