From her most popular single “Rehab,” Amy Winehouse would like you to think that all the tracks have a catchy chorus to sing along with, but not all the tracks on “Back to Black,” the album that “Rehab” came off of, have a radio-friendly element. The same goes for “Frank,” the CD that brought Winehouse to fame in the U.K. over four years ago. Because of a strong fan base in the U.S., Winehouse decided to re-release the album in the United States.
Although the question of mainstream appeal remains in question on “Frank,” Winehouse does deliver in the risqué department. “Rehab,” although a good song, caught most appeal because of the attention that was surrounding Winehouse at the time. “Rehab” had been a based on Winehouse’s refusal to attend an alcohol rehabilitation center after her management team had encouraged her to go. After attempting to go through with the program, she quickly checked herself out and found a new management company. Rumors of the singer being afflicted with bulimia, as well as her drug and alcohol problems, became regular tabloid news in 2007 and helped the singer rise to fame in the U.S.
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Those who were taken aback by the ideas behind “Rehab,” will be even more surprised by songs such as “F*** Me Pumps,” which exhibits crude ideas about 30-year-old female gold diggers dusting off their slutty high-heels. Although the song may be explicit, it actually has one of the best melodies on the CD. Other songs, including the slow and sultry “I Heard Love is Blind,” may sound lovely at first, but paying attention to the lyrics will lead one to realize that they were inadvertently listening to Winehouse’s supposed sexual escapades. If you’re into that kind of thing, though, I have to say that the music itself isn’t half bad, and Winehouse’s vocals are impressive.
If you like “Black,” there is no guarantee that you will like “Frank” because there are no tracks that have big horn sections like “Rehab,” and you can tell that there is a more improvisational R’B element to the work. What you see is that Winehouse’s usual repertoire, as on “Frank,” isn’t exemplary of the modern take on big band pop music. Winehouse may fill the gap of a female U.K. R’B singer in the U.S. However, because most of her songs on “Frank” are quite jazzy and full of Winehouse’s perfected scatting, it is possible that she could disappear from the billboard charts.
Even if your loved ones might enjoy jazzy music, steer away from giving Winehouse’s CD as a gift if you’d like to be invited to Christmas dinner again.
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