In 1952, James Brown was released from a youth detention center in Toccoa, Georgia after Bobby Byrd and his family sponsored him.

Though it sold slowly at first, the record reached the top ten of the R&B charts by late summer, eventually peaking at No.

[5][6] In 2001, the 1956 version by James Brown and the Famous Flames on Federal Records was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.

[7] The song was ranked number 272 among the greatest singles ever made in Dave Marsh's 1989 book The Heart of Rock & Soul.

Starting in 1959, Brown would perform the song to the point of feigned exhaustion, when he would drop to his knees and collapse on the stage.

For Brown's 1976 album Hot, he recorded a more solemn, ballad rendition, which featured male background vocalists in the quiet storm style of Barry White's music.

[10][17] In February 1967, Swedish band the Maniacs, featuring a young Tommy Körberg, recorded the song as a single.

[18] Released as a single in March of that year, backed by Paul Ferris "Visions",[19] it became the group's breakthrough hit, reaching No.