1966. This song was written by Tim Hardin and has been recorded by many over the years. However, this is probably the most well known and commercially successful version. This legendary artist had a number of hits in the 50s and 60s. He played acoustic guitar on this song. The song reached #8 and was nominated for a Grammy.Hardin died at 39 from an accidental heroin overdose. This singer died at 37 after failing to take antibiotics before a dental visit to protect his weak heart and developing sepsis.