Amy Jade Winehouse - September 14, 1983 - July 23, 2011

Let me say first off the hop, I am not nor have I ever been an Amy Winehouse fan. And I'm not about to be one of those people who suddenly loves her now that she has passed.  I didn't "get" her. At all. And if I'm to be 100% honest she looked and behaved like a train wreck looking for a place to happen. HOWEVER, she was a human being that people (her family, her friends, and her fans) cared for. To be honest it sickens me that people are taking the stance of "She got what she deserved" or "She had it coming". No she didn't. It's not like she was Charlie Manson, Bin Ladin or Hitler for fuck sakes. She was a troubled, tortured woman who lost her battle with her demons. Just like many others before her, and it's very...very sad.

Billy Bragg noted on Twitter today -- "It's not just age that Hendrix, Jones, Joplin, Morrison, Cobain & Amy have in common - it's drug abuse, sadly". And I think that's very true. They all lost the battle with their demons and succumbed to the same fate and end. And to be honest, it doesn't matter if she OD'd accidentally or if she killed herself by OD or what have you. I mean yes, I suspect it may have been drug related or exacerbated by the use, but not necessarily. But sadly, in the eyes of the public that is what is assumed. She could JUST have easily had some sort of tragic slip and fall accident but some jackhole somewhere will of course say "well she must have been strung out and high" even if she wasn't. Who knows at this point. Maybe she was, maybe she wasn't. Maybe we'll never know. But who are you to judge?

To someone, somewhere she was a daughter, niece, granddaughter, sister, lover or friend. And how dare these people take it upon themselves to attempt to foreshadow her death and their tragic loss with assumptions and venomous words? The tragedy of the loss of a loved one is pain unlike any other. And I cannot stand that people would behave in such a manner.

Nick Rhodes blogged today about how he was saddened by Amy's passing and how she had touched his and John's life in her music and her performance that they had attended together. He also noted that she had been a "Soundtrack for a period". Mark Ronson (record producer to both Duran and Amy Winehouse) noted how he had "lost his soulmate". And my heart breaks for their loss.

I didn't "get" Amy Winehouse's music. But others that I "get", respect, idolize, and love; did. And for them, I am saddened. For them, I mourn her passing. For them, and for Amy...a fellow human being.

One Last Glimpse,

~K