The song was released in April 1962. It reached No. 1 in Australia, New Zealand, Norway, the Philippines, South Africa, and the United States, and was a major hit in many other countries as well. The song topped the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart on July 14, 1962, and remained there for four weeks. The single was also the first number-one hit for Epic Records.Billboard ranked the record as the No. 4 song of 1962.

Vinton found the song in a reject pile at Epic Records. He first recorded it as an R&B number, but was allowed to re-record it in a slower more dramatic arrangement, with strings and a vocal choir added.

In the UK, a cover version by Ronnie Carroll reached No. 3 on the Record Retailer chart on August 8, 1962, the same week that the Bobby Vinton record peaked at No. 15. It peaked at No. 7 in the very first Irish Singles Chart published in October 1962.

The song was recorded by Jim Reeves in 1963 and released on the album Gentleman Jim, one of the last albums released while he was still alive. While it did not chart in the US, it became a minor hit in Norway and Germany.

The song was covered by Singaporean female artist , in edited Standard Chinese lyrics written by Suyin (舒雲/雨牛) under title name of 玫瑰花香, with Ruby Records in 1967.

In 1962, an answer song, entitled "Long As The Rose Is Red", was recorded by Florraine Darlin. The song spent seven weeks on the Billboard Hot 100, reaching No. 62, while reaching No. 15 on Billboard's Easy Listening chart. It was released by Epic Records (single #9529) and was also produced by Robert Morgan.

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