| "Itchycoo Park" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Dutch picture sleeve | ||||
| Single by Small Faces | ||||
| B-side | "I'm Only Dreaming" | |||
| Released | 4 August 1967 | |||
| Recorded | 3–7 July 1967[1] | |||
| Studio | Olympic (London) | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 2:45 | |||
| Label | Immediate | |||
| Songwriter(s) | ||||
| Producer(s) |
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| Small Faces singles chronology | ||||
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| Audio sample | ||||
"Itchycoo Park" is a song by English rock band Small Faces, written by Steve Marriott and Ronnie Lane. Largely written by Lane, it was among a number of pop songs of the era to make use of flanging, an effect involving, at that time, electro-mechanical processes. The song was not included on any of their UK albums, but was however featured on the North American release There Are But Four Small Faces (1968).
Released on 4 August 1967 by Immediate Records, the song was the Small Faces' fifth top-ten song in the UK Singles Chart, reaching a position of number three. "Itchycoo Park" became the Small Faces' sole top-forty hit in the United States, reaching number sixteen on the US Billboard Hot 100 in early 1968. In Continental Europe, it reached the top ten in several countries, while in Canada and New Zealand it was a number one hit. The single was re-released in December 1975, reaching number nine in the UK Singles chart, and is often attributed as the reason for the Small Faces reunion during the mid-1970s.[6]
The song has since been covered by various other recording artists, most notably by English group M People in 1995, whose dance rendition of the song reached number eleven in the UK.
The location and etymology of the titular park has long been debated, many claiming it to be Little Ilford Park in Manor Park, East London, Valentine's Park in Ilford or Wanstead Flats in Wanstead, East London.
- ^ Caiger, Rob; Flood, Tosh (2014). Greatest Hits: The Immediate Years 1967–1969 (Liner notes). Small Faces. Immediate, Charly. F 847.
- ^ DeRogatis, Jim (2003). "Ten Great English Psychedelic Rock Songs". Turn On Your Mind: Four Decades of Great Psychedelic Rock. Hal Leonard Corporation. p. 162. ISBN 0-634-05548-8.
- ^ "10 Essential Small Faces/Faces Songs". Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Archived from the original on 14 June 2016. Retrieved 21 March 2020.
- ^ Barnes, Mike (2024). A New Day Yesterday: UK Progressive Rock & the 70s (2nd ed.). London: Omnibus Press. pp. 9–10. ISBN 9781915841360.
- ^ Stanley, Bob (13 September 2013). "1966: The London Look". Yeah Yeah Yeah: The Story of Modern Pop. Faber & Faber. p. 206. ISBN 978-0-571-28198-5.
- ^ "IanMcLagan.com - The Story of the Small Faces in Their Own Words: Reunions". 19 October 2004. Archived from the original on 19 October 2004. Retrieved 3 July 2020.