Little Darling (I Need You)

"Little Darling (I Need You)" is a 1966 single written and produced by Holland-Dozier-Holland and recorded and released by Marvin Gaye on the Tamla label.

Background

This song was released after the modest success of the Miracles-produced single "Take This Heart of Mine" in hopes that Gaye's work with the hit-making trio Holland-Dozier-Holland would bring him back to the pop top ten.

Similarly conceived with the same musical background as their previous collaboration, "How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved by You)", the song has the singer declaring to his woman to stay beside him promising her that he'll be "(her) number-one fool".

Billboard described the song as a "swinger that should have no trouble making a rapid chart climb," with "strong material and performance." Cash Box said that it is a "wailing throbber with a built-in zoom quality." Record World said that "The song has danceable beat and is just irresistible."

While it reached the top forty of the Billboard Top R&B Singles chart peaking at number sixteen, it did not perform as well as "Take This Heart of Mine" on the pop charts, peaking at number 47.

Chart performance

Chart (1966)	Peak position
UK Singles (The Official Charts Company)	50
US Billboard Hot 100	47
US Billboard Top Selling R&B Singles	16

Marvin Gaye personnel

Marvin Gaye – lead vocals
The Andantes (Marlene Barrow, Jackie Hicks, Louvain Demps) – backing vocals
The Funk Brothers – instrumentation

Doobie Brothers recording

In 1977, The Doobie Brothers, included their recording on their Livin' on the Fault Line LP. In the US, this recording went to No. 48 on the Hot 100.

Chart performance

Chart (1977)	Peak position
US Billboard Hot 100	48

The Doobie Brothers personnel

Michael McDonald – keyboards, vocals
Patrick Simmons – guitar, backing vocals
Jeff "Skunk" Baxter – guitar
Tiran Porter – bass guitar, backing vocals
Keith Knudsen – drums, backing vocals
John Hartman – drums

Additional musicians

Ted Templeman – tambourine
Bobby LaKind – congas, backing vocals
Rosemary Butler – backing vocals
David Paich – horn and string arrangement

References

"www.allmusic.com". allmusic.com. Retrieved March 7, 2023.
"www.allmusic.com". allmusic.com. Retrieved March 7, 2023.
"The Doobie Brothers – Little Darling (I Need You)".
"Spotlight Singles" (PDF). Billboard. August 13, 1966. p. 16. Retrieved 2021-03-03.
"CashBox Record Reviews" (PDF). Cash Box. August 13, 1966. p. 24. Retrieved 2022-01-12.
"Single Picks of the Week" (PDF). Record World. August 13, 1966. p. 1. Retrieved 2023-07-15.
The Complete Motown Singles Vol. 6: 1966 . New York: Hip-O Select/Motown/Universal Records
Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942–2004. Record Research. p. 225.
"officialcharts.com". officialcharts.com. Retrieved March 7, 2023.
Whitburn, Joel (2013). Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles, 14th Edition: 1955–2012. Record Research. p. 251.
Templeman, Ted; Renoff, Greg (2020). Ted Templeman: A Platinum Producer's Life in Music. ECW Press. p. 210. ISBN 978-1770414839.

