Amy Winehouse is 'Back to Black'

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For all the exciting promotional plans being conceived on Amy Winehouse`s behalf as her second album 'Back to Black' (Island) takes her around the world,the artist remains unusually insouciant.

"I love doing music and playing gigs," she says, "and I`m really grateful for the opportunity to do so. But to be honest, I`m not the kind of person that will think about the demographic."

The 23-year-old singer/songwriter`s pop-friendly, soul-tinged style has translated to U.K. shipments of 650,000 for 'Back to Black' since its Oct. 30, 2006, release, according to Universal Music U.K.

Released Feb. 5 in most European territories, the album streets March 16 in the United States via Universal Republic. That release in itself is a measure of Winehouse`s burgeoning mainstream potential.

Her 2003 debut, 'Frank,' was widely hailed in the United Kingdom, where Universal reports it shipped platinum (300,000 units). It also won media attention in Germany, Italy and the Netherlands - without accruing any major chart success - but was not released in the United States.

It`s quite a contrast this time. "The feedback across the board here has been nothing short of amazing," says New York-based Kim Garner, Universal Republic senior vice president of marketing and artist development. "We had two incredibly successful shows here in New York [her first-ever U.S. gigs, at Joe`s Pub, in mid-January] that generated excellent reviews."

The jazz flavors of 'Frank' won Winehouse press comparisons to a young Billie Holiday, but ultimately limited its impact. "We worked 'Frank' in a few key European markets, and didn`t get any radio on that at all," Universal Music U.K. director of international marketing Chris Dwyer says. "We got to a reasonable level, but wanted to broaden that out. This time it seems to have gone crazy."

More obvious stylistic nods to the 1960s have helped the cause. "I haven`t been listening to any jazz," Winehouse says, "I`ve been listening to a lot of Motown and girl groups," she adds, citing the Shangri-Las and the Velvelettes.

"The first album set her up as a unique character and wasn`t as mainstream as this one," says Sheena Mason, head of music at London top 40 station Capital Radio. "This album has songs that don`t compromise her sound but are more accessible for the mainstream audience."

Well-received showcase performances at MIDEM in Cannes and in Berlin have been part of a highly promising international set-up, according to Dwyer.

Reports of Winehouse`s colorful social life, continuingly fed on by British newspapers, were hardly discouraged by the release of "Rehab" as the first U.K. single from 'Back to Black' (sample lyric: "They tried to make me go to rehab/I said no, no, no." It hit the British top 10 in November - her first top 40 single.

"People internationally approach [her lifestyle] in a positive way, not a tabloid way," Dwyer insists. "We haven`t wanted to play it down - Amy is what she is - neither have we encouraged any salacious gossip."

Winehouse adds: "I`ve just come out of a really bad relationship and literally written songs off the top of my head; there wasn`t anything premeditated about them."

As she prepares for another U.K. live itinerary running from Feb. 17 into March, she admits, "I`m working so much I can`t even get to the gym, but I`m trying to be really fighting fit for the tour."

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Amy Winehouse is 'Back to Black'

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