The young female singer who was being gobby about her peers long before Lily Allen had even heard of MySpace has been damn quiet recently. Yet three years on from the release of her debut album Frank, Amy Winehouse has returned.
And what a return it is. Rehab is fresh and funky, with a definite old-school, horn-laden, Motown atmosphere to it. Gone are the jazzy yet edgy ballads of the last album, and unveiled is a sleek, commercial yet very different sort of sound. Winehouse's voice is as terrific as ever - she's been away so long it's easy to forget what a superb singer she is - while the strident chorus of "they tried to make me go to rehab, but I said no, no, no" must surely signal a huge hit.
Last time around she seemed to garner more press attention than commercial success. If Rehab is anything to go by, that is just about to change in a very big way.
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