Oregon, to New York City, and Trott commented how "ironic" it was that they were departing a rainy city for a sunny city. This thought stuck with Trott after the trip, and he and Crow wrote a song based on what he felt during the trip. Around the same time, Crow was recovering from non-invasive surgery, leaving her debilitated. She and Trott decided to write the song to take her mind off her discomfort, and the lyrics came to them rapidly. Crow claims that the reason they came to her so quickly was because of the medication she was on, which also influenced her to write another track for C'mon, C'mon, "Weather Channel". In a 2002 interview with Radio & Records, Crow recalled that she wrote the song and most of the album before the September 11 attacks, and she wanted to release the song as the lead single from C'mon, C'mon since northern summer was only a few months away and because she wanted everyone to feel better after the stressful winter. Along with Trina Shoemaker and Eric Tew, Crow recorded the song and album at various studios in the United States and United Kingdom. Crow first performed "Soak Up the Sun" on January 27, 2002, at the 2002 AFC Championship Game, and it was released to adult album alternative, hot adult contemporary, and top 40 radio stations on February 11, 2002. Two days later, Radio & Records Music Meeting website made the song available for download, becoming the first retailer to do so. In Europe and Australia, A&M Records issued the song as a CD single on March 25, 2002, backed with two non-album B-sides: "Chances Are" and "You're Not the One". The same month, Crow traveled around Europe to promote the song and its parent album. On April 1, 2002, A&M released "Soak Up the Sun" in the United Kingdom as two CD singles and a cassette single. During a live performance at the Glastonbury Festival in June 2019, Crow dedicated the song to Swedish environmental activist Greta Thunberg. Composition and lyrics "Soak Up the Sun" is a bubblegum pop song written in common time with a key of E major, following a moderately fast tempo of 120 beats per minute. American singer Liz Phair appears as a guest vocalist, with Tim Smith providing additional background vocals. Keith Philips of The A.V. Club described "Soak Up the