The little girl with the brave contralto voice could not be contained even in grade school. Talent rarely stays quiet for long. By 14 she was already writing music as well as performing for anyone who would listen. And listen they did, especially those with an ear for the sound of a hefty cash flow.

It's sometimes said that pure talent springs from the pristine well of the demonic world—once sipped it becomes all-consuming. In Amy's case an argument might be made for the first taste of the bitter harvest of the poppy.

Some suggest that her husband Blake Fielder-Civil introduced her to the wide and wondrous world of ecstasy and barbiturates.  Still others argue no, it was her parent's divorce and the death of her grandmother that unleashed the demons that would nip at her heels throughout her short life. Either way, 27 years isn't much time to figure things out and still entertain the world. It can be done—some do a bang-up job of it and live to a ripe old age, and some just get banged up.

Bob Dylan may have said it best all those years ago (and he should know):

Nobody feels any pain

Tonight as I stand inside the rain

Ev'rybody knows

That Baby's got new clothes

But lately I see her ribbons and her bows

Have fallen from her curls…..

…Yes, I believe I'll go see her again

Nobody has to guess

That Baby can't be blessed

Till she finally sees that she's like all the rest

With her fog, her amphetamine and her pearls

She takes just like a woman, yes she does

She makes love just like a woman, yes she does

And she aches just like a woman

But she breaks just like a little girl. "Just Like A Woman" (1966)

Amy Jade Winehouse got banged up along the path she chose and she broke—just like a little girl.

Amy Jade Winehouse (14 September 1983 – 23 July 2011) …your voice still lingers.                    

(November in Salem: the bargain of witches)

(Death by Student Loan)