Unseen Images Of Amy Winehouse

By Juliet Smith 1 year ago

Amy & Blake Fielder-Civil

image source / expressThis amazing couple had a six year relationship back in the day. They eventually ended up tying the knot after many years on and off, and were married for two years. Despite looking so in love here on a boat in the ocean, they actually had quite the turbulent relationship.

Caught Off Guard

image source / huckmag
This image was taken on a photoshoot before she became a household name. Her album 'Frank' was already written at this point, but it was actually during this photoshoot she found the image for the front cover of this album! Little did she know, that she would be so famous.

That Infamous Hair & Eye Liner

Image Source / Zimbio
Amy Winehouse wouldn't be Amy Winehouse without the infamous huge hair and winged eye-liner. Here, she is pictured in the car and snapped by the paparazzi. She is rocking her arm tattoos and a gorgeous lemon yellow Lacoste t-shirt. How gorgeous does she look?!

A Day In The Life Of...

Image Source/ Diane Patrice
In 2004, the photographer Diane Patrice documented a day in the life of Winehouse by visiting her flat in Camden. This photo of Winehouse, perched on her chair above a stack of vinyls, shoes in the basket close by, recognises the normality of an otherwise extraordinary woman.

Ride Home

Image Source/ Jesse John Jenkins
On the other end of the lens this time, photographer Blake Wood actually appears in a photo alongside Winehouse. This was taken after they had just wrapped up a shoot at a London Bowling Alley. An unsuspecting Winehouse is clearly preoccupied in this.

At The Beach

Amy Winehouse by Blake WoodImage Source/ Blake Wood
Like our very own superhero, Winehouse looks out at the horizon, with the backdrop of a gorgeous sea swashing behind her, among the collection of photos taken by Wood. It is hard to picture a woman so proud, dominant and assured savaged by the media and her mental health.

Pool Player

Image Source/ Diane Patrice
While photographing Winehouse as part of her project, Patrice was taken to a bar by Winehouse where she'd play pool often. An avid player, Winehouse was a fan of the of the pub and would indulge here often. It actually made an appearance in the Stronger Than Me music video.

Off the Rack

Image Source/ Diane Patrice
Patrice candidly shot a photo of Winehouse while she picked up her phone in the middle of shooting. Patrice has said that she wasn't disturbed by Winehouse taking the call, but was happy to catch Winehouse in this moment of spontaneity, almost as though with a friend.

Running Errands

Image Source/ Diane Patrice
The icon herself poses in front of a washing machine at the laundromat. Sporting red-stilettos and red lips, what would've been a hard image to imagine is brought to life through Winehouse's mischievous ways. Who knew washing clothes could be so glam?

Gloving Up

Image Source/ Diane Patrice
Among Patrice's collection was this photo of Winehouse slipping on a studded glove. Not only does it compliment the leopard print bottoms, it catches Winehouse in a moment before she was ready, before the camera was ready, before anything was ready. The photo is in a state of pre-empt.

Playing Pool

Image Source/ Diane Patrice
We just had to slip another one in of Winehouse setting up the pool table. I can guarantee that nobody has ever looked so good doing it. Watching Winehouse in the rituals of her life gives us an insight into the normal woman that she was, tainted by the fame she had.

Cuddly Toy

Image Source/ Diane Patrice
This is a photo that should never have been unseen of Winehouse. It goes to show her innocence and childlike side, different to the persona she put out in her performances. It seems that Patrice really gave it her all in these shoots and captured the Winehouse we needed to see.

Putting the Lippy On

Image Source/ Blake Wood
In this photo taken by Wood, Winehouse quickly adjusts her makeup in the mirror of a London Pub. Apparently, her and Wood very quickly became friends after their first meeting. Their initial paths crossed when Winehouse had blonde hair, so this must've been early on.

On the Drums

Image Source/ Blake Wood
Wood also captured this fantastic image of Winehouse beating down a tune on her drums. The photo was taken in London in 2008, around three years before her untimely passing. This was Winehouse's natural habitat; making music to shake the world.

Hope - A Woman

Amy WinehouseImage Source/ Phil Knott
The next series of photos were shot by Phil Knott and put on at London's Zebra One Gallery. The collection was named Hope and raised money for the Amy Winehouse foundation. The exhibition showed never-before-seen photos of Winehouse and debuted September 2016.

Hope #2 - In Waiting

Amy WinehouseImage Source/ Phil Knott
Something about this photo of Winehouse smoking her cig on the streets of London feels unsettling. Staring right into the camera lens makes us uneasy and unsure. The photo looks in waiting. The way she holds herself feels cold. Could she be waiting for a bus or a friend?

Hope #3 - Close

Amy WinehouseImage Source/ Phil Knott
In another image shot by Knott, we get up close with Winehouse's face. Knott describes this photo as showing Winehouse's cool attitude with "an intimacy that I haven’t seen in a lot of other photographers’ sessions with her." I don't think this statement can be disputed.

