Before she even dropped her US debut, Back to Black on March 13th, London songstress Amy Winehouse sold out concerts across the country - just from being in New York. Say what you want about her, but that wasn't done on hype alone.

The 11-track album toys with falling in and out of love, lust, and reality. The emotions come through the raw and mature lyrics. When connected with the vintage 60's sound, a unique vibe is created. One not heard in music scene today. For example the title track which has a dark and bitter feel when communicating the emptiness of ending an affair - a theme continued on ballads, "Love Is A Losing Game" (when her vocals shine the most) and "Wake Up Alone."

The emotion shifts on the carefree reggae influenced track, "Just Friends," which has her investigating friends exploring their desires. She goes from that uncertainty to assurance with lines like "We need to find a time to just do the shit together/For it gets worse/I want to touch you." The song also highlights Winehouse's ability to design her songs to tell a story. "Me and Mr. Jones" is another example of that. The slow jam is reminiscent of an old school being sung by a jazz singer in a smoky club.

The up-tempo joints positively offset the album and shows off the production creativity of Mark Ronson and Salaam Remi. Lead single, "Rehab" takes on the media's obsession with Winehouse's rumored offstage antics. The distinct elements like the claps, snaps, and breaks give the song a gospel sound. Another fast jam to mention is "Tears Dry On Their Own," which has writing credits that include famous soul duo, Ashford and Simpson. It has a smooth groove to it and is very powerful and contagious. She gives brutal honesty in the form of superb lyrics.

"You Know I'm No Good" actually appears twice on this release - once with a contribution from Ghostface Killah. The song comes across quite humorous. After getting caught cheating, the answer Winehouse sings in her defense is the chorus - "I cheated myself like I knew I would/I told you I was trouble/You know that I'm no good." The horns give it a nice vibe. And the remix with Ghostface allows the song to take on another perspective.

Back to Black in its entirety speaks for itself. Oh, before I forget - wanted to mention that Winehouse also plays guitar on 3 songs. Her attitude and persona accentuate the vibe without overshadowing the talent. There's the curiosity of seeing if she'll live up to the chatter. Sure you can get caught up in the tabloid and image, but me personally - I just want to listen to chill and listen to some good music, and this qualifies as just that.


Deesha Dyer is a contributing writer. For more information about her and her work, please point your browser to the links below.

MYSPACE
BLOG