Read Online Amy Winehouse by Chas Newkey-Burden - Free Book Online
Authors: Chas Newkey-Burden
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does. Cherry, though, is her new guitar, whose every sound Amy loves. Perhaps, she reflects, if her man were made of wood and strings then the two could have as good a relationship as she enjoys withCherry. It’s a fun, light-hearted song and picks up the mood of the album.
‘Know You Now’ is a light and easy tune set to jazzy guitar with background flute and bird song. Amy does some fantastic ad-libs towards the song’s close and her vocal performance on this track is reminiscent of Mary J Blige.
Then comes another of the album’s standout tracks ‘Fuck Me Pumps’. Co-written with Salaam Remi and conceived by him, this is a simple but catchy tune and a strong live favourite. The lyric concerns the wannabe footballers’ wives who are prevalent in much of twenty-first-century nightlife. At times Amy is scathing of them, saying they all look the same, and then mocks them for losing their charm as they approach thirty. She also identifies their hypocrisy in that they claim not to be chasing footballers but clearly are. However, as the song progresses, Amy has kinder words for them. Without such people, she declares, there would be no fun nightlife to be had. This is very much a twenty-first-century song, not just for the trend it identifies but also for its contemporary references to boob jobs and text messages. It’s jazz for the Heat magazine generation. ‘I have, like, pairs of them,’ she said about her penchant for high heels. ‘I’m a hypocrite in a way, because I’m poking fun in the song, but that’s all I wear.’
When it was released as a single, the title was changed to the more radio-friendly ‘F Me Pumps’. She says, ‘Well, the single’s actually “Fuck Me Pumps” with “Help Yourself” on the other side of it. In the video I mouth the words “Fuck me”, but they took the audio out in the edit! The first time I saw it I was, like,“Fuck! Where’s my ‘fuck’? I say ‘fuck’ there!” I’d love them to run it on CD:UK with the “fuck” in. But they won’t.’
One line in the song uses the word ‘sket’ and Amy was once asked what this word means. ‘A sket is like a dirty, pikey girl. Say you’re with your little brother who’s thirteen and you see a ratty little girl who you know. He’ll go “I really like that girl,” and you’ll go “Please don’t go anywhere near her, she’s a right sket.” She’s a girl who’s manky. Manky inside.’
‘I Heard Love Is Blind’ is two minutes and ten seconds of Amy soulfully pleading for forgiveness for cheating on her man. Set to a simple tune of acoustic guitar and flute, the song’s lyric details a moment of infidelity Amy committed when left alone by her man. However, she pleads, she wasn’t really cheating on her man because she was thinking of him when she came and the man she slept with looked like her boyfriend in any case. Surely he wouldn’t want her to be lonely – and she didn’t let the man hold her hand. ‘I believe in casual sex,’ Amy said while discussing this song. ‘I know it’s sad that I think cheating on people is fine. But I think it’s like smoking a spliff. Oops, I’ve gobbed on meself!’
‘There Is No Greater Love’ is a cover of an Isham Jones number and joins ‘Moody’s Mood for Love’ as a great nod to the artists who have influenced and thrilled Amy. However, the classic sound of both tunes is contrasted sharply by the next song on the album – ‘In My Bed’. With a trip-hop beat and contemporary production, this song is also far longer than many of the others on the album. She is seen singing this song acoustically on the documentary included on the DVD I Told You I Was Trouble . At five minutes and seventeen seconds, it far outlasts the likes of ‘I Heard…’ (two minutes and ten seconds) and ‘Know You Now’ (three minutes and three seconds).
The song amounts to an ultimatum from Amy to her boyfriend. She wants him to separate sex from emotion but fears he is unable
‘Know You Now’ is a light and easy tune set to jazzy guitar with background flute and bird song. Amy does some fantastic ad-libs towards the song’s close and her vocal performance on this track is reminiscent of Mary J Blige.
Then comes another of the album’s standout tracks ‘Fuck Me Pumps’. Co-written with Salaam Remi and conceived by him, this is a simple but catchy tune and a strong live favourite. The lyric concerns the wannabe footballers’ wives who are prevalent in much of twenty-first-century nightlife. At times Amy is scathing of them, saying they all look the same, and then mocks them for losing their charm as they approach thirty. She also identifies their hypocrisy in that they claim not to be chasing footballers but clearly are. However, as the song progresses, Amy has kinder words for them. Without such people, she declares, there would be no fun nightlife to be had. This is very much a twenty-first-century song, not just for the trend it identifies but also for its contemporary references to boob jobs and text messages. It’s jazz for the Heat magazine generation. ‘I have, like, pairs of them,’ she said about her penchant for high heels. ‘I’m a hypocrite in a way, because I’m poking fun in the song, but that’s all I wear.’
When it was released as a single, the title was changed to the more radio-friendly ‘F Me Pumps’. She says, ‘Well, the single’s actually “Fuck Me Pumps” with “Help Yourself” on the other side of it. In the video I mouth the words “Fuck me”, but they took the audio out in the edit! The first time I saw it I was, like,“Fuck! Where’s my ‘fuck’? I say ‘fuck’ there!” I’d love them to run it on CD:UK with the “fuck” in. But they won’t.’
One line in the song uses the word ‘sket’ and Amy was once asked what this word means. ‘A sket is like a dirty, pikey girl. Say you’re with your little brother who’s thirteen and you see a ratty little girl who you know. He’ll go “I really like that girl,” and you’ll go “Please don’t go anywhere near her, she’s a right sket.” She’s a girl who’s manky. Manky inside.’
‘I Heard Love Is Blind’ is two minutes and ten seconds of Amy soulfully pleading for forgiveness for cheating on her man. Set to a simple tune of acoustic guitar and flute, the song’s lyric details a moment of infidelity Amy committed when left alone by her man. However, she pleads, she wasn’t really cheating on her man because she was thinking of him when she came and the man she slept with looked like her boyfriend in any case. Surely he wouldn’t want her to be lonely – and she didn’t let the man hold her hand. ‘I believe in casual sex,’ Amy said while discussing this song. ‘I know it’s sad that I think cheating on people is fine. But I think it’s like smoking a spliff. Oops, I’ve gobbed on meself!’
‘There Is No Greater Love’ is a cover of an Isham Jones number and joins ‘Moody’s Mood for Love’ as a great nod to the artists who have influenced and thrilled Amy. However, the classic sound of both tunes is contrasted sharply by the next song on the album – ‘In My Bed’. With a trip-hop beat and contemporary production, this song is also far longer than many of the others on the album. She is seen singing this song acoustically on the documentary included on the DVD I Told You I Was Trouble . At five minutes and seventeen seconds, it far outlasts the likes of ‘I Heard…’ (two minutes and ten seconds) and ‘Know You Now’ (three minutes and three seconds).
The song amounts to an ultimatum from Amy to her boyfriend. She wants him to separate sex from emotion but fears he is unable
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