Bondfire in the rain

Have you ever seen so many people in complete shock over a story about which no one seems surprised?

The tragic and premature, but almost inevitable death of singer/songwriter Amy Winehouse puts her in the eternal company of some of the most heralded young musicians in history. Another prodigious talent joins the 27 club* of Kurt Cobain, Janis Joplin, Jim Morrison, Jimi Hendrix and others whose potential will forever remain a mystery.

As I write this, the cause of her death is being classified by the media as "unexplained", but I don't need a medical degree to know that drug and alcohol abuse played a headlining role.

The London Police issued a statement saying that to assume Winehouse's death was drug-related, is inappropriate.

Say what?

Hey, unless the investigation determines that she was killed in a terrorist attack, or viciously mauled to death by one of Siegfried & Roy 's rogue Bengal tigers, I defy anyone to hold a press conference with a straight face, and claim that substance abuse was not at the root of the cause.

Then again, the first stage of grieving is denial.

When Jimi Hendrix died, the reports indicated that he "drowned in his own vomit, consisting mostly of red wine." It also showed that in addition to the various substances dancing through his system, were about 10 sleeping pills, which may have led to his inability to awaken and save himself.

Get the point?

Herein lies the sadness.

The young woman whose biggest hit stated, "They tried to make me go to rehab, but I said, "No,no,no."", did eventually go to rehab kicking and screaming, but it just didn't take. More importantly, like so many brilliant artists, there was something about all the success that she simply was not ready to deal with.

Regardless of those facts, we will remember her more for her contribution to music, than for her human flaws.

There is little I can add that hasn't already been said about Winehouse's exceptional talent, so I bow my head respectfully, and refer back to my own words.

These are a couple of things I have stated about Amy over the last couple of years:

Amy Winehouse: "Another young white brit who grew up listening to Al Green, Etta James, and Donny Hathaway. The only thing I can say about her is that I believed everything she has sung so far. There is soul in her lyrics and her singing. I am a fan, and can only hope that she can follow it up with something equally worthy of my admiration, but even if she doesn't, I'll always have albums Back To Black and Frank. Thank you for that, Amy." April 29th, 2010 http://www.metronews.ca/toronto/blog/post/514966

"Best New Artist" Grammy 2008 - Amy Winehouse (Runners up - Feist, Taylor Swift): I heard someone say, "Where?", and that's a legitimate question. She's the Haley's Comet of great artists, but no one disputes the quality of the material she gave us. At least we now know that rumors of her cohabitation with Osama Bin Laden were false. May 8th, 2011 http://www.metronews.ca/toronto/blog/post/854543

We all know what they say about the stars that burn brightest, and though we wanted to see so much more of that glow, we will have to content ourselves with what she was able to leave behind.

Thankfully, her legacy is still greater than most of us could ever hope to bequeath.

I implore you all to remember her for that.

Find your peace, little Amy. Amen.

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*All died at age 27.