"[9] In 2006, music journalist Bill Friskics-Warren described it as "a gloriously anguished record aggravated by nagging syncopation, astringent strings, and a stinging blues guitar break".
Freeland added that the song highlighted LaVette's "blistering intensity modulated by moments of deep, heartfelt reflection.
"[11] Allmusic's Jason Ankeny remarked that the song is "a staple of the Northern soul scene and the countless anthologies it's yielded", and said it is LaVette's "masterpiece, a blisteringly poignant requiem for romance gone bad distinguished by its unique, tangolike rhythm and sweeping string arrangement.
[13] In a 2013 Metro Times article, writer Brett Callwood said of the song: "LaVette’s voice soars one minute and purrs the next, each word practically dripping off her tongue.
It has also been covered by The Spencer Davis Group on The Second Album (1966),[15] Inez and Charlie Foxx on At Memphis & More (1973),[16] Paloma Faith on Fall to Grace (2012).