Amy Winehouse Bombs in Belgrade: Cancels Comeback Tour

It's all over for Amy Winehouse. After spending most of the past two years flirting with treatment at a string of upscale rehabs, the talented but troubled singer was said to be overcoming her longtime battle with booze and other substances. Avoiding the public spotlight for the past few years, she has spent the last few months planning a month-long European tour—her first since 2009. Then, earlier this month, she checked in to an upscale London rehab, The Priory, at the urging of her father, downing a quick mini-bottle of vodka on the way there. Less than a week later, she abruptly fled the facility. Her bizarre about-face left many observers wondering if she was truly ready for the grueling month-long tour. But her secret comeback gig at the Tony Club100 in London seemed to quell those fears. Focused and funny, her three-hour performance was praised by her hand-picked guests as a rousing, pitch-perfect success.

An uplifting story of overcoming serious addictions and letting the best of her art shine through? We wish.

But as the Wall Street Journal reported over the weekend, the long-awaited kickoff to Winehouse's world tour in Belgrade turned into a drunken disaster that ended the long-anticipated tour after just one performance. 20,000 fans anted up some serious money—40 euro—to witness the singer's reemergence, in a country where most people earn an average income of about 300 euro. Instead, they were treated to a rambling, off-key performance. According to some press reports, Winehouse had contractually agreed to forego any drugs or alcohol during the concert. Apparently, she changed her mind. Barely coherent, the singer showed up an hour late to her concert, wobbled unsteadily across the stage, dropped her microphone, and even fell several times. The next morning, the city's leading newspaper blasted the show as “the worst in the history of Belgrade." We’re guessing that such a sobriquet is not an easy title to earn in Serbia, especially if you are a singer with Amy’s amazing range and talents. In the wake of the well-publicized disaster, the singer's spokespeople claimed she would be merely delaying her tour for a week. But today, Winehouse announced she has decided to scrap the tour entirely. The whole incident reminds us, sadly, of the embarrassing string of concert appearances Whitney Houston made last year in Europe before throwing in the towel and retreating to rehab. But judge for yourselves. Here, courtesy of YouTube, are five excruciatingly long minutes of the disastrous evening: