Ask the Lonely

"Ask the Lonely"
"Ask the Lonely"
Single by Four Tops
from the album Four Tops
B-side	"Where Did You Go"
Released	5 January 1965
Recorded	Hitsville U.S.A. (Studio A); 1964
Genre	Soul, pop
Label	Motown
Songwriter(s)	Ivy Jo Hunter,; William "Mickey" Stevenson
Four Tops singles chronology

"Ask the Lonely" is a soul/pop ballad recorded by Motown singing group the Four Tops. Released as the group's third single, the single became the group's second successful single ever since signing to Motown in 1963. Released in 1965, the song rose to number 24 pop^[2] and number 9 R&B.^[3] It's notable for it being co-written by longtime Motown staffer Mickey Stevenson as most of the group's hits on Motown were written and produced by Holland-Dozier-Holland. It's also notable for lead singer Levi Stubbs' emotional lead and The Andantes helping the other Tops (Renaldo "Obie" Benson, Lawrence Payton and Abdul "Duke" Fakir) in the background.

Billboard described the song as a "strong ballad follow-up to [the Four Tops' previous single] 'Without the One You Love.'"^[4]

Personnel[]

Lead vocal by Levi Stubbs
Background vocals by the Renaldo "Obie" Benson, Lawrence Payton, Abdul "Duke" Fakir, and The Andantes: Jackie Hicks, Marlene Barrow, and Louvain Demps
Instrumentation by The Funk Brothers and the Detroit Symphony Orchestra

References[]

^ "Ask The Lonely / Where Did You Go - Four Tops". discogs.com. Retrieved 2020-05-03.
^ Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955-1990 - ISBN 0-89820-089-X
^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004. Record Research. p. 212.
^ "Singles Reviews" (PDF). Billboard. January 30, 1965. p. 39. Retrieved 2021-04-02.

This 1960s single-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by .

[1] "Ask The Lonely / Where Did You Go - Four Tops". discogs.com. Retrieved 2020-05-03.

[2] Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955-1990 - ISBN 0-89820-089-X

[3] Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004. Record Research. p. 212.

[bb-4] "Singles Reviews" (PDF). Billboard. January 30, 1965. p. 39. Retrieved 2021-04-02.

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v t Four Tops
Abdul "Duke" Fakir Ronnie McNeir Roquel Payton Harold Bonhart Levi Stubbs Renaldo "Obie" Benson Lawrence Payton Theo Peoples
Studio albums	Four Tops Four Tops Second Album On Top Reach Out Yesterday's Dreams The Four Tops Now! Soul Spin Still Waters Run Deep Changing Times Nature Planned It Keeper of the Castle Main Street People Meeting of the Minds Night Lights Harmony Catfish The Show Must Go On At the Top Tonight! One More Mountain Back Where I Belong Magic Hot Nights Indestructible Christmas Here with You
Albums with The Supremes	The Magnificent 7 The Return of the Magnificent Seven Dynamite
Compilations	The Four Tops Greatest Hits The Ultimate Collection
Singles	"I Can't Help Myself (Sugar Pie Honey Bunch)" "It's the Same Old Song" "Reach Out I'll Be There" "Standing in the Shadows of Love" "Bernadette" "Walk Away Renée" "If I Were a Carpenter" "It's All in the Game" "Still Water (Love)" "A Simple Game" "Keeper of the Castle" "Ain't No Woman (Like the One I've Got)" "When She Was My Girl" "Loco in Acapulco"
Related topics	Discography Holland–Dozier–Holland The Supremes

v t Four Tops singles discography
1960s	1964 "Baby I Need Your Loving" "Without the One You Love (Life's Not Worth While)" 1965 "Ask the Lonely" "I Can't Help Myself (Sugar Pie Honey Bunch)" "It's the Same Old Song" "Something About You" 1966 "Shake Me, Wake Me (When It's Over)" "Loving You Is Sweeter Than Ever" "Reach Out I'll Be There" "Standing in the Shadows of Love" 1967 "Bernadette" "7-Rooms of Gloom" / "I'll Turn to Stone" "You Keep Running Away" 1968 "Walk Away Renée" "If I Were a Carpenter" "Yesterday's Dreams" "I'm in a Different World" 1969 "What Is a Man" "Do What You Gotta Do" "Don't Let Him Take Your Love from Me"
1970s	1970 "I Can't Help Myself (Sugar Pie Honey Bunch)" (re-issue) "It's All in the Game" "Still Water (Love)" "River Deep – Mountain High" (with The Supremes) 1971 "Just Seven Numbers (Can Straighten Out My Life)" "You Gotta Have Love in Your Heart" (with The Supremes) "In These Changing Times" "MacArthur Park (Part II)" 1972 "A Simple Game" "Bernadette" (re-issue) "Walk with Me, Talk with Me, Darling" "(It's the Way) Nature Planned It" "Keeper of the Castle" 1973 "Ain't No Woman (Like the One I've Got)" "Are You Man Enough" "Sweet Understanding Love" 1974 "I Just Can't Get You Out of My Mind" "One Chain Don't Make No Prison" "Midnight Flower" 1975 "Seven Lonely Nights" "We All Gotta Stick Together" 1976 "Catfish" "I'm Glad You Walked into My Life"
1980s	1981 "When She Was My Girl" "Don't Walk Away" 1982 "Let Me Set You Free" "Back to School Again" "Sad Hearts" "Tonight I'm Gonna Love You All Over" 1983 "I Believe in You and Me" "I Just Can't Walk Away" 1985 "Sexy Ways" 1988 "Reach Out I'll Be There" (re-issue) "If Ever a Love There Was" (with Aretha Franklin) "Indestructible" "Loco in Acapulco" 1989 "The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine"