"In 1905 Emmeline Pankhurst founded the Women's Social and Political Union and spearheaded the Suffragette movement, but despite the fact that women have more freedom than a hundred years ago we still live in a patriarchal society.

Men are free to be good-looking, intelligent, talented and outspoken without being sneered at, denigrated, labelled or vilified.

Women have the right to this freedom too."

(Quote from Jude Calvert-Toulmin art and music blog ie where you are right now.)


In these still misogynist times, none of us women get that freedom, and certainly not Amy Winehouse.

Here we have a beautiful woman with so much natural talent she is already a legend in her own time. But what is the attitude of the press, which pours petrol onto and then ignites the one-celled brains of the narrow minded bigots who listen to them? "She's a filthy druggy disgrace! If the drugs don't kill her then WE WILL!"



Even the blogs associated with otherwise reaonably neutral newspapers are full of the same shite, "What do you think of Amy's punch?" You cheap cunts. This woman is the greatest singer Britain has ever produced, bar none. Three singers off the top of my head whose level she is on, are El Camarón, Edith Piaf and Billy Holiday. Vulnerable, troubled artists who dared to flaunt their intestines as stoles (and who all died prematurely through drugs.) Artists too fragile and sensitive for this often vicious world.




We're not talking about some cold, clinical, robotic, hard-nosed businesswoman with little musical talent who is obsessed with her own fame and every personal relationship goes out the window in deference to the hysterical and dogged maintenance of that "fame." (You all know who I mean and it ain't the true Queen of Pop, Kylie. Kylie's great.) We're talking about a serious artist here, a serious and talented musician, a brilliant singer whose talent eclipses any other talent around today.



Her performance at Glastonbury was a triumph. Amy (and I'm calling her by only her first name not to sound as though I know her; I don't, but because she's a human being which so many people seem to completely ignore) has been in hospital so there is a likelihood that there wasn't much rehearsal time with the band, and yet they all pulled together to deliver an absolutely riveting set, totally in harmony with one another, the whole band (that includes Amy, right? Who at Glastonbury was operating as part of a team.)



I've watched some of this year's Glastonbury on tele* and all of it with little interest. Yeah, boring, next. Dull. Dull. Still dull. Seen it all before. Pretentious. Dull. Think they're great and they're not. Dull.

But then Amy and her band came on stage and I dropped everything (my laptop and text books) and was spell bound. Finally, some fucking art. Some serious musicians who were at the very top of their game and knew what the fuck they were doing (there was more later with Jay-Z and then The Raconteurs.)

*I've only watched a bit of the Glastonbury footage this year so I'm not saying this year's Glasto is shite, I'm sure overall it was as great as it always is.



As Amy confided in the audience, she can't wait until her husband, Blake, comes out of prison in a fortnight. If this all goes pear-shaped, Amy could end up dead.

Jay-Z, who in a stunning peformance which carpet-bombed any detractor into powder in the breeze, performed a tribute to Amy by covering "Rehab" but in the last line made reference to Anna Nicole Smith. This was very fitting because for years it was bleeding obvious that Anna Nicole Smith was going to die young from some kind of overdose, and the way things are going, Amy is heading the same way, much to my disgust. Not disgust at her though, disgust at some of the cunts in the media who deliberately ignore the elephant in the room of her mind-blowing talent, and instead point at the speck of dust on the wall, "Look at that bit of dirt, everyone! Isn't she disgusting! Burn the witch!" Yes, the very same press members who are coke-heads and alchies.



At the very end of a spectacular performance, after trustingly venturing towards the crowd, Amy was forced to defend herself from an audience member who behaved in a threatening manner. Michael Eavis, the founder of Glastonbury, has publically said she had a right to do so.

Anyone writing in the public arena focusing solely on this incident in order to attract attention to their publication is a cunt. I don't care whether you're a blogger for a respectable newspaper, a fuck-wit hack or an indy blogger, you're still a cunt.

This is a beautiful, fragile woman who is in grave danger and we should all be focusing on her incredible talent and achievements in the face of great adversity, instead of unfurling the red carpet of death at her feet.

And anyone slagging her off, see below. These people would beg to differ.



More pictures grabbed from the Glastonbury coverage:

*note to the cameramen who filmed it - nice work boys :)