 Presley's original bassist Bill Black declined to join the sessions as he was enjoying success with the Bill Black Combo.To prevent possible disruption by fans, the musicians were initially told they were going to play on a Jim Reeves session.RCA executives Sholes and Bill Bullock were joined in the control booth by Parker, his assistant Tom Diskin, A&R head Chet Atkins, engineer Bill Porter and Hill and Range's Bienstock.