the story of the song:

• The very last song written and recorded for Rubber Soul, "Girl" was inspired by a short instrumental piece Paul McCartney crafted in September 1963 after a vacation in Greece. Possibly also due to the recent resurgence of interest in Greek culture spurred by the hit 1965 Anthony Quinn film Zorba The Greek, "Girl" was put together by John in the studio on the spot, with Paul's original riff inserted in the right channel during verse 3 (1:31) and louder near the end as an instrumental break (2:01).
• The lyrics to "Girl" largely stay in familiar pop music territory -- the feckless lover who tortures her boyfriend with her prima donna attitude. (John's wife Cynthia was convinced the song was a swipe at her.) Lennon, however, typically added a twist in the third verse, one inspired by his own upbringing: "Was she told when she was young that pain would lead to pleasure?" John later claimed this as a rejection of "the Catholic/Christian concept - be tortured and then it'll be alright." Paul also later claimed authorship of this line, though it seems rather atypical for him.
• "Girl" was written quickly and recorded in a single day's session on November 11, 1965, with two takes of John's and George's acoustic rhythm guitars, Paul's bass, and Ringo on drums. (George added a somewhat anachronistic fuzz guitar lead, but this was edited out.) Backing vocals were then added, Paul's Greek riff replicated, and John's lead vocal re-done. With work completed on "Girl," the band spent the rest of the all-night session putting final touches on "I'm Looking Through You" and "Wait." Three weeks later, Rubber Soul was in stores.