“The Girl Done Good” takes us into the world of Amy’s career to date. Drawing on rare and classic performances, exclusive interviews, lengthy contributions from friends, colleagues, journalists and experts, and a host of other features, this DVD is a unique insight into the music, career and life of a cultural icon. In an age when Z list celebrities garner more media attention than the truly gifted, Amy Winehouse is an anomaly, a woman of such extraordinary flair it beggars belief and a dream for the tabloids, all rolled into one. So while many of her chart topping contemporaries build here today gone tomorrow careers of little substance, Amy’s appeal is genuine, based on talent with a capital T.
We are pleased to present this incredible documentary about the contributions of the United Kingdom to the world of soul. From the 60s to today, this series explores the richness that is soul music. Enjoy as we did.
About Soul Britannia from BBC: Soul Britannia is a major new music series that examines the dynamic impact of black American and Caribbean sounds on British music – and on the very fabric of our society. From the 1950s to the present day, Soul Britannia investigates vinyl obsessions, Soul dancing, imitation, innovation – and much more. Series Producer/Director: Jeremy Marre
Episode 1: I Feel Good
With soul as its guiding light, the first film tracks the extraordinary musical changes that post-war Britain experienced. After the staid, uptight 1950s, the UK blossomed into an all-night, neon-lit soul-athon. From groovy Soho basements to “Ready Steady Go” TV specials, the music rocked the nation through the 1960s…
The first film in the series examines how these sounds seeped into our culture via imported US vinyl, the music West Indian immigrants brought with them and the electric performances of touring American soul bands. Our traditional reserve was soon broken down. In fact, the impact on the British – from London night spots to Welsh valleys, Newcastle music halls to the Belfast docks – was quite devastating. And it made bright young things like Georgie Fame, Eric Burdon and Van Morrison feel extremely good, permeating their own musical output.
The growing mass of Sixties Mods also embraced black music and helped popularize transatlantic sounds in the UK. They championed former American GI, Geno Washington, and Jamaican expatriate, Jimmy James, who became our very own soul stars. Dusty Springfield, too, dominated the charts and disseminated her love of Motown across the UK via TV specials.
As the Sixties progressed, soul moved from the British underground into mainstream society, becoming a meeting point for black and white, a catalyst for cultural and sexual exchanges. This passion for Afro-American and Caribbean music – and our interpretation of them – created a fertile bed out of which an original British soul sound would grow in the 1970s and beyond.
Key Artists featured in this episode include Elton John, Van Morrison, Tom Jones, Solomon Burke, Mick Hucknall, Eric Burdon, Sam Moore, Georgie Fame, Jimmy James, Geno Washington, and Julie Driscoll.
Episode 2: Soul Rebels
The second film in the Soul Britannia series moves from the heady go-go nights of the Sixties to the more complex racial and musical times of the Seventies and Eighties…
Although black American and Caribbean sounds and style became increasingly evident in our society, the British desire for the rare, the obscure and the downright soulful continued with the same intensity.
Amidst the dreariness of north England, white working class youth reinvented their lives at Northern Soul all-nighters, dancing to forgotten black American soul singles from the 1960s. Down South, as Mods metamorphosed into skinheads, this cult focused more on Caribbean sounds – ska, rocksteady and reggae. They jerked to these itchy Jamaican rhythms in youth clubs from Catford to Croydon, Dagenham to Deptford.
But it wasn’t just the fans who sought out the new, the fresh and the vital. UK musicians were now breaking away from the imitative British soul sounds of the 1960s to create startling music of their own. Cymande, an 8-piece band of West Indian immigrants, mixed reggae and funk with breathtaking originality – but the British soul public couldn’t handle it coming from the UK. Like them, the Scottish Average White Band also achieved their greatest triumphs in the States. It was the Real Thing whose huge number one classic, “You To Me Are Everything,” over the summer of ’76, showed the British public that indigenous soul was now a major contender.
