Frank

by Amy Winehouse

Overview

If a series of unfortunate comparisons (like the ones to follow) cause listeners to equate British vocalist Amy Winehouse with Macy Gray, it's only natural. Both come on like a hybrid of Billie Holiday and Lauryn Hill who's had a tipple and then attempted one more late-night set at a supper club than they should have. Despite her boozy persona and loose-limbed delivery, though, Winehouse is an excellent vocalist possessing both power and subtlety, the latter an increasingly rare commodity among contemporary female vocalists (whether jazz or R&B). What lifts her above Macy Gray is the fact that her music and her career haven't been marketed within an inch of their life. Instead of Gray's stale studio accompaniments, Winehouse has talented musicians playing loose charts behind her with room for a few solos. Instead of a series of vocal mellifluities programmed to digital perfection, Winehouse's record has the feeling of being allowed to grow on its own -- without being meddled with and fussed over (and losing its soul in the process). Simply hearing Winehouse vamp for a few minutes over some Brazilian guitar lines on "You Sent Me Flying" is a rare and immense pleasure. Also, like Nellie McKay (but unlike nearly all of her contemporaries), Winehouse songs like "Fuck Me Pumps," "Take the Box," and "I Heard Love Is Blind" cast a cool, critical gaze over the music scene, over the dating scene, and even over the singer herself. With "In My Bed," she even proves she can do a commercial R&B production, and a club version of "Moody's Mood for Love" not only solidifies her jazz credentials but proves she can survive in the age of Massive Attack. [Universal Republic released a U.S. version the CD in 2007.] ~ John Bush

Product Details

Release Date:	11/20/2007
Label:	Universal Republic
UPC:	0602517265882
Rank:	4881

Tracks

1. Intro/Stronger Than Me
2. You Sent Me Flying
3. Know You Now
4. F*** Me Pumps
5. I Heard Love Is Blind
6. Moody's Mood for Love
7. (There Is) No Greater Love
8. In My Bed
9. Take the Box
10. October Song
11. What Is It About Men
12. Amy Amy Amy/Outro

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Amy Winehouse   Primary Artist
Ian Barter   Conductor
Femi Temowo   Conductor

Technical Credits

William Salter   Composer
Delroy "Chris" Cooper   Composer
Felix Howard   Composer
Freddy James   Composer
Donovan Jackson   Composer
Luke Smith   Composer,Composer
Astor Campbell   Composer
Bernard Haneghen   Composer
Wilburn "Squiddley" Cole   Composer
Ralph McDonald   Composer,Composer,Composer
Felix Starbuck Howard   Composer
Jimmy McHugh   Composer
Cootie Williams   Composer
James Moody   Composer
Dorothy Fields   Composer
Ralph MacDonald   Composer
Gordon Williams   Composer
Sammy Cahn   Composer
Gregory Jackson   Composer,Composer
Stefan Skarbek   Composer
Teodross Avery   Composer
Paul Watson   Composer
Bernie Hanighen   Composer
Gene DePaul   Composer
Isham Jones   Composer
Astor "Crusty" Campbell   Composer
Larry Stock   Composer
Earl "Chinna" Smith   Composer
George Gershwin   Composer
Gene Paul   Composer
Ira Gershwin   Composer
Salaam Remi   Composer
Marty Symes   Composer
Jimmy Hogarth   Composer
Thelonious Monk   Composer
Amy Winehouse   Composer
Matt Rowe   Composer
Charles Williams   Composer