4 Seasons of Loneliness
Encyclopedia
"4 Seasons of Loneliness" is a R&B
/pop
ballad
recorded by Philadelphia-based vocal quartet Boyz II Men
. Written and produced by Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis
, the song was issued as the first single from the Evolution
album in 1997.
Already a success at U.S. radio, the release of the single prompted a Billboard Hot 100
debut at number two. The following week the song moved up to number one, becoming Boyz II Men's fifth and last chart-topper. The song spent one week at the top before being pushed aside by Elton John
's massive Princess Diana tribute single "Candle in the Wind 1997
". It was also the group's last top ten hit in the UK
, debuting at number ten on the singles chart, and dropping off the chart a short time after.
"4 Seasons of Loneliness", to date, is the last number-one pop hit under the Motown records banner (Boyz II Men was the only Motown act to have number-one pop hits in the 1990's).
1 Spanish-version, "4 Estaciones de Soledad"
Rhythm and blues
Rhythm and blues, often abbreviated to R&B, is a genre of popular African American music that originated in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly to urban African Americans, at a time when "urbane, rocking, jazz based music with a...
/pop
Pop music
Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...
ballad
Ballad
A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads were particularly characteristic of British and Irish popular poetry and song from the later medieval period until the 19th century and used extensively across Europe and later the Americas, Australia and North Africa. Many...
recorded by Philadelphia-based vocal quartet Boyz II Men
Boyz II Men
Boyz II Men is an American R&B vocal group best known for emotional ballads and a cappella harmonies. They are the most successful R&B group of all time, having sold more than albums worldwide. In the 1990s, Boyz II Men found fame on Motown Records as a quartet, but original member Michael McCary...
. Written and produced by Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis
Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis
James Samuel "Jimmy Jam" Harris III and Terry Steven Lewis are an American R&B and pop-music songwriting and record production team...
, the song was issued as the first single from the Evolution
Evolution (Boyz II Men album)
Evolution is an album by R&B group Boyz II Men, released in September 1997. It is their final album released on Motown Records. A Spanish language version, Evolución, was also issued.- History :...
album in 1997.
Already a success at U.S. radio, the release of the single prompted a Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
debut at number two. The following week the song moved up to number one, becoming Boyz II Men's fifth and last chart-topper. The song spent one week at the top before being pushed aside by Elton John
Elton John
Sir Elton Hercules John, CBE, Hon DMus is an English rock singer-songwriter, composer, pianist and occasional actor...
's massive Princess Diana tribute single "Candle in the Wind 1997
Candle in the Wind 1997
"Candle in the Wind 1997" is a rewritten and rerecorded version of Elton John's own 1973 hit "Candle in the Wind" that was released as a tribute single to the late Diana, Princess of Wales....
". It was also the group's last top ten hit in the UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, debuting at number ten on the singles chart, and dropping off the chart a short time after.
"4 Seasons of Loneliness", to date, is the last number-one pop hit under the Motown records banner (Boyz II Men was the only Motown act to have number-one pop hits in the 1990's).
Track listings
CD maxi- "4 Seasons of Loneliness" (radio edit) — 4:27
- "4 Seasons of Loneliness" (B II M version) — 5:30
- "4 Seasons of Loneliness" (instrumental version) — 4:52
- "4 Seasons of Loneliness" (a cappella) — 4:41
Peak positions
| Chart (1997) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian ARIA Australian Recording Industry Association The Australian Recording Industry Association is a trade group representing the Australian recording industry which was established in 1983 by six major record companies, EMI, Festival, CBS, RCA, WEA and Universal replacing the Association of Australian Record Manufacturers which was formed in 1956... Singles Chart |
13 |
| Belgian (Wallonia) Singles Chart Ultratop 40 Ultratop 40 singles, often just Ultratop 40, is the weekly chart of best-selling singles in Wallonia and Brussels Capital Region, the french-speaking parts of Belgium. Its equivalent covering the Flanders region is Ultratop 50. Both charts are produced and published by the Ultratop organization... |
38 |
| Canadian Singles Chart Canadian Singles Chart The Canadian Singles Chart is currently compiled by the U.S.-based music sales tracking company, Nielsen SoundScan . The chart is compiled every Wednesday, and is published by Jam! Canoe on Thursdays.... |
5 |
| Dutch Top 40 Dutch Top 40 The Dutch Top 40 is a weekly music chart, which started as the "Veronica Top 40", because the offshore radio station Radio Veronica was the first to introduce it. It remained "The Veronica Top 40" until 1974, when the station was forced to stop broadcasting... |
9 |
| German Singles Chart | 59 |
| Irish Singles Chart Irish Singles Chart The Irish Singles Chart is Ireland's music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association and compiled on behalf of the IRMA by Chart-Track. Chart rankings are based on sales, which are compiled through over-the-counter retail data captured... |
26 |
| Japanese Singles Chart Oricon , established in 1999, is the holding company at the head of a Japanese corporate group that supplies statistics and information on music and the music industry in Japan. It started as , which was founded by Sōkō Koike in November 1967 and became known for its music charts. Oricon Inc... |
2 |
| New Zealand RIANZ Singles Chart | 2 |
| Swedish Singles Chart | 45 |
| Swiss Singles Chart | 32 |
| UK Singles Chart UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ... |
10 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 Billboard Hot 100 The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday... |
1 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary | 30 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot Latin Tracks 1 | 27 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks | 2 |
| U.S. Billboard Latin Pop Airplay Latin Pop Airplay Latin Pop Airplay is a record chart published on Billboard magazine. It features Latin music information from pop music usually in Spanish. It was established by the magazine on October 8, 1994 with Mañana by Cristian Castro being the first song to reach number-one... 1 |
11 |
1 Spanish-version, "4 Estaciones de Soledad"
End of year charts
| End of year chart (1997) | Position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 30 |
| End of year chart (1998) | Position |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 96 |
Certifications
| Country | Certification | Date | Sales certified |
|---|---|---|---|
| U.S. | Platinum | 14 October 1997 | 1,000,000 |
External links
- 4 Seasons of Loneliness at YouTubeYouTubeYouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....