12 replies to this topic

[bunnybowlingshirt]

For one, its kind of saddening to me that this went down as "Amy's best/most popular song" because I personally feel like she has a boat load worth of better tracks. I also dislike the fact that it got so big because people used it as a way to mock Amy while she was alive and as a way to mock her passing (for example headlines like "She should've said "Yes, Yes, Yes") and a string of other horrible jokes and spins on the songs lyrics.

 

Secondly, Am I the only one who doesn't really like the final version as much as the demo version?

 

I really loved the personal, confessional-esque feel of the original version, to me it was the song in its rawest, most heartfelt state, unlike the final version with the organ track and majority of the emphasis revolving around the chorus (thanks to mark ronson). I love the verses and the bridge of the most, for me, those are truly the best moments of the song.

 

Anyways, just my opinion on that one track, don't kill me, I still love Amy (She's one of my favorite artist) lol feel free to share your thoughts too, I want to discuss. 

[amywinehousequeen]

It's her pop hit. All commercial artists (I don't mean that in a bad way... but you can't exactly call Amy a bona fide soul artist - she was contemporary and urban too) are probably bound by a contract to pay back money by success with singles and all that... blah blah blah. But without the single we wouldnt have been able to discover her.

 

And  I used to thought I hated it but now I've grown to love it. Her vocal performance is great. 

[amh91]

I don't think it's one of her best songs by any stretch of the imagination. Sure, it's catchy, and when I was in secondary school EVERYBODY was singing it and using it as a joke to take the piss out of each other, but I think it's because of this mass appeal that it doesn't have as much weight or depth as other songs in her back catalogue. Plus, the fact that the song is actually a chronicle of what, by all accounts, was a very troubled time in her life, creates a kind of disparity between the coded darkness of the lyrics and the light, poppy instrumentation that goes along with it, and this disparity just does not work. I mean, with certain songs this discrepancy/irony really works (see R.E.M.'s Shiny Happy People for a perfect example), but with Rehab... hmmm. Finally, the backstory behind how Amy came up with the song, literally in the spur of the moment, again doesn't seem like it's as rich as the other songs in her discography. It's kind of like Paranoid by Black Sabbath, which also came about off the cuff, during a flash of creativity; just because it's the song that everybody knows her for, doesn't mean it's the song that everybody should remember her by, for more reasons than one. Sorry for the ramble, hope you see what I mean! 

[HelloSailor]

When Rehab first came out, I didn't like it. I remember thinking "is this poppy tune from the same Amy Winehouse that did  Frank?". I could see how the chorus was catchy because I had the damn thing going through my head after hearing it just once or twice...

I actually never really listened to the lyrics at first, and thought it was some satirical piece about lame celebrities who pop in and out of expensive rehab centres like it's a holiday break, for some kind of media attention.

It had never occurred to me at the time that she was singing about her own experience.

 

I started to appreciate it more when listening to some live performances, but I still struggle with it, and often skip past it.

[HelloSailor]

And  also hate how this song (and Valerie which she didn't write) came to represent her...

[pattieboyd2]

I also didn't pay too much attention to the lyrics when I first heard "Rehab".  What I noticed and loved from the moment I first heard it was the way it launches straight into those amazing vocals and the 60s sound which has always been my favourite era musically.  I fell in love with that voice at that moment.  I too didn't know it was autobiographical at first and liked the "tongue-in-cheekness" of it.  I avoid the tabloids and trashy magazines so I didn't know her back story at all at the time.  I was able to just enjoy the music for which I'm grateful.  I also love the paradox between the serious subject and the upbeat music.  No one knew at the time how her life would end.

[WhoDat]

I like it, but I definitely think it's been tainted by the ways people have used it almost as a stick to beat her with. Taking away the sadness of how things ended for Amy, as a stand-alone track, I still think it's very good. It's not my favourite of her songs, but still think it holds up.

