MacColl told Smash Hits in 1985, "I always thought 'A New England' would be great with loads of harmonies, it's such a good melody.
"[11] MacColl recalled to Record Mirror in 1985, "It was hell making the video, I was seven months pregnant and it was shot out in the freezing cold.
"[12] On its release, Richard Cook of New Musical Express wrote, "Bragg's 'A New England' proves to be a skimming and vivacious vehicle for MacColl and the song checks for the pop sense of composer and singer; but Lillywhite's production might be too clever where it needs a simple stroke, unassuming when it needs to strike clear and hard.
"[13] Mike Gardiner of Record Mirror stated that MacColl had "admirably tenderised the Billy Bragg original without weakening one of last year's better love songs".
[15] Bill Black of Sounds was negative in his review, noting that MacColl and Lillywhite were "not content to stick with the anorexic arrangement" of Bragg's original, but opted to "feed the song up with a crippling bpm and at least two skyward leaps at a change of mood".
He felt the result had "come down hard on a simple tale that asks only to be told, not trampled underfoot by an over-fed mix".