Amy Winehouse, One Year Later

From today's Toronto Star:

The beehive hairdo and dramatic eyes, the sultry, jazz-infused voice, the public battles with addiction and law enforcement.

One year after her tragic death, what remains of British retro-pop diva Amy Winehouse are the songs that brought her five Grammys and a plethora of powerful images and memories, of a talented rebel stalked by the tabloid press, haunted by fame and driven by self-destructive impulses.

Winehouse was often her own worst enemy, facing frequent battles in court for assault and drug use, with many unflattering images of her, disheveled and out of control, used to sell tabloids. The tragedy of her life was driven home again earlier this summer with the release of Mitch Winehouse’s well-regarded Amy, My Daughter, a memoir of a father’s struggle with an addicted, famous and famously troubled daughter.

“She (Winehouse) was a lightning rod for attention, whether by design or accident, because of her lifestyle. She would have been a magnet for that sort of thing even if she hadn’t been such a train wreck in real life,” said music journalist Alan Cross, host of radio show The Secret History of Rock.

Read more here.