[HeartEyes]

I like rehab, but i agree with you guys. It does have this bitter sweet taste to it because of all the dry ass people using it for their snappy headlines and comments. I can't believe people are STILL doing those jokes, like? She served those jokes on a platter, can't they come up with anything on their own?

amy did this song as a dark, honest joke and it kind of proves how she made her own headlines, she was always aware.
That's how it goes with honesty and empathy. They're  precious qualities but they could also be your downfall i guess.

[Torishaaa]

I remember the when I was on the high school bus they kept playing Rehab on the radio and I thought the song was annoying. Back then it was the only song I knew from Amy and it made me not give her another look sadly until after her death. I have a little more appreciation for the song now that I'm an Amy Winehouse fan but I definitely would have to agree with you that Rehab is overrated and definitely not her best work. I live in America though so maybe Rehab is her biggest hit in America as oppose to Britain. I definitely prefer her Frank album though. I wish they would play more of her songs from Frank on the radio that were fun and upbeat as oppose to Back To Black which was grey and depressing. I love how she did crossover jazz and hip hop on her first album. Her image looked a lot healthier and more fun. I feel the whole Back To Black album was a bit overrated and Frank was underrated. My opinion personally.

[Ava_Grace]

I like the blues-y style she did with rehab from the acoustic session from the Metropolis studio session. I don't like the pop version Ronson did, it's not supposed to be a happy song at all. As far as the notion that this song made her famous, in America it was actually the Ghostface Killah version of You Know I'm no Good that made her famous since radio stations played it.
Interestingly, Ray Charles actually has a similar song called I Don't Need No Doctor, expressing a similar sentiment.

[TakeTheBox03]

For one, its kind of saddening to me that this went down as "Amy's best/most popular song" because I personally feel like she has a boat load worth of better tracks. I also dislike the fact that it got so big because people used it as a way to mock Amy while she was alive and as a way to mock her passing (for example headlines like "She should've said "Yes, Yes, Yes") and a string of other horrible jokes and spins on the songs lyrics.

 

Secondly, Am I the only one who doesn't really like the final version as much as the demo version?

 

I really loved the personal, confessional-esque feel of the original version, to me it was the song in its rawest, most heartfelt state, unlike the final version with the organ track and majority of the emphasis revolving around the chorus (thanks to mark ronson). I love the verses and the bridge of the most, for me, those are truly the best moments of the song.

 

Anyways, just my opinion on that one track, don't kill me, I still love Amy (She's one of my favorite artist) lol feel free to share your thoughts too, I want to discuss. 

it is really saddening as her most popular song. she has shtiloads of better tracks. i hate the headlines too, very disrespectful. I DO like the final version more than the original because the original is more sad. damn right it was raw! hits hard 13 years later! 

[amywinehouse.eus]

For one, its kind of saddening to me that this went down as "Amy's best/most popular song" because I personally feel like she has a boat load worth of better tracks. I also dislike the fact that it got so big because people used it as a way to mock Amy while she was alive and as a way to mock her passing (for example headlines like "She should've said "Yes, Yes, Yes") and a string of other horrible jokes and spins on the songs lyrics.

 

Secondly, Am I the only one who doesn't really like the final version as much as the demo version?

 

I really loved the personal, confessional-esque feel of the original version, to me it was the song in its rawest, most heartfelt state, unlike the final version with the organ track and majority of the emphasis revolving around the chorus (thanks to mark ronson). I love the verses and the bridge of the most, for me, those are truly the best moments of the song.

 

Anyways, just my opinion on that one track, don't kill me, I still love Amy (She's one of my favorite artist) lol feel free to share your thoughts too, I want to discuss. 

Completely agree with you

[pinkismyfavoritecrayon]

"Rehab" is a big part of who Amy was is how I see it, even if we don't like that part of her. I hate how catchy that song is, whether it be the demo( didn't know this existed smh) or the release version. Yeah, it got her the press backlash and all that, I would probably see the song in a different light if I had been a fan of hers when it was super popular. I still like the song, I listen to the music more than the lyrics now.