Continuing a countdown of my favorite albums of 2006…

#6 – Back to Black – Amy Winehouse

Apparently 2006 was a great year for brash young English women, because I’m following Lily Allen’s debut with the classic sophomore album by Amy Winehouse.

Back to Black, inspired by Winehouse’s temporary split from Blake Fielder-Civil, is one of the great breakup albums of all-time, and the greatest example of the neo soul movement that spiked in the 2000s.

Produced by Mark Ronson and Salaam Remi, each helming half of the album’s tracks, the record blends soulful R&B and girl-group style with the sounds of modern hip-hop. It’s a tasty musical mix, but it became a phenomenon only because of Winehouse’s rich, saucy vocals and keen songwriting.

Opening track ‘Rehab’ became a surprise top ten hit in both the UK and the U.S., standing out for its confessional lyrics and foot-stomping beat. Other singles didn’t perform as well, but the album as a whole did, going 2X Platinum in the States and selling more than 20 million copies worldwide.

This was an album that demanded to be consumed in full, with every track giving Winehouse an opportunity to shine.

It should have been the start of a brilliant career, but instead the next few years were filled with stories of Winehouse abusing drugs and alcohol, cancelling performances, and getting in trouble with the law.

In a 2008 post, I called Winehouse a “supremely talented train wreck of a musician who appears hellbent on dying young.” Sadly, I was proven right a few years later. She died from alcohol poisoning in July of 2011.