Part of Jul 2011 by

Built Like Amy Winehouse

There’s only 2 types of deaths that really matter to the average person: 1) People you actually knew and interacted with using whatever functioning senses you had thereby verifying their existence (and therefore your own) and causing an emotional response within you and them and 2) Famous people.  For the extreme majority of the human race Amy Winehouse falls into the second category (She’s a #1 to Russell Brand) but her death has lit up the human chatter and debate circuit boards like I haven’t seen in a while.  There’s one group of  friends who have opened up the high horse pen, let the trusty steeds out, and are digging their spurs into the thoroughbred known as prohibition and another group of friends who are playing their part by weeping deeply over the death of another human being who is 2) Famous.  154,888 other people died yesterday on planet Earth who more than likely were 1)’s.  So the whole gang is playing their part in the big human cliché circus starring the furiously and fatally addicted Miss Winehouse.

I’m sure some out there are crying foul for things I have already said including the fact that we won’t know what killed her until the autopsy report is published.  Bullshit.  There are several phases of a fall from 100 feet up that makes human salsa on the pavement.  1) The Jump, 2) The 32 ft/s² action, 3) In this case the jumper ignoring all the poles, nets, and outstretched hands jutting out of the windows trying to catch and stop, or at least slow, the descent.  4) Pavement.  One thing that really pisses me off at this point is that I know that the big media in order to fill airtime will say things to the equivalent of, “If only the building had been 6 stories tall then maybe…”, “If only gravity didn’t work that way…” and the biggest load of media guilt trips “If only more people had tried to stop her descent.”  Even if the autopsy shows a defective heart and a building that is only five stories tall her addiction were steps 1 through 4.  So this is the AHA! Moment!?! “We must declare war on  addiction as well as the drugs!”  Addiction is part of the human condition.  Good luck with that and plus we have already declared war on everything already.  Lets start looking at diplomacy for a change.  Addicts can definitely get clean and sober there is no doubt about that but the first step an addict must take to beat an addiction is..???  Yes, the answer is so cliché there’s knock knock and light bulb jokes about it.  Unfortunately and ultimately there will always be addicts (Both famous and non) who do not outlive their addiction and no amount of agenda clamoring and shouldacouldawouldas will change that.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ye5T66K4PTQ

Another thing that has my macaroni and cheese cooking right now is that there is this massive flame war going on about whether Winehouse should be allowed into the “27 Club”.  Last time I checked the entry into this club wasn’t based on how many post-mortem Facebook likes you get but on dying at 27 and being a musician.  The Club isn’t limited to Jimi, Janis, Morrison and Cobain those are just the most famous 27 year old faces on the “Have you seen me?” milk cartons. There are actually a bunch of musicians in The Club and its membership just grew by one.  Whether or not the work of Amy Winehouse has the lasting importance of a Janis Joplin is ultimately up to the listening community now and much more importantly in the future.  Exclamation pointed caps locked event and page invites and raging internet flame wars are not going to matter to a generation who isn’t even born yet.  Please try and remember one of the greatest lessons my father ever taught me.  “When someone dies take care of the living.”  So chill out, go listen to her tunes, enjoy and remember her work,  and then make sure you take care of yourself.

www.amywinehouse.com