I’m not sure what to think. It’s ghoulish and it’s morbid and it’s bitter.
The woman who sang “Rehab,” a defiant paean against recovery, has died of a possible drug overdose. Singer Amy Winehouse was 27.
She burst onto the scene with a mixture of Motown and Stax / Volt charm, her hair and makeup a tribute to the Ronettes and the Crystals. Her songs were blunt and pointed, with lyrics sharing both defiance and vulnerability.
And through it all, a tortured soul who appeared in more issues of News of the World than in Billboard. The woman earned five Grammy awards; she also developed an addition to cocaine and to heroin; to ecstasy and to a dozen other drugs.
And now she’s a member of the 27 Club, a musical fraternity of great renown and abbreviated potential. Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Jim Morrison, Kurt Cobain and Brian Jones all died without reaching their 28th birthday.
It’s strange – at one point we saw Amy Winehouse on MTV, her tattooed, lithe body crooning to “You Know I’m No Good” and “Rehab” and other tracks. And now she’s a statistic.
Just another rock and roll death.
Just another statistic.
This isn’t right. It probably never will be right. Their careers take off like shooting stars across the sky – and then they burn away even quicker.
Rest in peace, Amy Winehouse. Such potential, destroyed by demons that were unfortunately stronger than your will power to survive.
Chuck The Writer 
Definitely disappointing news; you can’t deny her musical talent, that is for sure. Today was the first time i’d ever heard of the 27 Club, I can’t believe all of the things these people accomplished at such a young age! I’m 27 and it blows my mind.
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I can name songs by Morrison, Joplin, Cobain, Hendrix, and Jones, but not one by Amy Winehouse.
To be frank Chuck, while I have heard and read MOUNTAINS of news stories about Amy Winehouse, I have never, ever, heard one of her songs. Not one. And yes, I do listen to the radio.
Drug addiction is a terrible vise that grabs ahold of you and doesn’t let go unless you pry it’s grip off of you. Winehouse’s drug addiction, and purported mental issues, have defined her. I suspect they were encouraged by the industry who sees rehab as just another way to raise a celebrity’s profile.
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Oh, Jango, you dunno what you’re missing. Check youtube for her singing “Valerie”- great starting point.
Chuck, I hated how inevitable it seemed. And then I think about Keith Richard STILL being alive and I’m blown away. Not sure what the difference is/ was- maybe her tiny little body just couldn’t take as much abuse. Who knows?
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