Hope #4 - Poser

Amy WinehouseImage Source/ Phil Knott
Snapped before the effects of fame, Winehouse is captured at the very beginning of the beehive and eyeliner era. Knott says that this is the Winehouse that he remembers and describes her as very down to Earth, which tends to be how she's described by many artists.

Hope #5 - Smiling

Amy WinehouseImage Source/ Phil Knott
It's clear that in this photo we break through the proud and nonchalant persona of Winehouse and see the happiness that once lived inside of her, the smile that infected others. "A naturally beautiful girl with confidence and a great sense of humor" Knott says.

Hope #6 - Pout

Amy WinehouseImage Source/ Phil Knott
Knott states that a lot of great photos came out of this session with Winehouse, but he just had to go with this one. I think we can see why. There's something relatively childlike in the pout that Winehouse pulls, and the hair of one eye portrays something hidden.

Hope #7 - Playful

Amy WinehouseImage Source/ Phil Knott
A chirpy Winehouse sports this questionable hat while wearing a jacket that nods to her music roots. It's refreshing seeing Winehouse in these moments of happiness, something that the press at the time didn't really portray. Winehouse was a beautiful soul.

Hope #8 - Bold

Amy WinehouseImage Source/ Phil Knott
Stood out on the streets of London in heels and hat, it appears that Winehouse is struggling with what looks to be a radio. Her style here is bold, but also telling of the era and Winehouse's attitudes. She was refreshing in everyway and did nothing to fit in.

Hope #9 - Quiet

Amy WinehouseImage Source/ Phil Knott
Something about this image feels quiet. The surroundings feel quiet. Winehouse feels quiet. Albeit, whatever was going on inside of her head may well not have been. Knott justifies his choice of black and white saying that it feels more classic and beautiful.

Amy In The Light 

Amy In The LightImage Source/ Phil Griffin
To mark a decade since the singers passing, exhibition Amy In The Light was put on by photographer Phil Griffin. He put on never-before-seen shots of Winehouse while he worked as a creative on her Back to Black album in 2006. The photos exhibited were beautiful.

Like Butter Wouldn't Melt

Amy WinehouseImage Source/ Phil Knott
In one of the final images in the collection, Knott states: "You get a real sense of Amy’s cool attitude in this image, I love the intimacy that she allowed me to capture in the close up images and the beauty that comes with this." It's clear that this Hope collection achieved what it set out to.

Empty Space

Image Source/ Phil Griffin
All the empty space here above Winehouse wasn't unintentional. Putting her at the bottom of the photo like this not only anchors the shot, but makes room for darkness. It's what cannot be seen or heard or read within the darkness that poses questions.

She actually made her debut as a rapper, not a singer

image source: rollingstone.com
Have you ever seen her with a baseball cap before? Amy Winehouse gained her fame for having a unique and amazing voice, but she didn't actually start out in singing - she started out in rapping. Her recording debut - inspired by rappers Salt-N-Pepa - was with her friend, Juliette Ashby, with whom she made the duo Sweet 'n' Sour! They ended up recording a couple of songs in the studio.

And she actually sang with the National Youth Jazz Orchestra

image source: thetimes.com
Amy was only 16 when she made her singing debut with the National Youth Jazz Orchestra. She played her first gig - the first of many, which she didn't know yet! - at the Rayners Hotel. People raved about her performance and singing ability, with some saying that she had "the best jazz voice of any young singer". You can definitely imagine her making an impression.

Her duet with Tony Bennett was her final ever recording

image source: themirror.co.uk
Amy Winehouse had so much more to give in terms of recordings, and her last recording was actually with music legend Tony Bennett, who passed away himself this year 2023. She recorded the duet Body & Soul in the studio for Tony's album Duets II. Bennett only had kind words to say about Amy and her performance, saying she had "the voice of an angel".

Her final demos were destroyed out of respect

image source: instyle.com
Many people would have loved to have heard the final music Amy was working on, which remained unreleased after her death. This was because her final recordings were actually destroyed by the boss of Universal Music, who said that it was a "moral thing" and that he didn't want anyone to take a stem or a vocal from the recordings and release them.

She was more than one album

image source: thetimes.com
Amy looks like a completely different person here without the beehive hair and more minimal eye makeup! In terms of Amy's music, her Back to Black album was of course the one that most people know about - and talk about - but she wasn't just about this one album. She'd already become famous at this point with her album, Frank, but it wasn't available in the US until 2007.

A young Amy

image source: thejewishchronicle.com
In a rare photo from her youth, Amy Winehouse just looked like any other carefree girl, not knowing she was destined for stardom. Since her death, her brother has spoken out about what it was like growing up with Amy as a sister, and Amy's time at Osidge Primary School in Southgate, North London. He said that as a sister, she was "very annoying" but "very caring".