But the apolitical strains of that hit were soon drowned out by the rioting at 1976′s Notting Hill Carnival. As race relations intensified in the second half of the 1970s, British Jamaican music reflected this. UK sound systems criticized Babylon the oppressor. Even the Clash got a reggae fix and threw a rude boy pose. Although the sweet soulful sounds of Lovers Rock emerged as an antidote to the racial politics, up in Coventry the Specials decided to go back to go forward – mixing Sixties ska with a punk attitude to create the multi-racial 2-Tone phenomenon.
In the early ’80s, soulfulness also surfaced with increasing regularity in great British pop bands – Dexys, Culture Club, Simply Red – whose lead singers had thrived on black music during their teens. Simultaneously, UK soul acts like Eddy Grant, Imagination and Loose Ends grew in originality and popularity as they capitalized on the struggles of their predecessors.
But into Britain’s growing mid-1980s racial melting pot, a new technology and fresh musical culture – hip-hop – was about to burst. It would change the sound of British soul forever, allowing us to attain unprecedented, innovative heights and achieve a global reputation.
Key Artists featured in this episode include Pete Townshend, Paul Weller, Boy George, Kevin Rowland, Mick Hucknall, Lee John and Beverley Knight.
Episode 3: Keep on Movin’
Soul was in a state of flux in the mid-1980′s. British pop-soul was certainly growing into a global force: Sade conquered the world’s coffee tables and solo George Michael demonstrated a far deeper understanding of R & B than was ever expected from a man last seen in tight shorts…
But the majority of ’80s soul was too slick and all rather “Miami Vice.” What happened to the passion, the sugar-sweet rawness? In a classic British move, we looked back to move forwards. At Jazzie B’s “Africa Centre,” Barrie K Sharpe’s “Cat In The Hat” and illegal London warehouse parties, a multi-racial crowd shook to black American funk & soul sounds from the late ’60s and early ’70s. Similar to Northern Soul a decade earlier, “rare groove” was all about fetishizing vinyl and grooving to undiscovered classics.
Out of this subterranean scene climbed a host of fresh UK talent. Principally, it was Soul II Soul who mixed sound system culture with hip-hop, soul and British pride. The world was theirs, although, the Brit Awards refused to acknowledge their global success.
Other funky multi-racial acts followed in Soul II Soul’s wake – the Brand New Heavies and Young Disciples. Like these bands, Jamiroquai’s Jay Kay was also part of the rare groove scene. Drawing on the Seventies music of Stevie Wonder and Roy Ayers he created a creamy soul-funk sound that captivated millions. M-People also brought soulfulness to the masses with tracks like “Moving On Up.” New Labour grabbed it as a campaign anthem. British soul was now good for you – it helped win elections.
But not all was rosy in the UK soul garden. Solo artists working in the classic tradition, like Mica Paris, Beverley Knight and Omar, still struggled to get their dues despite their prodigious talents. The British audience still hadn’t learnt to cultivate its own.
Those embracing sampling, sound system culture and hip-hop were more fortunate than these traditionalists. Bristol’s Massive Attack used these very ingredients as the bedrock to their cinematic soul. So too did the Junglists and Drum N’ Bass brigade, utilizing the same tools to fashion a frenetic new urban soundscape.
Nonetheless, British hip-hop suffered until it learnt to stop imitating American gangsta-rappers and focus on UK issues and our Jamaican connection. Crucially, it was dropping a little reggae in the mix that helped give British hip-hop – from Roots Manuva to Skinnyman – its identity and originality.
At the dawn of the millennium, UK soul-inspired sounds exploded into a thousand different shapes – from Ms Dynamite to Corinne Bailey Rae, Joss Stone to Amy Winehouse, Lemar to Lethal Bizzle. Currently in a rude state of health, British 21st Century soul is a result of our unique multicultural society. Over 40 years, we’re moved from a nation of fans and imitators to one of black and white musicians creating original, cutting edge music. We’ve travelled from segregation to integration, as black American and Jamaican cultures have been embraced and become entwined with English life, changing our society forever. You get me?
Key Artists featured in this episode include Amy Winehouse, Mica Paris, Lemar, Beverley Knight, Joss Stone, Jazzie B, Omar, and Roots Manuva.
