However, the song clearly bears a close resemblance, in both melody and lyrics, to "On the Judgement Day", which was recorded by gospel group The Sensational Nightingales in 1954 and released the following year on the Peacock label.

The writing of The Sensational Nightingales' song was credited to two of the group's singers, Julius Cheeks and Ernest James.

[3] A version of "Sinner Man" released in 1956, by Swedish-American folk singer William Clauson, credited Baxter, Holt, Cheeks and James as co-writers.

[5] Pete Seeger also refers to Bob Gibson as the one who 'taught us' the song, during his live concert at Mandel Hall, Chicago, in 1957.

Simone learned the lyrics of the song in her childhood when it was used at revival meetings by her mother, a Methodist minister, to help people confess their sins.

Nina Simone's version was used as a soundtrack to the art gallery theft scene in the 1999 film The Thomas Crown Affair.

Her version is also played during the end credits of David Lynch's 2006 experimental film Inland Empire, and was featured in the 2006 video game Marc Ecko's Getting Up: Contents Under Pressure.

It was first recorded by the group at Studio One in Kingston, Jamaica in early 1966; Peter Tosh and Bunny Wailer shared lead vocals.

Irish singer/songwriter Sinéad O'Connor recorded a cover of Tosh's 1977 version for her 2005 reggae album Throw Down Your Arms at the then-Tuff Gong studio in Kingston, Jamaica.

[11][12] Other works to have featured the song in their soundtracks include The Chestnut Man (TRILLS),[13][14] Lucifer, Lovecraft Country (Alice Smith),[15] The Righteous Gemstones (The Travelers Three), and Cirque du Soleil's Crystal (Béatrice Bonifassi).