But she didn't like her debut album, Frank

image source: beatmagazine.com
With Frank being her debut album, you might think Amy would have been really proud of it - but it wasn't the case. She believed that the label had messed up her debut album, including the fact that they forced her to include songs on it that she "hated". She said she'd never listened to the album in full, and also thought the label didn't market it very well! What do you think, had you heard of this album before now?

They did try to make her go to rehab

image source: theguardian.com
Seen here in a photo with her dad, one of Amy's most famous songs of course was Rehab, in which the lyrics explained they tried to make her go and she said no! Many songs are fictional stories, but for Amy, this was actually the case in reality. The people who tried to make her go to rehab included her manager, Nick Shymansky, but ultimately she said her behavior was down to heartbreak and not alcohol problems.

She was very talented on guitar

image source: musicradar.com
This photo of Amy with a guitar and her hair down is definitely a rare sight! Did you know that Amy was also an extremely talented guitar player, too? When most people think of Amy, it's definitely as a singer - and most might not have seen her ever with a guitar - but she started out playing when she borrowed her brother's and started teaching herself chords.

She had jazz music in her family

image source: udiscovermusic.com
As well as singing and rapping, Amy Winehouse also had jazz connections in her family, because her paternal grandmother was actually a singer herself, who dated a saxophone player. Not only that, she had several uncles who played professionally as jazz musicians! And it turns out her father was a direct influence, too, because he would sing jazz around the house.

Did bulimia play a part in her death?

image source: themirror.co.uk
The news of Amy Winehouse's death was shocking and unexpected, and although the autopsy revealed that she had high amounts of alcohol in her system, it's also believed that her bulimia might have contributed to it. Amy had struggled with the eating disorder from a young age, and even her brother said it was likely bulimia was what killed her.

She had a connection to the Spice Girls

image source: thisdayinmusic.com
Amy Winehouse was only 19 years old when she signed professionally with he manager, Nick Godwyn from 19 Entertainment. And who founded 19 Entertainment? A man named Simon Fuller, who created Pop Idol in the UK (which inspired American Idol) and also managing the famous British band, The Spice Girls. But Winehouse didn't want to be a 'pop star' - and she fired him later!

She wrote a song about hip-hop star Nas

image source: billboard.com
Amy has a track on the Back to Black album titled Me and Mr. Jones, and the 'Jones' she's referring to is actually hip-hop star Nasir Jones, or 'Nas'. In the lyrics of the song, she sings about how she was forced to miss a certain concert and that she didn't want to be kept from seeing Mr Jones. It turns out that she might have been referred to a Nas concert she ended up having to miss.

She broke a Grammy record

image source: grammy.com
Amy Winehouse broke a huge record during one Grammys ceremony when she - rightfully so - took home a huge bunch of awards. In one night, she'd won five Grammys, and she was then the very first British female artist to do so! Her awards included Record of the Year and Song of the Year for her track Rehab, and she bagged the award for Best New Artist, too.

She had 14 tattoos (that we know)

image source: theguardian.com
There were a lot of things about Amy Winehouse's style that were unique and memorable, and this also included her obvious tattoos. She had a lot that you could see, including a pin-up girl on her arm that she showed off a lot, and in total she had 14 tattoos (that we know of, because of course she could have kept a couple private out of sight!). Others included an anchor on her belly and a tattoo for her ex husband.

She was a huge fan of ska music

image source: banquetrecords.com
Amy Winehouse was actually influenced a lot by The Specials, which was a ska band hailing from the UK that had multi-racials members and sang songs which focused on issues of racism, unemployment and violence. Winehouse even recorded covers of some of their hits, and went on to join the group on stage for a performance at the V Fest.

She was Jewish

image source: amywinehouseforum.co.uk
Amy Winehouse actually grew up to Jewish parents, her mother and father Janis and Mitchell Winehouse. The household was raised as Jewish, and Amy even attended a Jewish Sunday school when she was a child. She wasn't too enthused about going, but there were times that she would wear a Jewish Star of David necklace and continue going to a synagogue every year when she got older.

Her biggest supporter? Her grandmother!

image source: pinterest.co.uk
We mentioned before how Amy came from a huge family of musicians and that her grandmother had been a singer - well, her grandmother was also the person who was her biggest supporter. Cynthia Winehouse was very close to her granddaughter, and because Cynthia came from music herself, she would introduce Amy to lots of genres and encourage her music interest.

Amy's friend gave her tape to a talent scout

image source: thetimes.co.uk
It wasn't Amy herself who sent her music to a scout, but actually one of her close friends. Tyler James, who was a singer himself, was Amy's friend and flatmate at the time. He was the one who decided to send her music tape to a talent scout, which led to Amy meeting up with the producer that helped her get a record deal and create her first album, Frank.

She was married for two years

image source: allthatsinteresting.com
One of her tattoos is in honor of her ex-husband, but not many people know she was married for two years. By showbiz standards, that's actually a long time! She was married to Blake Fielder-Civil, who she met in a bar in London. But Amy's parents thought their relationship was toxic, and eventually - after eloping - Brake ended up in prison for assault and bribery.

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