Amy winehouse

[suburbanreuben]

Guys - you should have more class than this.

That's a bit rich when you consider some of the antics of the subject in question.

Which is broadly speaking what those you speak of are pointing out.

Someone dies of cancer? Sympathy
Someone dies in a car crash? Sympathy
Someone dies of old age? Sympathy
Someone dies having deliberately destroyed themselves with crack, smack and God knows what else? Not so much.

Obviously not...
Shits of the first order, mainly. :roll:

 

[dyna-ti]

Guys - you should have more class than this.

That's a bit rich when you consider some of the antics of the subject in question.

Which is broadly speaking what those you speak of are pointing out.

Someone dies of cancer? Sympathy
Someone dies in a car crash? Sympathy
Someone dies of old age? Sympathy
Someone dies having deliberately destroyed themselves with crack, smack and God knows what else? Not so much.

Obviously not...
Shits of the first order, mainly. :roll:

Totally agree

 

[technodup]

Shits of the first order, mainly. :roll:

Been called worse but that'll do for now.

 

[Neil]

In one hundred lifetimes, I might never get the chance that Amy Winehouse had;

• the chance to do something that you enjoy
• the chance to bring enjoyment to people around the world
• the chance to have an army of adoring fans
• the chance to earn enough money to secure the future of yourself and your entire family
• the chance to avoid 45 years of 9-to-5 drudgery that so many people face...

All thrown away at 27 years old.

And that's why if I have any sympathy going spare, I choose to give it to the poor sods in Somalia who are dying from famine and dehydration because aid agencies can't get into the war zone in which they're camped.

Have to say (might not agree with you on the Mac thread, mind!) but that about sums it up for me.

I get the empathy thing - I get the whole, there but for the grace of god, could be my daughter / niece / cousin / sister / whatever. And I do get that parents, family and friends lost somebody they loved. I also get that many fans and admirers felt the loss.

But where I struggle, here, is the hand-wringing, and the people profiteering both before and after her death. Those people that, in some ways, practically encouraged her lifestyle. Some of the celeb lifestyle and media have blood on their hands, here.

As others have said, and I agreed with earlier on, whilst at first she rose to prominence for her talent and music, you have to say, for the last few years, it's not been that aspect of her life keeping her in copy.

I think my trouble is, there's any number of addicts and troubled people, stuffing up their life with abuse and overdose, every day - that pass by, almost entirely unconsidered by society. What made Amy Winehouse different? She had talent, prospects, and at least something to live for that many with the same / similar issues don't. Now true enough, she at - at times - soared with the eagles, did notable things, made many happy - so people can at least say, her life had purpose - and for many, anonymous, troubled, young people, with issues, addictions, that step over that last, fatal line, didn't.

Don't get me wrong - I also accept that many with various issues, having talent, prospects and achievement doesn't ameliorate their issues, either.

My issue, I suspect, isn't with her, her lifestyle, her problems, and her squandering her talent, and neither her, nor the people around her having the nous to call stop. But then there's nothing that new, there - nothing that hasn't happened before. I think what troubles me, these days, is that there's a whole industry dedicated to celeb culture that kind of gives people like her prominence, even when they're not engaging in anything of value or merit - but the meeja follows them for salacious pics and gossip because there's a whole chunk of society that's now obsessed with fame and celebrity - as ends in their own right - where in previous times, people were more likely famous whilst they were still doing something commanding fame. I think that does as much harm, in giving people like Amy Winehouse, plenty of copy at times when really it does nobody any good to point and sneer / laugh / cheer / jeer, not the individual concerned, nor the readers looking for such misfortune - but it kind of gives wings to that whole lifestyle to some people - because many in society give weight to anything and anybody featured in the glossies.

Which comes right back to my comment earlier on in this thread about retro minds or modern thinking - sometimes I think there's nothing that great about modern thought, and some of the old-fashioned ideas and notions had value, that the young and flighty dismiss without any summarily in there.

 

[JohnH]

(might not agree with you on the Mac thread, mind!)

That made me laugh out loud!

I think what troubles me, these days, is that there's a whole industry dedicated to celeb culture that kind of gives people like her prominence, even when they're not engaging in anything of value or merit - but the meeja follows them for salacious pics and gossip because there's a whole chunk of society that's now obsessed with fame and celebrity - as ends in their own right - where in previous times, people were more likely famous whilst they were still doing something commanding fame.

Neil, the frustrated armchair generals in the media have only ever been able to report 'business success', 'sporting achievement' or 'intellectual breakthrough' as interested spectators.

But when it comes to 'showbiz prominence', the media has its hands right on the controls. They decide who becomes a famous household name and who doesn't, and that (IMO) is why our society now values "celebrity" as being more valuable than courage, ingenuity or endurance; by deliberately inflating the value of celebrity, the media has inflated its own influence on our society.

(Oooh, I sounded like a sociology student there! :shock: )

Which comes right back to my comment earlier on in this thread about retro minds or modern thinking...

Yeah, the "retro bikes/retro minds" comment came from "sgw" whose day-job is "leftist agitator". I wouldn't pay too much attention...

 

[lumos2000]

judge people by what comes out of their mouths rather than what goes into it (so to speek) ive never herd amy say anything bad about anyone unlike some of the comments here. :roll:

 

[highlandsflyer]

I used to see her a lot as she attended a couple of 'nights' I used to also frequent. Alt Country, as it goes, but there was a lot of rockabilly, etc. crossover. She was actually quite shy, believe it or not. I think maybe that was part of her struggle, and why others were able to leverage control over her to a large extent. She certainly was in the shade compared to me in terms of excess back then. According to legend she sang a little one time I was on sticks. I am not, and don't remember ever being, a drummer.

There but for the grace of god go I, but I think there was more to her demise than pure hedonistic excess. I think this was a tragedy unfolded by more than one hand.

Yes, I stand by her being one of the great talents of the last thirty years.

As far as being a song 'co-writer', the old Jagger/Richards and Lennon/McCartney thing does it for me.

 

[Harryburgundy]

I think there was more to her demise than pure hedonistic excess. I think this was a tragedy unfolded by more than one hand.

Nods in agreement