Amy’s final recording, a duet with her hero Tony Bennett titled “Body and Soul”, will be released by Columbia Records this Wednesday 14th September. This special recording is released at 8am GMT on what would have been Amy’s 28th birthday, in aid of the Amy Winehouse Foundation. The song was recorded in March of this year at Abbey Road Studios in London for Tony Bennett’s upcoming Duets II album. An accompanying video of the two singing “Body and Soul” together in the studio will also be premiered viaamywinehouse.com and Vevo.
The Foundation will be set up by her family to help a number of charities connected with children and young people.
Amy’s father Mitch said, “We wanted to make a positive difference and help a range of causes close to Amy’s heart. This could include help for children in trouble, suffering from health problems, children’s hospices and more.”
“While it is separate from my campaign to find more help for young addicts, that may be one of the areas that Foundation contributes to. We intend to raise funds and distribute them to individual projects who apply for help. I couldn’t be happier that everyone involved with Amy and this recording felt they wanted to contribute.”
“Amy Winehouse is a singer and songwriter who is famous for her strong vocals as well as her blend of numerous musical styles such as soul, jazz and R&B.
Winehouse has gained huge publicity for her drug abuse along with psychological health problems. At a young age of 27, Amy Winehouse found dead on her apartment in London.
Receiver of 5 Grammies, Amy Winehouse is certainly among the most talented singers of this generation. However, at the very top of her booming career, did Amy’s way of living push her straight down a distressing path?
Jacques Peretti looks into Amy’s collection of broken hearts, from the divorce of her parents to her overwhelming dark love relationships which includes her intimate relationship with her husband Blake Civil-Fielder.
The film showcase interviews from close friends and beloved family. Jacques examines how Winehouse absorbs every emotional feelings she had lived through and carry that bitterness into her music.”
We were doing some research this morning and listening to some of our favorite Amy Winehouse tunes in tribute when we can across this interview where Amy discusses touring, her upcoming album and makes reference to her own death:
“If I die tomorrow, I would still feel fulfilled in a way” – Amy Winehouse
We found this live version of Prince and Amy Winehouse singing ‘Love is a Losing Game‘ from her second LP, Back to Black, in our collection and had to share. Rest in Peace Amy! We are happy you and Prince made a connection, albeit brief.
This is really sad news but unfortunately news that seem to be closer in recent months. Soulful British singer, Amy Winehouse, was found dead today at her London home. While this news does come as a complete surprise, it is really sad to see such an incredible voice silenced. Amy was crying out for help for years and noone could seem to reach her enough to really turn her around. Very sad. Sometimes, we get so caught up in the cycle of stardom, that we forget that not every fall from grace is accompanied by a profitable rise from the ashes. As with other greats who have died at a young age, look for her to be even more of a draw in her death. Sad, but true. Watch iTunes and Billboard next week if you don’t believe me. Rest in Peace Amy.
From Yahoo.com!:
“Amy Winehouse, the beehived soul-jazz diva whose self-destructive habits overshadowed a distinctive musical talent, was found dead Saturday in her London home, police said. She was 27.
Winehouse shot to fame in 2006 with the album “Back to Black,” whose blend of jazz, soul, rock and classic pop was a global hit. It won five Grammys and made Winehouse — with her black beehive hairdo and old-fashioned sailor tattoos — one of music’s most recognizable stars. But her personal life, with its drug and alcohol abuse, eating disorders and destructive relationships, soon took over her career.
Police confirmed that a 27-year-old female was pronounced dead at the home in Camden Square northern London; the cause of death was not immediately known. London Ambulance Services said Winehouse had died before the two ambulance crews it sent arrived at the scene.
Singer and actress Kelly Osbourne, who helped Winehouse check into a drug addiction treatment facility in 2008, was one of many who grieved for the singer on Twitter.
“I cant even breath right now im crying so hard i just lost 1 of my best friends. i love you forever Amy and will never forget the real you!” she tweeted.
The singer’s father, Mitch Winehouse, had arrived in New York this weekend to prepare for his U.S. performing debut Monday night at the Blue Note jazz club, but upon receiving news of his daughter’s death was heading back home to London to be with his family, his publicist Don Lucoff said.”
