The song gained widespread popularity after being recorded by singer King Pleasure, with the woman's part sung by Blossom Dearie.
At some point in the next few years, jazz singer Eddie Jefferson wrote lyrics to this improvised melody, a practice known as vocalese,[3] and added the song to his repertoire.
In November 1951, Pleasure sang his version at the Apollo Theater Amateur Hour, winning first prize along with a contract to record the tune for Prestige.
Following King Pleasure's successful recording, Jimmy McHugh, who wrote the music for "I'm in the Mood for Love", sued for copyright infringement and won a partial victory in court.
According to Hendricks, he had been writing "unpopular" songs for some time, but when he heard the recording and realized that it was a saxophone solo with words he decided to change his approach to songwriting.
In the 1970s, New York City urban contemporary radio DJ Frankie Crocker played the King Pleasure recording of the song every night at the end of his show on WBLS-FM.