[3] The song was composed by Clark and McGuinn in early 1964 at a time when the pair were performing as a duo at The Troubadour and other folk clubs in and around Los Angeles.
[1][4] Critic Matthew Greenwald has described "You Showed Me" as "a minor-key romantic ballad", while also commenting that "the song has a near-Beach Boys feel and ends up being an effervescent piece of moody pop.
"[5] Music historian Richie Unterberger has remarked that "You Showed Me", like many of the songs that Clark had a hand in writing during the 1960s, contains a mix of major and minor chords arranged in unexpected progressions.
[4] The trio began rehearsing at World Pacific Studios under the guidance of their manager Jim Dickson, with Michael Clarke and Chris Hillman joining the group soon afterward.
[13] "You Showed Me" had been introduced to the Turtles by their producer and former bass player, Chip Douglas, who had first become acquainted with the song after hearing Clark, McGuinn, and Crosby perform it at The Troubadour in 1964.
[24] Ian Gittins from Melody Maker wrote, "The always vaguely-likeable Salt 'N' Pepa return with a sharp and sassy track which uses the same farty horn motif as their "Tramp" debut of three years back.
[49] By the time the single was released, drummer Chris Sharrock had left the band to join Robbie Williams' backing group, and new percussionist Zak Starkey took his place in its music video.
"[51] David Sinclair from The Times viewed it as a "workmanlike version of the song written by Gene Clark and James McGuinn of the Byrds, complete with strings and "scratches".
The Turtles version also features a gently rising and falling string section, which was sampled by U2 in 1997 for their song "The Playboy Mansion" on their album Pop.
[62] In addition, Kanye West based his song Gorgeous, from his 2010 album My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, on elements derived from "You Showed Me".