You Sent Me Flying / Cherry (Cherry is a hidden track)
F**k Me Pumps
I Heard Love Is Blind
(There Is) No Greater Love
In My Bed
Take The Box
October Song
What Is It About Men
Amy Amy Amy / Outro
With her debut album Frank, Amy Winehouse proves to be one of the most original, honest, and brave singer/songwriters to emerge in recent years. Over the course of the 13 songs, she manages to do everything required of a c... more »lassic album. This is a stark piece of work, comprising husky, frequently sexually charged vocals, painfully honest lyrics and soft trumpets, laidback beats, and sparse guitar work. It seems that soulful jazz doesn't always have to be bland--it can also be playful, twisted, and arrogant ("Amy Amy Amy"). "F*** Me Pumps" charts a seemingly guilt-free act of infidelity: "What do you expect when you leave me here alone?" she asks coyly, as if by way of justifiable explanation. "You wouldn't want me to be lonely," she adds. You can't help warming to her, despite what she's saying. A unique sense of humour (how rare in music now) and a no-bull attitude make for an interesting, compelling debut. Frank? Yes, but refreshingly so. You wouldn't want her for a girlfriend, but as a life companion she may yet prove indispensable. --Cortman Virtue« less
With her debut album Frank, Amy Winehouse proves to be one of the most original, honest, and brave singer/songwriters to emerge in recent years. Over the course of the 13 songs, she manages to do everything required of a classic album. This is a stark piece of work, comprising husky, frequently sexually charged vocals, painfully honest lyrics and soft trumpets, laidback beats, and sparse guitar work. It seems that soulful jazz doesn't always have to be bland--it can also be playful, twisted, and arrogant ("Amy Amy Amy"). "F*** Me Pumps" charts a seemingly guilt-free act of infidelity: "What do you expect when you leave me here alone?" she asks coyly, as if by way of justifiable explanation. "You wouldn't want me to be lonely," she adds. You can't help warming to her, despite what she's saying. A unique sense of humour (how rare in music now) and a no-bull attitude make for an interesting, compelling debut. Frank? Yes, but refreshingly so. You wouldn't want her for a girlfriend, but as a life companion she may yet prove indispensable. --Cortman Virtue
"I stumbled upon Amy Winehouse through a music profile on a friend's myspace page. The song was "Back To Black" from the same-titled recent release.
I was completely blown away by the sound. Her voice is like silk over the tripped up beats and rehash of the 1960's.
I looked deeper into her book of work and picked up "Frank". While "Back to Black" is a flawless piece of work... "Frank" is simply perfection. It's much simplier but in it's simplicity lies it's beauty. She allows the beats to remain scarce so that her voice is the anchor to each song.
This album is definitely worth hunting for."
A glowing and powerful debut from Amy Winehouse.....
D. Pawl | Seattle | 05/03/2008
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Amy, Amy, Amy.....(to quote a song from this album)
FRANK, the debut by the wildly talented Amy Winehouse, released five years ago, is a fusion of 1940s and 1950s jazz/blues and contemporary soul. These songs were released when Ms. Winehouse was nineteen and filled with worldly insight. Yes, most of it's pretty bitter and uncensored accounts of her bad experiences with men, the infamous subjects of her song "F-Me Pumps," who are aging golddiggers, and frank observances about substance abuse and sex.
The band is tight and seamless here. The combination of a soaring horn section, soulful percussion and Amy's sultry vocals make the album as technically brilliant as it is entertaining. I found myself giggling, because her lyrics are just so honest and real! Amy doesn't pull any punches. I particularly love "Amy, Amy, Amy" which is a grand nod to the great jazz and soul bands of the 1930s and 1940s. Damn, that horn is seductive. Also, she penned all of the tunes on this album herself, with the exception of her beautiful, reggae-inspired cover of "Moody's In the Mood For Love." You really can't compare her to anyone! One of a kind.......Brilliant, wonderful and bitingly intelligent.........."
Brilliant
kevvers | san francisco, ca | 07/04/2007
(5 out of 5 stars)
"If you think Back to Black is brilliant, wait until you hear Frank! Soul and Jazz stylings meet together here and the end result is magnificent."
Great But Won't Upload to my ITunes: Copy Forbidden!
Kristen C | So Cal | 11/30/2007
(4 out of 5 stars)
"Frank
Great work of music I love it, but imagine my disgust and surprise when I tried to download the CD I had purchased and waited months for Amazon to send to me (I got a back-order notice at one point) to my iTunes so I could enjoy "Frank" on my iPod but couldn't. Very clearly printed on this cd is an "FBI Anti-piracy Warning: unauthorized copying is punishable by law".
Since when is backing my music up to my iTunes and listening to it on my iPod a crime? Fine (not). So then I went to iTunes and paid $3 less for "Frank" plus I received two bonus songs. And it's on my iPod now. Which is how I listen to my music 95% of the time whether through headphones, my radio adapter or hooked up to speakers in my office.
So, two things learned here:
1. This album was worth buying twice. It's that great. I love the sexy and playful ode to office crushes in "Amy Amy Amy." The wicked humor of Paris-Hilton-wannabes bashing in "F**K me pumps" is tinged with just the right amount of that kind of bitchy-sweetness you get when smiling while insulting someone.
Where Amy's amazing album "Back to Black" smacks of a 1960's alcohol and cigarette-ravaged, dive-lounge torch singer hasbeen who's still pushing it with bravado every Thursday and Saturday nights, "Frank" (being three years younger) has Amy's voice a bit fresher and smoother but there's still that attitude in her performance and lyrics that makes the album a necessary part of the Winehouse collection. If you like the retro attention given to "Back to Black," "Frank" uses it in a milder but effective way.
2. Always try to make sure, when purchasing from Amazon, that there is a notice in the product page that the cd is "FBI-protected." If there is no such warning, and you intend to download something to your MP3 player, maybe just try iTunes first. Or...Amazon: where's your online mp3 download store?"
Bluesy Soul for Grownups (If a bit vulgar)
G. E. Williams | California | 07/26/2008
(4 out of 5 stars)
"I have liked this album better each time I listen to it, and I definitely like it better than "Black". Her voice is noticeably better, and the caustic humor is just as biting. "You should be stronger than me", is a great example.
So here's the short version,
Frank is a very good CD if... you love old school R&B (60's)
AND
You aren't put off by bad language, and adult themes. In other words, I would never play it with my parents or kids in the room, but I like it for what it is.