Twenty-five years after its original release, My Life Story’s Joined Up Talking is back—and it’s louder, lusher, and more lovingly curated than ever. Out 28 November 2025 via Republic of Music, the band’s third album returns in a remastered 25th Anniversary Edition, available for the first time on double coloured vinyl and a deluxe 3xCD set packed with B-sides, demos, and rarities.
Originally released in 2000, Joined Up Talking captured the tail-end of Britpop’s golden age with a wink and a scalpel. Jake Shillingford’s lyrics stitched together tabloid headlines, pop culture detritus, and surrealist wit—Monica Lewinsky, Tamagotchis, Pret A Manger, and the dot-com boom all make cameo appearances. It was smart, strange, and singular.
Singles like “It’s a Girl Thing,” “Empire Line,” and “Walk/Don’t Walk” showcased the band’s flair for theatrical pop, while “If You Can’t Live Without Me Then Why Aren’t You Dead Yet?” made history as the world’s first downloadable single. Now, with a remastered video of “It’s a Girl Thing” and a full archive of demos and B-sides, the album feels more vital than ever.
Frontman Jake Shillingford has been digging deep into his personal archive—digitising cassette tapes, DATs, press clippings, and photo contact sheets—to bring fans along for the ride. His Patreon page offers a behind-the-scenes look at the album’s original release and the journey to its rebirth.
Recorded at Parkgate Studios in 1999 with producer Pete Gleadall (Madonna, Pet Shop Boys), Joined Up Talking was influenced by the genre-bending spirit of Beck and the spiritual shimmer of Ray of Light. It’s a record that dared to be both clever and heartfelt, and its reissue proves it still connects.
Double coloured vinyl for the first time ever
3xCD deluxe edition featuring:
CD1: The original album
CD2: B-sides of the era
CD3: Demos and rarities from 1997–1998
Full Tracklist
CD 1
1. Empire Line
2. If You Can’t Live Without Me Then Why Aren’t You Dead Yet?
3. It’s a Girl Thing
4. Sunday Tongue
5. Yes to Everything
6. Walk / Don’t Walk
7. There’s Nothing for Nobody and Everybody Wants to Be Someone
8. The New New Yorker
9. Neverland
10. Stalemate
11. I Don’t Believe in Love
12. Two Stars
CD 2 - B Sides of the era
1. Cherries
2. Holy Deadlock
3. Emerald Green Blah Blah Blah
4. My Sweet Little Death
5. The History of the World on Ice
6. I’m a Statistic
7. Sleep
8. Florence’s Theme
9. Self-Defence Mechanism
10. Paint It Emerald Green
11. It’s a Boy Thing
12. Walk / Don’t Walk (Parts 1 & 2)
13. E.G.M.C.M.X.C.I.X.
CD 3 - Demos and rarities
1. Neverland (RAK Demo ’97)
2. The New New Yorker (RAK Demo ’97)
3. Emerald Green Blah Blah Blah (RAK Demo ’97)
4. Walk / Don’t Walk (Battery Demo ’97)
5. Florence’s Theme (RAK Demo ’97)
6. It’s a Girl Thing (Matrix Demo ’98)
7. I Don’t Believe in Love (Matrix Demo ’98)
8. Sunday Tongue (Matrix Demo ’98)
9. Empire Line (Single Version)
10. Grieve (Matrix Demo ’98)
11. Here Comes the Big Weekend (Matrix Demo ’98)
12. If You Can’t Live Without Me Then Why Aren’t You Dead Yet? (Matrix Demo ’98)
13. Stalemate (Matrix Demo ’98)
14. Two Stars (Matrix Demo ’98)
15. There’s Nothing for Nobody and Everybody Wants to Be Someone (Demo ’97)
16. It’s a Girl Thing (D-Bop’s Boys Mix)
To celebrate the reissue, My Life Story will perform Joined Up Talking in full alongside a “best of” set at select UK venues this winter:
16 Nov – Minehead, Shiiine On Weekender (Butlins)
5 Dec – London Dingwalls
6 Dec – Brighton Hope & Ruin
11 Dec – Manchester Gullivers
12 Dec – Kendal Brewery Arts Club
Tickets available HERE
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