McGuire's recording was made between July 12 and July 15, 1965, and released by Dunhill Records. The accompanying musicians were top-tier Los Angeles session players: P. F. Sloan on guitar, Hal Blaine (of the Wrecking Crew) on drums, and Larry Knechtel on bass guitar. The vocal track was thrown on as a rough mix and was not intended to be the final version, but a copy of the recording "leaked" out to a disc jockey, who began playing it. The song was an instant hit, and as a result, the more polished vocal track that was at first envisioned was never recorded.
