A Charles Sturt University (CSU) academic cautions that the way the horrors of drug addiction and alcoholism become romanticised and turn prematurely deceased pop performers like Britain’s Amy Winehouse into a mythical figure ignores the realities of her life and death, and the lessons that could be learned from them.

 

Dr Catherine Strong, lecturer at the CSU School of Humanities and Social Sciences in Wagga Wagga says this is particularly the case when one dies at the age of 27, as Winehouse did last weekend, and immediate association with other ‘dead-at-27’ pop stars begins.

 

“Amy Winehouse suffered the ultimate misfortune; not only has she died, but she died at age 27 which has been referred to as ‘cursed’ for musicians, since several of note died at that age,” Dr Strong said.

 

“The roll-call includes Brian Jones, Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Jim Morrison, and Kurt Cobain, who were all so relatively young, talented, and tragic.

 

“That each of these was a complex individual who died in a very specific set of circumstances becomes completely beside the point in accounts that emphasise the similarities between these people to the point that their lives take on a mythical form.

 

“All societies need their myths, of course. In a society where celebrities in many ways have taken on god-like status, it makes sense that they would become key players in the stories we tell ourselves about ourselves. That the group of people under consideration here also belong to the mysterious breed known as ‘artists’ only increases their other-worldly status.

 

“When the obituaries are drawn up, they refer constantly to ‘talent’ and the burdens and gifts it bestows. These talented people, we are told, have the ability to create, but are also beset by ‘demons’ that seem to require lots of drugs and alcohol to subdue. The prevailing notion seems to be that to gain the benefits of their gifts, we must be prepared to endure, if not encourage, their bad behaviour and excesses.

 

“In the case of Amy Winehouse, excess has always been an inherent part of her story. When you break on to the international stage with a song about refusing to go to rehab, and follow this up with public appearances and performances that at times seem designed to showcase not your incredible voice but how off-your-face you are, inevitably the public comes to associate you with drugs as much as with singing.

 

“The power of the myth of the ‘27 Club’, however, means that except for devoted fans who bother to know more, the celebrity involved becomes reduced to the same few simple dot points – talented artist, tortured, unable to cope with the pressures of fame, tragic demise, albums sell more. While this formula makes reporting these deaths easier and gives record company executives neat slogans for their post-death publicity, the unique qualities of these individuals and the other possibilities for how they are remembered fall by the wayside.