Amy Winehouse
03.13.07
Bowery Ballroom (New York)
words: Amy Wagner
photos: Daniel Arnold

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As the set list was taped down in front of me, a guy a few feet away tapped me on the shoulder and asked excitedly, “Where’s 'Rehab' in the set?” British R&Ber Amy Winehouse hadn’t even hit the stage yet, but her hard-partying reputation was already ruling the night. She had cancelled a few dates before her stop in New York so everyone was waiting to see:

1) Would she make it to the stage?

2) What would she do when she got there?

The answer to the first question is a simple “yes.” She appeared right on schedule, wearing a black and white polka dot dress and red heels, smoky black eye make-up and a disheveled beehive threatening to collapse at any moment. Throughout the night, Winehouse peered out at the crowd from behind her false eyelashes, throwing looks that ranged from mischievous to imperious, but in every case, she was the queen of a very devoted gathering of fans.

Now, for that pesky second question. Well, she opened with a song called “Addicted.” You can accuse Amy Winehouse of being many things, but subtle isn't one of them. The 23-year-old played up her wild child side throughout the night with the kind of one-liners stand-up comedians would kill for. At one point, a man in the crowd pointed to the plastic cup of beer that Winehouse kept close at hand and yelled, “Drink your beer.” The sultry singer shot back, “Ladies don’t drink beer... They chug it!” Then added, “And I’m not drinking beer. I’m drinking Jack Daniel's lemonade.”

Moments like this made the show entertaining, and her detractors would like to say that that’s all Amy Winehouse is - another self-destructing musician on the way to the inevitable crash-and-burn. But there’s no denying (even if you really, really want to) that this lady has an incredible amount of talent.

Joss Stone, another English singer/songwriter, hit the scene a few years ago and also made a splash as a white girl singing R&B music. The difference between Stone and Winehouse is that I never believed the former when she sang; the “soul” in her music rang false. When Winehouse sings, however, it’s like she’s channeling a thousand hard-lived lives. Not since Dusty Springfield sang about going “out walking” with her "Son of a Preacher Man" has blue-eyed soul seemed so daring and so very alluring.

She was backed by a 10-piece band of men in suits, including a brass section and two male back-up dancers with choreographed smooth moves. Winehouse shimmied throughout her bluesy, electric set with ease. For a singer celebrating the release of her second album, Back to Black, it seems impossible to imagine that every song was a gem, but that’s just how it went down at the Bowery Ballroom.

“Me and Mr. Jones” was a slow-burner while the cocky “Rehab” had you singing along “I won’t go... No... No!” even if your conscience was telling you there might be something wrong with getting into a song like that.

It's easy to see why Amy Winehouse has a legion of fans. Her voice transcends time and her sultry attitude demands full attention. By the end of the evening the only question left to ask was, "When's the next show?" One can only hope she'll find time between drinks to provide fans with an answer.