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Eight and a half years ago, Amy Winehouse joined the "27-year-old club" of early-dead geniuses, but to this day, her influence has not diminished, and she has been influenced by everyone from Lady Gaga to Lana Del Rey. Adele, on the other hand, said in 2016: "I owe 90% of my career to her."
Text: Yang Zixuan Editor: Peach
Adele said, "Because of her, I picked up the guitar; because of her, I wrote my own song." The songs I've been able to get signed for are those that I've written myself – none of this would have happened without her. ”
Amy has had a huge impact on the music scene, but her short career has left little work, and she has released only two studio albums during her lifetime: "Frank" in 2003 and "Back To Black" in 2006.
Back To Black album cover 2006
Since her death in 2011, the record label hasn't overhyped Amy's treasure trove, probably because Amy didn't leave much behind, so when a commemorative collection called The Collection was released, it sounded like a big event.
So about The Collection, here's everything you need to know:
It does not contain any new music
When the posthumous film Lioness: Hidden Treasures was released in 2011, Amy's producer, Salayamu Remy, assured fans that it wasn't the "Tupac-esque approach" — the leek-cutting method in which record companies endlessly dug up "legacy" after rapper Tupac's death.
As it turns out, Lioness: Hidden Treasures is still Amy's only posthumous album, and while some extra treasures were included in the soundtrack of the 2015 Amy documentary, The Collection won't feature songs that were never released.
Perhaps for some good reason, Amy's treasures will continue to be sealed.
It is comprehensive, but not necessarily complete
In addition to Amy's slightly underrated debut album Frank, the flawless modern classic Back To Black and the posthumous Lioness, the commemorative box includes a full live performance recorded in 2007, which was previously released as a DVD, I Told You I Was Trouble: Live in London, but this time on CD and vinyl.
The Collection also features 15 remixed pieces from the likes of Hot Chip, Mylo and MJ Cole. If you're a big Amy fan, you've probably collected it before, but for the more popular average music fan, these remastered versions are sure to be a lot of fun.
But at the same time, it also means that "The Collection" does not completely contain all the works that Amy has ever recorded, and if you want to own her B-side songs, you have to buy a set of "The Singles Collection" - that is also a set of commemorative boxes, which will be released (the so-called "one fish, two eats" hahaha).
In addition, Amy's various BBC recordings did not appear in This Collection, and those songs were included in the previous collection of posthumous works.
Other notable omissions include Amy's "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus," a song that often appears in the "Most Classic Christmas Song Playlist," though you can easily find it online.
The remix version is actually well worth listening to
As you might expect, the various remix versions offered here still maintain a fair degree of restraint and respect — even when Amy was still alive, no one dared to alter Amy's voice. Thankfully, that doesn't mean these remixes are dull and boring.
Mylo was pleased with the industrial revamp of Fuck Me Pumps; while in 2000 independent musician Rumble Strips made a dramatic Ska-style take on Back To Black.
But 13 years after helping Amy break into the U.S. market, Jay-Z's Rehab remix sounds a little scary today, first naming the likes of Britney, Whitney Houston, and Bobby Brown, and then uttering the puzzling lyrics: "I'm-a OD 'til I'm in peace like Anna Nicole."
The live album is also worth revisiting
The live album in the compilation was recorded in May 2007 in Shepherd's Jungle Empire, which was not the peak of Amy's career, and although her voice is still very good and her band is skilled, her energy level has declined.
More importantly, the tour had been going on for a few months, and she was already a little tired. Later that year, it was the disastrous British tour, with the audience leaving halfway through, and Amy almost too drunk to take the stage.
Live Nation, the show's initiator, eventually had to scale back the tour schedule, blaming it on "the strict demands involved in the tour and the intense emotional pressure Amy has endured in recent weeks." ”
Two authentic albums are still incredible
Even the greatest artists attribute their career legacies to a few iconic songs, for Amy, "Valerie" is like a disco at a wedding; in "Rehab" the producers want to highlight her sharp side; and "Back To Black", which alludes to her tragic death— these are her masterpieces.
Although her debut jazz album Frank threw Amy into a recording studio full of professional musicians, she still sparkled with her natural voice.
After all, who else can write a song as clever as "I Heard Love Is Blind," in which she admits that she only cheated because the opportunity came, and she shrugged and sang, "Baby, you're not there, I was thinking about you when I came." ”
"Back To Black" is number 12 on the UK's best-selling album of all time, and perhaps over time people have become familiar enough with it, but somehow, the album has always maintained a shocking temperament.
When Amy shows off her killer skills in Me & Mr. Jones: "What the hell is this, you made me miss Out on Lick Rick's tour," it makes one realize that she's the kind of artist who's so rare that you can't help but want to stop.
Maybe this commemorative box doesn't add anything new to Amy's saga, but it will definitely make you admire her genius again.
Ref：
https://www.nme.com/blogs/new-amy-winehouse-boxset-the-collection-review-2826845