In 1992, her grandmother Cynthia suggested that Amy attend the Susi Earnshaw Theatre School, where she went on Saturdays to further her vocal education and to learn to tap dance. Winehouse's parents separated when she was nine, and she lived with her mother and stayed with her father and his girlfriend in Hatfield Heath, Essex, on weekends. Her father, Mitch, often sang Frank Sinatra songs to her, and whenever she was chastised at school, she would sing " Fly Me to the Moon" before going up to the headmistress to be told off. She and Amy's parents influenced Amy's interest in jazz. Amy's paternal grandmother, Cynthia, had been a singer and had dated the English jazz saxophonist Ronnie Scott.
Many of Winehouse's maternal uncles were professional jazz musicians. In the same interview, Winehouse said she only went to a synagogue once a year on Yom Kippur "out of respect". During an interview following her rise to fame, she expressed her dismissal towards the school by saying that she used to beg her father to permit her not to go and that she learned nothing about being Jewish by going anyway. Winehouse attended a Jewish Sunday school while she was a child. The family lived in London's Southgate area, where she attended Osidge Primary School. She had an older brother, Alex (born 1979). Winehouse's great-great-grandfather Harris Winehouse emigrated from Minsk, Belarus, to London in 1891. Her mother was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 2003.
Her father, Mitchell "Mitch" Winehouse, was a window panel installer and taxi driver her mother, Janis Winehouse (née Seaton), was a pharmacist. 10.5 Respiratory and other health problemsĪmy Jade Winehouse was born on 14 September 1983 at Chase Farm Hospital in Gordon Hill, Enfield, to Jewish parents.10.2 Substance abuse and mental illness.2.3 2009–2011: Final projects before death.2.2 2006–2008: Back to Black and international success.
Many of the album's songs were influenced by jazz and, apart from two covers, were co-written by Winehouse. Winehouse's debut album, Frank, was released in 2003.
She also formed a working relationship with producer Salaam Remi through these record publishers. She was known for her deep, expressive contralto vocals and her eclectic mix of musical genres, including soul, rhythm and blues and jazz.Ī member of the National Youth Jazz Orchestra during her youth, Winehouse signed to Simon Fuller's 19 Management in 2002 and soon recorded a number of songs before signing a publishing deal with EMI. Amy Jade Winehouse (14 September 1983 – 23 July 2011) was an English singer and songwriter.