Steve Ellis Dies: “Everlasting Love” Singer Was 76

Steve Ellis, the singer for the British pop band Love Affair best known for the 1967 hit “Everlasting Love,” died Friday, October 30, following complications from a chronic illness. He was 76.

His death was announced on his Facebook page. Ellis lived in Brighton, England, and the family statement notes that he passed peacefully in the presence of loved ones.

Although never a major cultural presence in the United States, Ellis’ band Love Affair had several hits in the UK during the late 1960s and early ’70s in addition to their signature tune “Everlasting Love,” which was a cover of the Robert Knight song that features the memorable chorus “Open up your eyes then you realize/Here I stand with my everlasting love.”

Watch the music video for the song below.

The Love Affair version went to #1 in the UK, it failed to chart in the United States. However, its appearance in two films – American Psycho in 2000 and in trailers for the 2021 Jamie Dornan film Belfast (Dornan himself performs the song in the actual film).

The Love Affair version – a 1974 cover by Carl Carlton would have the most success in the U.S. – caused a stir in the UK shortly after its release when it was revealed that, except for Ellis’ distinctive vocals, the instrumentation had been supplied by session musicians. In addition to Ellis, Love Affair consisted of keyboardist Lynton Guest, guitarist Rex Brayley, drummer Maurice Bacon and bassist Mick Jackson.

While “Everlasting Love” remains the band’s signature tune, other UK singles from the group include “She Smiled Sweetly,” “Rainbow Valley,” “A Day Without Love,” “One Road” and “Bringing on Back the Good Times.” Ellis left for a solo career in 1969 and continued to record and perform for decades, often with reconstituted versions of Love Affair.

Born Stephen John Ellis in Edgware, Middlesex, on April 7, 1950, Ellis revealed in a Facebook post last year that he was withdrawing from a planned tour due to health issues, writing, “I have never fully recovered from Covid in 2020 and chronic symptoms since have compromised my ability to sustain lengthy touring anymore.”