Proper British Lady, Amy Winehouse has been going from strength to strength over the past couple of years. Arriving with phenomenal album Frank in 2003, she represented just the right mixture of alternative jazz, soul, and pop to be an underground hit. Now fully propelled into the mainstream with new album Back To Black, can Ms Winehouse still hold her own?
One thing that is so likeable about Amy Winehouse is that she is not a media darling. Softly lamenting "I told you I was trouble" on the new single You Know I'm No Good, she is, in effect, refusing to apologise to the self-appointed preservers of morality (otherwise known as the press) for her stints in rehab and her general bad behaviour. And I love her for it.
Easily one of the most talented British singers performing today, Amy's soulful and meandering voice has a timeless quality to it. Couple this with her knack for being paired up with sensational jazz backing bands, and you have an act which is a world away from other pre-packaged, so-called 'soul' singers. Mariah Carey she most certainly is not.
The single itself is classic Amy, think of a Do Me Good, or October Song kind of feeling. She doesn't unleash the full explosive force of her vocal chords, but she doesn't need to, we know its there, resonating in the background. Amy, Amy, Amy you're set to take over the world.