v t e Marvin Gaye
Studio albums	The Soulful Moods of Marvin Gaye (1961) That Stubborn Kinda Fellow (1962) When I'm Alone I Cry (1964) Hello Broadway (1964) How Sweet It Is to Be Loved by You (1965) A Tribute to the Great Nat "King" Cole (1965) Moods of Marvin Gaye (1966) In the Groove (1968) M.P.G. (1969) That's the Way Love Is (1970) What's Going On (1971) Trouble Man (1972) Let's Get It On (1973) I Want You (1976) Here, My Dear (1978) In Our Lifetime (1981) Midnight Love (1982) Dream of a Lifetime (1985) Romantically Yours (1985) Vulnerable (1997) You're the Man (2019)
Duet albums	Together (with Mary Wells, 1964) Take Two (with Kim Weston, 1966) United (with Tammi Terrell, 1967) You're All I Need (with Tammi Terrell, 1968) Easy (with Tammi Terrell, 1969) Diana & Marvin (with Diana Ross, 1973)
Live albums	Marvin Gaye Recorded Live on Stage (1963) Marvin Gaye Live! (1974) Live at the London Palladium (1977) Marvin Gaye at the Copa (2005) What's Going On Live (2019)
Compilation albums	Greatest Hits (1964) Greatest Hits, Vol. 2 (1967) Marvin Gaye and His Girls (1969) Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell's Greatest Hits (1970) Super Hits (1970) Anthology (1974) Marvin Gaye's Greatest Hits (1976) Motown Remembers Marvin Gaye: Never Before Released Masters (1986) The Marvin Gaye Collection (1990) The Norman Whitfield Sessions (1994) Love Starved Heart: Rare and Unreleased (1994) The Very Best of Marvin Gaye (1994) The Master (1961–1984) (1995) Marvin Gaye: The Love Songs (2000) The Complete Duets (2001) The Very Best of Marvin Gaye (2001)
Video releases	The Real Thing: In Performance (1964–1981) (2006)
US/UK top-ten singles	"Pride and Joy" "How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved by You)" "I'll Be Doggone" "Ain't That Peculiar" "Your Precious Love" "If I Could Build My Whole World Around You" "Ain't Nothing Like the Real Thing" "You're All I Need to Get By" "I Heard It Through the Grapevine" "Too Busy Thinking About My Baby" "That's the Way Love Is" "Abraham, Martin and John" "The Onion Song" "What's Going On" "Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology)" "Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler)" "Trouble Man" "Let's Get It On" "You Are Everything" "Got to Give It Up" "Sexual Healing"
Family	Marvin Gay Sr. (father) Alberta Gay (mother) Anna Gordy Gaye (first wife) Denise Gordy (son's birth mother) Nona Gaye (daughter) Frankie Gaye (brother) Gordon Banks (brother-in-law)
Related articles	Discography Awards and nominations Songs Albums Songs by Marvin Gaye Albums produced by Marvin Gaye Songs produced by Marvin Gaye Personal life Death Tributes Songs in memory The Marquees Harvey Fuqua Tammi Terrell Leon Ware Marvin's Room Marvin Is 60: A Tribute Album Divided Soul Sexual Healing Tour
Category

v t e Marvin Gaye singles
1960s: (Tamla)	1961 "Let Your Conscience Be Your Guide" 1962 "Sandman" "Soldier's Plea" "Stubborn Kind of Fellow" "Hitch Hike" 1963 "Pride and Joy" "Can I Get a Witness" 1964 "You're a Wonderful One" "Once Upon a Time" "What's the Matter with You Baby" "Try It Baby" "Baby Don't You Do It" "What Good Am I Without You" "How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved by You)" 1965 "I'll Be Doggone" "Pretty Little Baby" "Ain't That Peculiar" 1966 "One More Heartache" "Take This Heart of Mine" "Little Darling (I Need You)" "It Takes Two" 1967 "Ain't No Mountain High Enough" "Your Unchanging Love" "Your Precious Love" "You" "If I Could Build My Whole World Around You"/"If This World Were Mine" 1968 "Ain't Nothing Like the Real Thing" "You're All I Need to Get By" "Chained" "Keep On Lovin' Me Honey" "You Ain't Livin' till You're Lovin'" "His Eye Is on the Sparrow" "I Heard It Through the Grapevine" 1969 "Good Lovin' Ain't Easy to Come By" "Too Busy Thinking About My Baby" "That's the Way Love Is" "Abraham, Martin and John" "What You Gave Me" "How Can I Forget"
1970s: (Tamla)	1970 "Gonna Give Her All the Love I've Got" "The Onion Song" "California Soul" "The End of Our Road" 1971 "What's Going On" "Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology)" "Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler)" "Save the Children" 1972 "You're the Man" "Trouble Man" "I Want to Come Home for Christmas" 1973 "Let's Get It On" "You're a Special Part of Me" "Stop, Look, Listen (To Your Heart)" "Come Get to This" 1974 "You Sure Love to Ball" "My Mistake (Was to Love You)" "Don't Knock My Love" "You Are Everything" "Distant Lover" 1976 "I Want You" "After the Dance" "Since I Had You" 1977 "Got to Give It Up" 1978 "Pops, We Love You (A Tribute to Father)" 1979 "A Funky Space Reincarnation" "Anger" "Ego Tripping Out"
1980s: (Tamla/ Columbia)	1981 "Praise" "Heavy Love Affair" 1982 "Sexual Healing" 1983 "My Love Is Waiting" "'Til Tomorrow" "Joy"
Posthumous	1985 "Sanctified Lady" "It's Madness" "Just Like" 1986 "The World Is Rated X" 1991 "My Last Chance" 1994 "Lucky, Lucky Me" 1995 "This Love Starved Heart Of Mine(It's Killing Me)" 2001 "Music" 2005 "Let's Get It On (The M.P.G. Groove Remix)" 2015 "Where Are We Going"
Category

