Tuesday, June 21, 2011

Is this the end for Amy Winehouse?

Posted Mon 20 Jun 2011 16:29 BST by Ben Gilbert in Behind The Music
It’s a headline we’ve grown used to seeing. The UK pop icon’s descent from number one star and world-beating singing sensation to alcohol and drug addled mess has gone on for so long that many obituaries have already been written for Amy Winehouse’s career.
However, after a prolonged period out of the media spotlight, supposedly ridding herself of the many demons that have hampered her since the multi-platinum success of 2006’s ‘Back To Black’, this weekend saw Amy hit a truly new low.
Her shambolic, much-publicised performance in Belgrade did not signal the resurrection of the singer’s prodigious talents, sealing the return of a talent capable of taking on Adele, who has prospered so spectacularly in her absence. Instead, it seems to confirm that she will never get anywhere near previous highs.

Winehouse was booed by fans, some of whom walked out after paying the equivalent of a week’s salary, during Saturday evening’s dismal display in Serbia's capital. Despite reportedly having recently left rehab to embark on a booze-free 12-date European tour, she seemed even more incoherent than ever.
After emerging an hour late and then falling over at the start of the 90-minute concert, Amy seemed bored and disinterested, throwing both her microphone and the mic stand to the floor in a concert more worthy of a Friday night’s karaoke at the Dog & Duck than a show-stopping turn before 20,000 people.
The Grammy-award winning singer, who apparently arrived at the venue sober, had been under strict instructions not to drink, with hotel staff under orders to remove alcohol from her room. A source said: “In the run-up to the show she was disappearing. By the time she got on stage she was on another planet.”
Numerous clips of the gig have since been posted on YouTube, with one fan writing: “She started a show and turned her back to public (btw, for most of us it was not that easy to give the money for ticket because of the economic situation in Serbia) and that was just the beginning of her disrespect and bizarre behaviour.
“She did not sang one song from beginning to the end. Some of them she didn't even tried to sing. Not a fan anymore,” said the posting. The disastrous gig at the city’s Kalemegdan Park has prompted a statement from her management team, confirming the cancellation of upcoming festival dates in Istanbul on Monday and in Athens on Wednesday.
It reads: “Despite feeling sure that she wanted to fulfil these commitments, she has agreed with management that she cannot perform to the best of her ability and will return home. She would like to apologize to fans expecting to see her at the shows but feels that this is the right thing to do.”
This latest, very public humiliation seems to underline the near total and very sad disintegration of Amy’s talents, certainly on the live stage. In recent months, it had seemed that the long-awaited follow-up to ‘Back To Black’ could finally be nearing completion.
However, her admission to London’s Priory clinic has thrown that into question once more. Speaking after her latest bout of treatment was revealed at the end of May, a source said: “She has finally finished the album and it's ready to go.
“They (Island Records) were just about to finalise a release date and then this happened. She is back in rehab for the foreseeable future so it is just a question of waiting and seeing now. But there is no way they can give a specific release date until they know when she is likely to be out.”
However, a new album can hardly be seen as an ultimate solution to Winehouse’s problems. If it does ever get released, will Amy be in a fit state to promote it, either in a UK tour or in the full glare of the British media? Is she now such damaged goods that people would rather stop having their time wasted and listen to Adele instead?

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