Family say farewell to ‘angel’ Winehouse

LONDON,  (Reuters) – The family of Amy Winehouse  gathered at a north London cemetery today to bid farewell  to their “angel”, three days after the troubled singer was found  dead at her home.
Some 100 mourners, including Winehouse’s producer Mark  Ronson and Kelly Osbourne, attended the traditional Jewish  funeral that closed with her father Mitch saying: “Good night my  angel, sleep tight; Mummy and Daddy love you ever so much.”
A family spokesman said Carole King’s “So Far Away” was  played at the end of the service. King’s “You’ve Got a Friend”  was the first song Amy and her father had sung together.
In a eulogy at the private service, Mitch Winehouse said his  27-year-old daughter had been happier in recent months than she  had been for years, and was looking forward to a future with her  boyfriend of the past two years, film director Reg Traviss, 35.
Earlier, Traviss had denied rumours the singer died in a  drug-fuelled haze.
“She had been full of life and so upbeat recently,  exercising every day and doing yoga,” he told the Sun newspaper.  “This terrible thing that happened is like an accident.”
After the service, Winehouse was cremated at Golders Green  Crematorium where her grandmother Cynthia, a singer who dated  jazz legend Ronnie Scott, was also cremated, the spokesman said.
An inquest opened on Monday and was adjourned until October,  with police describing the death as unexplained and an autopsy  failing to determine the cause of death. More medical tests are  being carried out, with the results expected next month.
Tributes to the “Back to Black” singer continued to pour in.  Her talent was eclipsed over recent years by her battles with  drugs and alcohol, and her last stage appearances had been  derided as shambolic.
Singer Adele wrote on her website: “i don’t think she ever  realised just how brilliant she was and how important she is,  but that just makes her even more charming.
“although im incredibly sad about Amy passing im also  reminded of how immensely proud of her i am as well. and  grateful to be inspired by her. Amy flies in paradise xx”
Winehouse was the most soulful vocalist Britain had ever  seen, singer George Michael wrote on Twitter.
In an echo of the aftermath of Michael Jackson’s death two  years ago, sales of her records have boomed.
Record industry body the Official Charts Company said on  Tuesday that her music was expected to dominate the British  charts by the end of the week.
She is on course to have seven singles in the Top 40 and 14  in the Top 200, with the biggest selling track currently Back To  Black followed by “Rehab”, “Tears Dry On Their Own”, “You Know  I’m No Good” and “Valerie”.
In the year following his death, Jackson sold more records  in Britain than any other artist.
The Daily Telegraph newspaper reported this week that  material recorded before Winehouse’s death could be released as  a posthumous album.
They cited sources who said Winehouse had recorded “a lot  of material” and that her parents would have the final say on  whether a new album was to be released.
Winehouse’s spokesman told Reuters there was no news about  the release of a third album. “I know there’s material about,  but no one’s talked about it,” he said.