v t e Holland–Dozier–Holland
Brian Holland Lamont Dozier Eddie Holland
Songs	1962 "Dearest One" "Old Love (Let's Try It Again)" "Darling, I Hum Our Song" 1963 "Leaving Here" "Locking Up My Heart" "What Goes Up Must Come Down" / "Come on Home" "Tie a String Around Your Finger" "Come and Get These Memories" / "Jealous Lover" "You Lost the Sweetest Boy" "Heat Wave" / "A Love Like Yours (Don't Come Knocking Everyday)" "(He Won't Be True) Little Girl Blue" "Mickey's Monkey" "Too Hurt to Cry, Too Much in Love to Say Goodbye" / "Come on Home" "When the Lovelight Starts Shining Through His Eyes" / "Standing at the Crossroads of Love" "I Gotta Dance to Keep from Crying" "Quicksand" / "Darling I Hum Our Song" "Live Wire" / "Old Love (Let's Try It Again)" "Run, Run, Run" / "I'm Giving You Your Freedom" "Can I Get a Witness" 1964 "A Tear from a Woman's Eyes" "My Lady Bug Stay Away from That Beatle" "Like a Nightmare" / "If You Were Mine" "In My Lonely Room" "Just Ain't Enough Love" "Where Did Our Love Go" "Baby Don't You Do It" "Guarantee for a Lifetime" "Baby I Need Your Loving" / "Call on Me" "Candy to Me" / "If You Don't Want My Love" "Whisper You Love Me Boy" "Baby Love" / "Ask Any Girl" "Come See About Me" / (You're Gone But) Always in My Heart" "Without the One You Love (Life's Not Worth While)" / "Love has Gone" "You're a Wonderful One" "How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved by You)" 1965 "Where Did You Go" "Stop! In the Name of Love" / "I'm in Love Again" "You've Been a Long Time Coming" "Who Could Ever Doubt My Love" "Nowhere to Run" "Back in My Arms Again" / "Whisper You Love Me Boy" "I Can't Help Myself (Sugar Pie Honey Bunch)" "The Only Time I'm Happy" "Mother Dear" / "He Holds His Own" "Nothing but Heartaches" / "He Holds His Own" "Love (Makes Me Do Foolish Things)" "It's the Same Old Song" / "Your Love Is Amazing" "Mother Dear" / "Who Could Ever Doubt My Love" "I Hear a Symphony" / "Who Could Ever Doubt My Love" "Something About You" "Take Me in Your Arms (Rock Me a Little While)" "Darling Baby" "There's a Ghost in My House" 1966 "(I'm a) Roadrunner" "This Old Heart of Mine (Is Weak for You)" "Ask any Man" "My World Is Empty Without You" "Put Yourself in My Place" "There's No Love Left" "Shake Me, Wake Me (When It's Over)" / "Just as Long as You Need Me" "Helpless" / "A Love Like Yours (Don't Come Knocking Everyday)" "Call on Me" "Love Is Like an Itching in My Heart" / "He's All I Got" "Who Could Ever Doubt My Love" "I Like Everything About You" "I Guess I'll Always Love You" "Nothing but Soul" "Love's Gone Bad" / "Put Yourself in My Place" "You Can't Hurry Love" / "Put Yourself in My Place" "Little Darling (I Need You)" "Reach Out I'll Be There" / "Until You Love Someone" "Stay in My Lonely Arms" "You Keep Me Hangin' On" / "I Wanna Mother You, Smother You With Love" "You Keep Me Hangin' On" / "Remove This Doubt" "Standing in the Shadows of Love" / Since You've Been Gone" "I'm Ready for Love" "(Come 'Round Here) I'm the One You Need" "Heaven Must Have Sent You" 1967 "Just One Last Look" "Love Is Here and Now You're Gone" / There's No Stopping Us Now" "Your Love Is Amazing" "Jimmy Mack" / "Third Finger, Left Hand" "Bernadette" / "I Got a Feeling" "My World Is Empty Without You" "The Happening" / "All I Know About You" "Just Ain't Enough Love" "7 Rooms of Gloom" / "I'll Turn to Stone" "I Understand My Man" "Your Unchanging Love" / "I'll Take Care of You" "Reflections" / "Going Down for the Third Time" "One Way Out" "You Keep Me Running Away" / "If You Don't Want My Love" "I Got a Feeling" "In and Out of Love" / "I Guess I'll Always Love You" 1968 "Whisper You Love Me Boy" "Forever Came Today" "I'm in a Different World" 1969 "We've Got a Way Out Love" "Crumbs off the Table" 1970 "Give Me Just a Little More Time" "(You've Got Me) Dangling on a String" "Everything's Tuesday" "Band of Gold" "Westbound #9" 1972 "The Day I Found Myself" "Don't Leave Me Starvin' for Your Love" "Why Can't We Be Lovers" 1973 "You're Gonna Need Me" 1975 "We're Almost There" "Just a Little Bit of You" "Early Morning Love" "Where Do I Go from Here" 1976 "I'm Gonna Let My Heart Do the Walking" "High Energy" "Let Yourself Go" 1982 "We Can Never Light That Old Flame Again"
Related topics	Motown Hot Wax Records Invictus Records List of songs written by Holland, Dozier and Holland

