The first two measures of the song's melody parallel the melody of the second movement in Antonín Dvořák's Piano Quintet No. 2 in A, Op. 81 (1887). It is unknown if Ahbez was familiar with Dvořák's piece, or if he arrived at the same melodic idea independently. The song is based on a 1940s Los Angeles-based group called "Nature Boys," a subculture of proto-hippies of which Ahbez was a member.