The song was originally recorded by glam rock band Hello in 1975 and was later covered by Ace Frehley (Kiss) for his 1978 solo album.

The song is featured on a radio station and played during the end credits of the 2008 video game Grand Theft Auto IV.

Frehley once told Rolling Stone magazine that his unique take on the song was inspired by his experience with hookers in New York City's Times Square in the 1970s.

This version fuses Jay-Z and Alicia Keys' song "Empire State of Mind" (another ode to New York city), into the chorus.

The Ace Frehley version was among songs proposed by James Gunn for use with the Guardians of the Galaxy in Avengers: Infinity War.

Stephen King uses the song as the title to a chapter in Wolves of the Calla, book V of his dark fantasy The Dark Tower series, where the characters Jake Chambers and Eddie Dean briefly return to New York City by means of magical muffinballs, and the characters also allude to the song in free indirect speech.