Dale Davis, Amy Winehouse's bass player and longtime musical director, has reflected on her life and struggles, saying he has never seen “anyone tolerate so much pain as Amy.” Davis, who joined Winehouse on tour in 2007, is honouring her legacy with a special set of gigs marking the 20th anniversary of the release of Back to Black.
Winehouse died in July 2011 from alcohol poisoning at the age of 27, after years of well-documented battles with addiction.
“One small step to recovery”
Davis, who was close friends with Winehouse, said: “Everyone tried their best to help. She's not here because she didn't get the help she needed. I always felt with Amy that she only needed to make one small step to recovery, but making that one step was impossible in the end.”
He added: “I think some people just don't know how to ask for help. They're not conditioned that way. I've never seen anyone tolerate so much pain as Amy.”
The 2007 tour involved around 54 dates across 11 countries, and Davis said it had a profound impact on Winehouse.
The making of a classic album
“Amy wasn't well. She was very professional, but I think when the tiredness kicked in, then the erraticism came in as well…We had a lot of conversations about those sort of things, and sometimes she realised that she was being destructive, but she'd talk about it without any drama,” Davis said.
Back to Black chronicled the breakdown of Winehouse's relationship with her on/off boyfriend Blake Fielder-Civil, and featured hits such as Rehab, Tears Dry On Their Own, and You Know I'm No Good. The album won five Grammy Awards in 2008.
Davis recalled: “I remember congratulating Amy on the success, and she said, without any arrogance, 'I knew what I was doing.' So I think once she recorded Frank, she observed how to record. She was a very intelligent person, and he only took her one album to learn what was needed for a great album.”
Keeping her music alive
Mark Ronson, who co-produced the album, recently announced a special edition of Back to Black to mark 20 years since its release in October. He said: “Amy was one of one. One-of-a-kind artist. One-of-a-kind spirit. One-of-a-kind soul…Experiencing that level of talent, passion, humour, honesty and love for what she created was a gift.”
Davis also had a close friendship with Winehouse and was heavily impacted by her death, especially as she had predicted it months earlier. He said: “It was a shock. Well, it doesn't make sense because we were out two nights beforehand and when I spoke to her on the phone the night beforehand, everything seemed fine.”
“There's a couple of things that make me think maybe there was something that she felt. I know that she spoke to my ex-wife and said six months before she passed that she wouldn't see 28.”
The Amy Winehouse Band began performing in 2016 and wants to keep her music alive. Asked how Winehouse would feel about that, Davis joked: “I've often thought that if she was disapproving of the whole thing, I'd have been struck down by lightning.”
The band realised the importance of sharing her music after meeting a terminally ill woman whose wish was to see their show. Davis said: “At that point, very quickly at the whole start of this early The Amy Winehouse Band, I realised that it's all about the audience and not us.”
The Amy Winehouse Band 20th anniversary Back To Black Album Tour kicks off on October 22.
