Over the years, its remixes have been hailed as one of the greatest trance songs of all time, over two decades after its initial release.

[2] The original album version and subsequent radio edit of the song had a much slower tempo than the more well-known remixes and was essentially structured like a pop song, with the characteristic synthetic instrumentation of the more melodic side of ambient music — though including darker overtones, such as the prominently featured Gregorian chant (Gloria in Excelsis Deo).

The single prominently included remixes by DJ Tiësto, and Fade, which significantly boosted the song's proliferation through club play (particularly by influential DJs such as Paul Oakenfold) as evidenced by the single's positions on the Billboard Hot Dance Music/Club Play charts.

The accompanying music video, directed by the directors collective Twobigeyes, was released in 2000 and was set to the Airscape remix.

The video was filmed on location in the United Kingdom ― mainly at Newgale Beach, Marloes Sands and "The Blue Lagoon" in Abereiddy, all in Pembrokeshire, Wales.