Holland–Dozier–Holland

Songs

1962: "Dearest One"; "Old Love (Let's Try It Again)"; "Darling, I Hum Our Song"

1963: "Leaving Here"; "Locking Up My Heart"; "What Goes Up Must Come Down" / "Come on Home"; "Tie a String Around Your Finger"; "Come and Get These Memories" / "Jealous Lover"; "You Lost the Sweetest Boy"; "Heat Wave" / "A Love Like Yours (Don't Come Knocking Everyday)"; "(He Won't Be True) Little Girl Blue"; "Mickey's Monkey"; "Too Hurt to Cry, Too Much in Love to Say Goodbye" / "Come on Home"; "When the Lovelight Starts Shining Through His Eyes" / "Standing at the Crossroads of Love"; "I Gotta Dance to Keep from Crying"; "Quicksand" / "Darling I Hum Our Song"; "Live Wire" / "Old Love (Let's Try It Again)"; "Run, Run, Run" / "I'm Giving You Your Freedom"; "Can I Get a Witness"

1964: "A Tear from a Woman's Eyes"; "My Lady Bug Stay Away from That Beatle"; "Like a Nightmare" / "If You Were Mine"; "In My Lonely Room"; "Just Ain't Enough Love"; "Where Did Our Love Go"; "Baby Don't You Do It"; "Guarantee for a Lifetime"; "Baby I Need Your Loving" / "Call on Me"; "Candy to Me" / "If You Don't Want My Love"; "Whisper You Love Me Boy"; "Baby Love" / "Ask Any Girl"; "Come See About Me" / (You're Gone But) Always in My Heart"; "Without the One You Love (Life's Not Worth While)" / "Love has Gone"; "You're a Wonderful One"; "How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved by You)"

1965: "Where Did You Go"; "Stop! In the Name of Love" / "I'm in Love Again"; "You've Been a Long Time Coming"; "Who Could Ever Doubt My Love"; "Nowhere to Run"; "Back in My Arms Again" / "Whisper You Love Me Boy"; "I Can't Help Myself (Sugar Pie Honey Bunch)"; "The Only Time I'm Happy"; "Mother Dear" / "He Holds His Own"; "Nothing but Heartaches" / "He Holds His Own"; "Love (Makes Me Do Foolish Things)"; "It's the Same Old Song" / "Your Love Is Amazing"; "Mother Dear" / "Who Could Ever Doubt My Love"; "I Hear a Symphony" / "Who Could Ever Doubt My Love"; "Something About You"; "Take Me in Your Arms (Rock Me a Little While)"; "Darling Baby"; "There's a Ghost in My House"

