Amy Winehouse was one of the finest singers of her generation, and the proof is in the pudding with her smoldering version of “Back to Black” at Glastonbury. The troubled London songstress is at the same time sensual and vulnerable in the performance, giving plenty of heft to the emotion behind the song with her expressive contralto vocals.
Winehouse is supported by a red hot band as she recounts the tale of her doomed romance with her ex-husband Blake Fielder-Civil, a theme which runs through much of her second album, which shares its name with the song. Her delivery of the soul hit is both brilliant and at times distracted, which given her tragic passing just four years later, lends an eerie air to her performance.
Fans in the comments left admiring tributes to the late soul icon, such as “Time has proved it: Amy was the real deal. A lot of people have the style, but she had the true soul,” and “What a superstar. Such a unique style with aesthetics, musicality and vocals. You were so amazing and we lost you far too soon.”
“Back to Black” was penned by Winehouse and her producer Mark Ronson and the single was universally critically acclaimed upon its April 2007 release. It became the singer’s signature song and peaked at number 8 in her homeland, becoming her second-highest selling solo UK single. Check out Winehouse singing the fourth single from Back to Black “Tears Dry on Their Own” during the same set at Glastonbury below.
The 2x UK Platinum “Back to Black” eventually became the biggest single from an album full of hits, helping the album to 14x Platinum in the UK and Winehouse to worldwide stardom. The album also became the world’s seventh-biggest-selling album of 2008, and was even credited with helping her label Universal Music to buck trends of a global downturn in music sales that year. Unfortunately, she never managed to record a follow-up due to her downward spiral which followed the album’s success. If you would like to see more from Amy Winehouse, you can subscribe to her YouTube channel or follow her on Instagram.