Release Round-Up: Week of January 15

New Order, The Lost Sirens (Rhino) (Amazon U.S./Amazon U.K.)

A cadre of outtakes from the Waiting for the Siren’s Call sessions, this marks the last New Order material with original bassist Peter Hook.

Johnny Mathis, A Special Part of Me: Expanded Edition (Amazon U.S./Amazon U.K.) (Funkytowngrooves)

FTG’s latest R&B expansion has a Michael Jackson connection: the future King of Pop co-wrote for Mathis “Love Never Felt So Good” with Paul Anka!

Talk Talk, Natural History: The Very Best of Talk Talk 1982-1988 (Amazon U.S./Amazon U.K.) / Natural Order 1982-1991 (Amazon U.S./Amazon U.K.) (Virgin/EMI)

Not only a CD/DVD reissue of Talk Talk’s first compilation, but a new set, assembled by frontman Mark Hollis, featuring lesser-known and rare tracks from the band.

Eddie Money, Eddie Money (Amazon U.S./Amazon U.K.) / Life for the Taking (Amazon U.S./Amazon U.K.) / Playing for Keeps (Amazon U.S./Amazon U.K.) / No Control (Amazon U.S./Amazon U.K.) (Rock Candy)

Available in the U.K. now and Stateside next week: the Money Man’s first four Columbia albums, newly remastered and repackaged by Rock Candy.

Marcos Valle, Marcos Valle (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.) /Garra (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.)

This pair of 1970 and 1971 albums found the Brazilian bossa nova legend exploring new sonic terrain.  Light in the Attic tells the whole story with these remastered deluxe reissues!

The Jackson 5, The Jackson 5ive: The Complete Series (Classic Media) (Amazon U.S.: DVD, Blu-Ray)

The entirety of the (probably ridiculous) Rankin-Bass J5 cartoon comes to DVD and, for some reason, Blu-ray!

It’s Their Life: EMI to Release One Old and One New Collection for Talk Talk

With a unique blend of synthpop and post-rock aspirations, the short but powerful discography of Talk Talk is a most interesting one. Next month, two compilations – one classic one, and a new one personally overseen by the band’s elusive frontman Mark Hollis – will shine the spotlight on Talk Talk once more.

On their first two albums, The Party’s Over (1982) and It’s My Life (1984), Talk Talk cut themselves a powerful piece of moody, bubbling New Wave. But it was 1986’s The Colour of Spring and 1988’s Spirit of Eden that the band hit upon their most critically enduring work – minimalist, experimental art-pop for the at-times uncertain decade. Unfortunately, the albums did not enjoy the kind of success that EMI or Parlophone (who distributed Eden) had wanted; in turn, final album Laughing Stock was released by Verve/Polydor in 1991. By then, Hollis, essentially the only member of the group, wanted to spend more time with his family and disbanded the group. After one self-titled album in 1998, Hollis retired from music making.

Though the group openly protested the original release of Natural History (not being a fan of the compilation format itself, and later suing EMI over an unsolicited remix album), the set is a good starting point for the new fan, including all the band’s notable singles (including non-LP track “My Foolish Friend”) and a pair of new live cuts. Like a similar reissue in 2007, this disc is paired with a DVD modelled after the band’s video compilation, Natural History: A Video Selection, including 10 videos and two alternate versions. But it might be new counterpart Natural Order – Hollis’ first collaboration with EMI in years – that will make collectors happy. Billed as a “showcase [for] the ‘other’ side of Talk Talk,” this 10-track disc features album cuts as well as several non-LP B-sides. Best of all, this set includes two tracks from the Laughing Stock era, including a rare alternate version of single “After the Flood.”

Both sets are available in the U.K. on January 14. Hit the jump to check them out!

Short Takes, Early 2013 Watch: Jackson 5 Get Animated, Talk Talk Rarities, Zeppelin Redux?

• What, you thought the renewed interest in the Led Zeppelin catalogue would end with the release of Celebration Day? Jimmy Page recently revealed in an interview with MOJO (excerpted by NME) that he is working on remastering the LZ catalogue for 2013. “There are different versions of tracks that we have that can be added to the album so there will be box sets of material that will come out, starting next year,” Page said. “There will be one box set per album with extra music that will surface.” So, a Zeppelin Immersion Box series, then? Four words: Led Zeppelin collectible scarves. Awwww yeah.
• The next Jackson 5 material to be unearthed from the vaults is non-musical. Classic Media will release The Jackson 5ive, a Rankin/Bass-produced animated series that aired on ABC Saturday mornings in 1971 and 1972. While none of the brothers provided their own voices on the 23 episodes, classic J5 masters did score specially-animated performances in every episode. The show will be released January 15 on two-disc DVD and what looks like a four-disc Blu-Ray/DVD combo pack.
• An article in The Guardian about Mark Hollis and his ’80s pop-rock outfit Talk Talk indicates a forthcoming collection Hollis is working on with EMI, called Natural Order. Our friends at Pause & Play further indicate a January 14 release date in the U.K., alongside a reissue of the 1990 compilation Natural History. Natural Order does not have a final track list, but will apparently serve as a companion to Natural History, and will include tracks from the final Talk Talk LP Laughing Stock, released by Verve in 1991.