Back To Black Turns 20: Amy Winehouse's Landmark Album Gets a Definitive Reissue

Back To Black Turns 20: Amy Winehouse's Landmark Album Gets a Definitive Reissue

Twenty years on from its release, Back To Black is getting the anniversary treatment it deserves. Universal Music is reissuing Amy Winehouse's multi-Grammy-winning masterpiece in a series of deluxe formats — including four previously unheard demos, rare B-sides, a full live performance never before released on vinyl or streaming, and never-before-seen photography — landing Friday 23 October, just days ahead of the album's original 27 October 2006 release date.

Leading the campaign is "Tears Dry (Alternative Demo)" — an early, stripped-back version of one of the album's most beloved songs, out now as a preview of what's to come. Where the finished "Tears Dry On Their Own" moves at an upbeat, Motown-inspired tempo — a shift producer Salaam Remi made after hearing the Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell sample "Ain't No Mountain High Enough" that inspired it — this demo captures the song at its original, slower pace. The track went on to spend four consecutive weeks at No. 1 on the UK Airplay Chart in 2007.

Back To Black needs little introduction. Amy's deeply personal second album debuted at No. 3 in the UK before climbing to No. 1 and becoming the best-selling album of 2007. It's since sold more than 25 million copies worldwide — including a recent ARIA Diamond certification in Australia — and swept five Grammy Awards, among them Record of the Year, Song of the Year and Best Pop Vocal Album.

"It's crazy that six songs made in a fit of furious musical infatuation would matter so deeply to so many people twenty years later," says Mark Ronson, who produced much of the album alongside Salaam Remi.

Remi, reflecting on the anniversary, put it simply: "Amy was one of one. One-of-a-kind artist. One-of-a-kind spirit. One-of-a-kind soul. Experiencing that level of talent, passion, humour, honesty, and love for what she created was a gift."

What's in the reissue

The centrepiece is a 3LP clear vinyl and matching 3CD set, collecting the Back To Black era in full — the original album, four unheard and unreleased demos, rare B-sides, and a third disc capturing Amy's live performance from Paradiso, Amsterdam, on 8 February 2007, never before released in full on vinyl or streaming. The set also includes new alternative cover artwork, a handwritten lyric sheet from Mark Ronson's personal archive, previously unseen photography from original album photographers Mischa Richter and Alex Lake, and new liner notes from Ronson and Remi.

Rounding out the anniversary suite are two limited-edition 1LP variants of the original album: a 'Chalkboard Marble' colour vinyl, and a webstore-exclusive Zoetrope vinyl featuring moving footage of Amy when spun.

All formats — physical and digital — release via UMR/Island on Friday 23 October 2026.

Back To Black 20th Anniversary Edition is available to pre-order now, with "Tears Dry (Alternative Demo)" streaming today.