Amy Winehouse Joins The 27 Club

Amy Winehouse lost her life just two days ago at the age of 27. Though the ultimate reason as to how she died has yet to be determined, her addiction to drugs and alcohol is widely known. What's eerie about Amy Winehouse's death is the age - 27. How many talented, artistic, troubled people have lost their lives at the age of 27? Rolling Stone Brian Jones - drowned in a swimming pool in 1969. Jimi Hendrix - choked to death after mixing wine and sleeping pills in 1970. Janis Joplin - a heroin overdose that same year. Jim Morrison - heart failure in 1971. Kurt Cobain - in 1994. It even goes as far back as The Elephant Man, John Merrick, who is said to have died of asphyxia in 1890. And the list continues - with the identical, troubling number - 27.

In no means am I romanticizing or diluting the lives (or deaths) of these people by combining them into one impractical "club." It is just one strange piece of a puzzle, as if, somehow, these people do all fit together. Amy Winehouse was an addict. She suffered from the disease of addiction, which many seem to overlook with the comments of "This isn't surprising" or "She had it coming." It's a difficult idea to understand when observing it from the outer edges, but addiction is a disease and should be viewed as such.

Comedian Russell Brand, who, being a former heroin addict himself, knows the ins and outs of such a downward spiral, has written a tribute to Amy Winehouse - someone he knew for years - on his website, entitled "For Amy."

Thoughtful and introspective, Russell writes, "When you love someone who suffers from the disease of addiction you await the phone call. There will be a phone call. The sincere hope is that the call will be from the addict themselves, telling you they've had enough, that they're ready to stop, ready to try something new. Of course though, you fear the other call, the sad nocturnal chime from a friend or relative telling you it's too late, she's gone.