"Walk, Don't Run" was written by Smith in 1954, who was inspired by the song "Softly, as in a Morning Sunrise" by Romberg and Hammerstein.
[2] Smith, a jazz musician who had backed singers such as Patrice Munsel performing the song, composed "Walk, Don't Run" as a contrafact, using the chord progression from "Softly..." as the basis for his melody, which he keyed in D minor.
[3] In 1998 Smith was awarded the James Smithson Bicentennial Medal for his contribution to music; the citation singled out “the genesis of 'Walk, Don't Run',” as well as “his manifold accomplishments” and their “profound and pervasive influence on the role of the guitar in contemporary popular culture.”[2] In 1957 Chet Atkins recorded a popular rendition of the song for his album Hi-Fi in Focus.
Other cover versions include those by the Shadows, Agent Orange, Zapatón, Steve Howe, Glen Campbell, Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass, Tommy Leonetti, and the Penguin Cafe Orchestra.
And in 1991 the song was included on the compilation CD 24 Greatest Hits of All Time in the EMI Legends of Rock n' Roll Series.
In July 2003, the tune was recorded by Ventures guitarist Nokie Edwards and the Light Crust Doughboys for the album Guitars Over Texas.
[10] Rolling Stone magazine rated the Ventures' version of "Walk, Don't Run" as number 82 on their list of the 100 Greatest Guitar Songs of All Time.
"Walk, Don't Run '64" is an updated The Ventures recording that features a guitar style more similar to that of "Misirlou", and is notable for starting with a "fade-in" (as opposed to many songs of the era that ended with a "fade out").