As I said yesterday, we’re done playing around with the Amy Winehouse Mix CD. 13 tracks in the rear-view mirror. All of them fantastic works of art, but some of them admittedly stronger than others. Not anymore. Buckle up, folks. It’s nothing but perfect 10/10 tracks the rest of the way. We have nine tracks left (including today’s) and no weakness. Let’s go.
Today we have “Some Unholy War (Down Tempo)” from the original soundtrack to the gut-wrenching, heartbreaking, Academy Award-winning 2015 documentary Amy. The better-known version of “Some Unholy War” is the ninth track from Amy’s 2006 masterpiece Back To Black. “Some Unholy War” was not a single. The album version is a tight 2:22 written by Amy Winehouse, produced by Salaam Remi, and for the record there isn’t a damn thing wrong with it.
There’s so much to love about this track. It’s somber but also low-key funky. Amy’s background vocals provide a haunting backdrop for her lead vocals, which showcase her amazing lower register. Unlike most of the other songs from Back To Black this song features a more scaled back band with drums, bass, and a couple guitars. The quality of the audio makes me visualize Amy recording this track with a live band in a poorly lit abandoned warehouse. It has a gritty vibe in the best possible way. However, this couldn’t have been a live band because not only did Salaam Remi produce the track, he played bass, drums, and guitar. Respect.
As I was writing about the Back To Black version of “Some Unholy War” I brought in one of few people I know whose opinion I trust on matters pertaining to music: my 13-year-old daughter Lucy. Without tipping my hand as to which direction I was leaning I played her the album version, then the down tempo version. 30 seconds into the down tempo she declared, “Oh, this one is better for sure.” Thank you, Lucy. I trained you well.
The down tempo version takes everything I love about the album version and exaggerates it. “Some Unholy War” is no longer just somber. It’s a funeral dirge. The drums – played with brush sticks, I assume – are played like a slow military march. Fitting if war is the imagery Amy is going for. The background vocals are an A+. In fact, is there a better grade than A+? Always laying in the background like a fog. It’s legitimately spooky. Then there’s the addition of the horns. They only appear a few times, but when they do they float in like Minnie the Moocer on Xanax. It’s subtle, but effective.
Then there’s Amy. Most vocalists couldn’t pull this song off because it requires two things that a lot of powerful vocalists don’t have: a low register and a lot of restraint. Even if some could hit the notes, none of them had her unique timbre. Unmatched in modern popular music. I’d love to hear how Billie Eilish would reimagine this song, but the list pretty much ends there.
I’d like to dive into the lyrics for a moment now. To be honest, I’ve always been a little bit confused by them. I know from the documentary Amy Winehouse: Back To Black (and the clip I’m about to share) that it’s the first song Amy wrote about her on and off husband Blake Fielder-Civil. That same doc reveals that she heard the war in Afghanistan referred to as a holy war, and liked the idea of turning the phrase into unholy war to describe her relationship. She’s obviously singing at times about her devotion to Blake no matter what the circumstances. However, there are times during the song when I wonder if she’s not only singing about fighting by his side for their relationship, but fighting with him directly. Here’s an excerpt from the second verse:
He still stands in spite of what his scars say
I’ll battle until this bitter finale
Just me, my dignity, and this guitar case
Such a sick line. I think my confusion has come from my insistence on seeing this as her fighting for her relationship against outside forces. The more I hear it and the more I realize that the war is not with others, the war is with Blake. It’s a struggle for them to maintain their relationship but she’s willing to fight until the end, even if it’s with him and it’s leaving them both scarred, physically and emotionally. As it turns out, my confusion isn’t completely unfounded. Here’s a clip of Amy performing “Some Unholy War” at Glastonbury in 2008 and she admits before the song, “First song I ever wrote about Blake here. I didn’t even know what it was about and I still don’t. It’s a work in progress.” It’s quite possible that was just the alcohol talking as she doesn’t seem to be at her most lucid.
For a live version of “Some Unholy War” I’m going to back to her Porchester Hall gig that happened 17 years ago almost exactly to the day. It was standard for her to perform both versions of the song at that time, which leads me to believe that she and her band were as torn over which version was better as I am. It’s difficult to find a performance of this song that isn’t affected by her inebriation. She’s not quite at her sharpest. It’s also impossible for a live band to match the grit that made the studio versions so great. As I’ve said before, though, if all things are equal tie goes to the Porchester performance because the visuals are stunning right down to Amy’s orange dress. It’s shot beautifully, the venue is amazing, and the lighting crew created a magical atmosphere.
Ultimately, the studio down tempo version of “Some Unholy War” created the dark, dirty illustration of Amy’s tumultuous relationship that no live version could match. It’s a perfect interpretation of dogged determination in the face of long odds. Some of Amy’s finest work. And with that, I step away from the keyboard for another weekend. Eight songs to go until the mixtape is complete. Monday’s track is one that I’ve been patiently for since the beginning. Maybe the only song in Amy’s catalog that could be referred to as a banger? We’ll decide Monday. Have a nice weekend.
mookiefantana 