Amy Winehouse’s Dad Says Listening to Her New Album Is ‘Difficult’

Amy Winehouse's father, Mitch Winehouse, has been thrust into the spotlight since his daughter's tragic passing earlier this year, and it isn't getting any easier for the London cabbie. In a new interview, he talked about the emotionally draining experience of putting together her posthumous album, 'Lioness,' which drops Dec. 5.

"We had to listen to it because if it wasn't up to scratch, we wouldn't have allowed it to go out," Mitch told reporters. "We weren't pleasantly surprised, we were stunned at how wonderful the album is."

The tracks previewed from the album have been uniformly excellent, and the critical and public responses have been overwhelmingly positive, despite initially taking some flak for releasing the record. Winehouse's producer, Salaam Remi, defended the release by saying, "It makes no sense for these songs to be sitting on a hard drive, withering away.”

The album puts the spotlight back where it belongs, on Amy's talent, which her father said sometimes got forgotten in the intensity of the tabloid circus surrounding her later years. "We were so busy chasing her around all over the place that we forgot how brilliant she was — that's the truth," he said.

Hopefully the album will help create a new legacy for her — and one that properly memorializes her gifted artistry rather than her tortured personal life.

Watch Mitch Winehouse Discuss Amy's Album