"Love in a Park (on a Sunday Afternoon)" by Ellie Gowers
Review
I have been fortunate enough to hear Ellie Gowers' new song "Love in a Park (on a Sunday Afternoon") live twice this year in very different arrangements: solo & acoustic in February & with her new trio at Warwick Folk Festival (with Joss Mann-Hazell on bass guitar & double bass and Scarlett Churchill on drums). That it stood out even in the company of other terrific fresh material in both versions is a key indicator of its inherent qualities.
You'll be used to Ellie's scintillating original folk work & her high intensity songs in modern idiom, but I'm pretty sure that this might be her first true pop song. You have certainly never heard her like this before and I'd also say after so many songs of care for others, it's good to hear her concentrate upon her own enjoyment of life for once: this is a state of bliss she's earned.
It's clear that Ellie has been enjoying herself a great deal recently, both with her new group and as part of Filkin's Ensemble. However since this song was written last year, the convergence of her writing & her life must owe more to the latter falling into alignment with the former than as a Summer 2024 diary. It's a true tale of last year though by all accounts.
Being both a writer of music & lyrics of the highest quality, she expresses this through both aspects of the composition. The former offers so much to the music fan: it's her first adventure into the funk and if she ever collaborates with New Order, it might come out a bit like this. Some people may call it lush. Who am I to contest that with them. As for the words, this is new territory & opens so many exciting new possibilities.
As noted in my review of the preceding single "A Moment", when I first heard this one, I thought that it was ideal single material & have frankly been expecting its arrival. That "A Moment" was released before it did, at the time, surprise me a little given the obvious commercial potential of the song we're now focusing on, but after some reflection, as outlined last time, I came to understand her reasoning. It didn't affect the overall issue naturally as here it is in all its glory. That even with this banger in hand she still prioritised artistic considerations tells you yet more about Ellie.
"Love in a Park (on a Sunday Afternoon)" reaches out to new audiences her work to date probably has not yet reached: as such the benefits to her career, commercial wellbeing, airplay etc are clear. The quality of the song also makes it one of those "Records of the Year" type list candidates for those who can compile such things.
Look out too for Ellie's gig at the Tin on 9th November when hopefully she'll be playing this one amongst many others.