1966: "(I'm a) Roadrunner"; "This Old Heart of Mine (Is Weak for You)"; "Ask any Man"; "My World Is Empty Without You"; "Put Yourself in My Place"; "There's No Love Left"; "Shake Me, Wake Me (When It's Over)" / "Just as Long as You Need Me"; "Helpless" / "A Love Like Yours (Don't Come Knocking Everyday)"; "Call on Me"; "Love Is Like an Itching in My Heart" / "He's All I Got"; "Who Could Ever Doubt My Love"; "I Like Everything About You"; "I Guess I'll Always Love You"; "Nothing but Soul"; "Love's Gone Bad" / "Put Yourself in My Place"; "You Can't Hurry Love" / "Put Yourself in My Place"; "Little Darling (I Need You)"; "Reach Out I'll Be There" / "Until You Love Someone"; "Stay in My Lonely Arms"; "You Keep Me Hangin' On" / "I Wanna Mother You, Smother You With Love"; "You Keep Me Hangin' On" / "Remove This Doubt"; "Standing in the Shadows of Love" / Since You've Been Gone"; "I'm Ready for Love"; "(Come 'Round Here) I'm the One You Need"; "Heaven Must Have Sent You"

1967: "Just One Last Look"; "Love Is Here and Now You're Gone" / There's No Stopping Us Now"; "Your Love Is Amazing"; "Jimmy Mack" / "Third Finger, Left Hand"; "Bernadette" / "I Got a Feeling"; "My World Is Empty Without You"; "The Happening" / "All I Know About You"; "Just Ain't Enough Love"; "7 Rooms of Gloom" / "I'll Turn to Stone"; "I Understand My Man"; "Your Unchanging Love" / "I'll Take Care of You"; "Reflections" / "Going Down for the Third Time"; "One Way Out"; "You Keep Me Running Away" / "If You Don't Want My Love"; "I Got a Feeling"; "In and Out of Love" / "I Guess I'll Always Love You"

1968: "Whisper You Love Me Boy"; "Forever Came Today"; "I'm in a Different World"

1969: "We've Got a Way Out Love"; "Crumbs off the Table"

1970: "Give Me Just a Little More Time"; "(You've Got Me) Dangling on a String"; "Everything's Tuesday"; "Band of Gold"; "Westbound #9"

1972: "The Day I Found Myself"; "Don't Leave Me Starvin' for Your Love"; "Why Can't We Be Lovers"

1973: "You're Gonna Need Me"

1975: "We're Almost There"; "Just a Little Bit of You"; "Early Morning Love"; "Where Do I Go from Here"

1976: "I'm Gonna Let My Heart Do the Walking"; "High Energy"; "Let Yourself Go"

1982: "We Can Never Light That Old Flame Again"

v t e The Doobie Brothers
Tom Johnston Patrick Simmons Michael McDonald John McFee John Hartman Dave Shogren Michael Hossack Tiran Porter Keith Knudsen Jeff "Skunk" Baxter Chet McCracken Cornelius Bumpus Bobby LaKind Willie Weeks
Studio albums	The Doobie Brothers Toulouse Street The Captain and Me What Were Once Vices Are Now Habits Stampede Takin' It to the Streets Livin' on the Fault Line Minute by Minute One Step Closer Cycles Brotherhood Sibling Rivalry World Gone Crazy Southbound Liberté
Live albums	Farewell Tour Rockin' Down the Highway: The Wildlife Concert Live at Wolf Trap
Compilations	Best of The Doobies Best of The Doobies Volume II Listen to the Music: The Very Best of The Doobie Brothers Greatest Hits Divided Highway The Very Best of The Doobie Brothers
Singles	"Listen to the Music" "Jesus Is Just Alright" / "Rockin' Down the Highway" "Long Train Runnin'" "China Grove" "Another Park, Another Sunday" / "Black Water" "Take Me in Your Arms (Rock Me a Little While)" "Takin' It to the Streets" "Wheels of Fortune" "It Keeps You Runnin'" "Little Darlin' (I Need You)" "Echoes of Love" "What a Fool Believes" "Minute by Minute" "Dependin' on You" "Real Love" "Wynken, Blynken & Nod" "You Belong to Me" (live) "The Doctor" "Dangerous"
Related articles	Discography Band members Southern Pacific