She Said, ‘No, No, No…’

By Victoria Looseleaf

Amy Winehouse finally said ‘no.’ To life, in any case, and to drugs, on July 23, 2011. Or at least that’s what the latest autopsy report would have us believe: The erstwhile dope-addled Amy, she of the soulful voice, bee-hive hairdo and tragic ending, met hers with no illegal narcotics in her system. What she did have, we are told, was a whole lotta alcohol in there.

And it is possible for a 27-year old woman to die of acute alcoholism, although the toxicity levels, organ/tissue probes and whatever the hell else medical examiners do (one of The Leaf’s majors at Berkeley was criminology – she wanted to be Clarice Starling in Silence of the Lambs; guess she needs to watch more Law and Order eps, in order to get her morgue terminology down), have not yet announced that they found a bloated liver and/or other swollen appendages symptomatic of chronic drinking.

Had Ms. Winehouse barfed? Could she have choked on her own vomit the way Mama Cass did (and not on a ham sandwich, as has been reported over the years)? Were there empty alcohol bottles strewn around? Hidden? Or were they in their proper places, beside her bed? And just what was Amy’s drink of choice?

Then there’s the issue of death from legal drugs – pharmaceuticals. Like Heath Ledger, who died of an accidental overdose of painkillers, sleeping pills, anti-anxiety medication and other prescription drugs, or so sayeth the New York City medical examiner’s office. That would thus be termed a poly-pharmaceutical overdose, which is what caused Elvis to expire (that compounded by the heart attack he had while trying to defecate. Oy, the ignominy!) Click here to see how fans recently mourned the 34 years since the King’s passing.

We know that a handful of other famous 27-year old rock Gods and Goddesses shuffled off this mortal coil from heroin, booze, barbiturates, gagging on one’s own puke or a combination thereof.  Janis Joplin (smack and Southern Comfort, in Los Angeles – and puhleeze, don’t let Amy Adams play Pearl in a Hollywood biopic), Jimi Hendrix (asphyxiated in his own vomit, mainly red wine which filled his airways, along with substantial amounts of a Belgian sleeping pill, Vesparax, in London), and Jim Morrison (his official death certificate states he died in a bathtub of “natural causes,” in Paris. Click here to read about the recent 40th anniversary of that rock star’s passing)…and the list goes on.

The rock poet himself, Jim Morrison

Seriously, death is not a pretty picture, but some kind of closure would be nice for Ms. Winehouse, unless we’re content with the good old natural-causes-and-alcohol-combo answer. But who ever really dies of natural causes, save for centenarians and those lucky enough to float away in their sleep?

 

 

What we do know about Amy Winehouse is that she was one helluva singer/songwriter (click here to read The Leaf’s original memorial tribute to her), and that we look forward to hearing more of her music, however much might be left. Oh, yeah!

 

 

 

Ms. Joplin as Jacskon Pollock drip painting!


About Victoria Looseleaf

Victoria Looseleaf is an award winning arts journalist and regular contributor to the Los Angeles Times, KUSC-FM radio, Dance Magazine, Performances Magazine and other outlets. She roams the world covering dance, music, theater, film, food and architecture. Have pen - and iPad - will travel! Her latest book, "Isn't It Rich? A Novella In Verse" is now available on Amazon. Thank you for reading! Cheers...
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