Back to Black soundtrack: Does Marisa Abela sing herself?

Some die-hard Amy Winehouse fans were quick to criticize vocal ability by Marisa Abela, who plays the singer in the film.

A clip was released in March showing Back to Black’s description of the process of landing Amy’s first record deal and writing Stronger Than Me – and giving a first glimpse of Abela’s vocals – and some fans were less than impressed.

However, RadioTimes.com’s review praised Abela’s performance, describing her portrayal of Amy as “by turns funny, stubborn, vulnerable and tragic”.

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So, is Abela singing herself, or is Amy’s voice also in the film? Read on for everything you need to know about the soundtrack.

Does Marisa Abela sing herself in Back to Black?

Yesdirector Sam Taylor-Johnson recently revealed that Marisa provided all of the singing for the film, having started lessons for the role.

Talk to Empire, she said: “When we first talked about it, my first question to (Marisa) was, ‘Can you sing?’ And she said, “I can’t.”

She continued: “I thought maybe we would use Amy’s voice throughout, and we would do it that way.

“She then left after that audition – even though she knew she had gotten the role – and started training her voice.”

“Now she sings the whole movie, start to finish. I mean, that’s a huge accomplishment.”

Abela also worked with Winehouse’s original band for the recordings. “Amy’s original band got together and we all went to the recording studio,” Taylor-Johnson added.

“Valley [Davis] was there, his bassist and Ade [Omotayo, singer], and we all stood there and said, ‘F**k! She is incredible.

“They didn’t know what to expect. They were just overwhelmed with emotion, because there are so many feelings on so many levels for the people who were close to her and worked with her.

“Most of the time, they would show up on filming days when we were shooting musical scenes, to just sit and experience that.”

The film‘s music producer, Giles Martin, the son of Beatles producer George Martin, recently weighed in on criticism over the choice of Abela’s voice over Amy’s in the final cut.

“The challenge was acceptance,” he said virginradio.co.uk. “I remember very early on, I think Marisa is fantastic. I’m really proud of the way we did it. I think people always say, ‘Isn’t that Amy Winehouse singing?’ I say, “Well, that’s not Amy Winehouse singing!”

Giles continued: “I think she conveys the emotion, and that’s the challenge, to convey the emotion, the fragility. I think it’s a celebration of Amy, and I think Marisa has done a phenomenal job in this regard.”

Return to the Black soundtrack

Composed and recorded by Nick Cave and Warren Ellis, the soundtrack features three original recordings from Amy’s debut album Frank, three songs from her masterpiece Back to Black and a new track, Song for Amy, sung by Cave .

Other songs by artists who inspired Amy – including The Shangri-Las, Billie Holiday, Minnie Riperton, Dinah Washington and Sarah Vaughan – also appear.

The full soundtrack is as follows:

1CD, 1LP and eAlbum

LP1 – Side A

• Amy Winehouse – What About Men
• Amy Winehouse – Stronger Than Me
• Amy Winehouse – Know You Now
• The Shangri-Las – Leader of the Pack
• Billie Holiday – All of Me
• Amy Winehouse – Back to Black

LP1 – Side B

• Minnie Riperton – The Flowers
• Dinah Washington – Boy Crazy
• Amy Winehouse – Love is a losing game
• Sarah Vaughan with Clifford Brown – Embraceable You
• Amy Winehouse – Tears dry on their own
• Nick Cave – Song for Amy

2CD, 2LP and Deluxe eAlbum

LP1 – Side A

• Thelonious Monk – Straight, No Hunter
• Amy Winehouse – What About Men
• Amy Winehouse – Stronger Than Me
• Amy Winehouse – I Heard That Love is Blind
• Specials – Ghost Town
• Amy Winehouse – Know You Now
• Little Anthony & The Imperials – I’m on the outside (I’m looking in)

LP1 – Side B

• The Shangri-Las – Pack Leader
• Billie Holiday – All of Me
• The Shangri-Las – Dressed in black
• Donny Hathaway – I love you more than you will ever know
• The Libertines – Don’t look back towards the sun
• Amy Winehouse – F**k Me Pumps

LP2 – Side C

• Tony Bennett – Body and soul
• Amy Winehouse – Back to Black
• Amy Winehouse – Valérie (Live Lounge version)
• Minnie Riperton – The Flowers
• Willie Nelson – That’s Life
• Dinah Washington – Boy Crazy
• Amy Winehouse – (There is) no greater love

LP2 – Side D

• Amy Winehouse – Me and Mr. Jones
• Amy Winehouse – Love is a losing game
• Amy Winehouse – Rehabilitation
• Sarah Vaughan with Clifford Brown – Embraceable You
• Amy Winehouse – Tears dry on their own
• Nick Cave – Song for Amy

Back to Back will be released in cinemas across the UK and Ireland on Friday 12 April 2024.

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