It was written and produced by Madonna and Patrick Leonard; the song also contained additional production from William Orbit, and lyrical interpretations from British poet Max Blagg's 1992 poem, What Fits?.
Uncredited in the album's official liner notes, Blagg's role in the song was the subject of several publications questioning Madonna's inspiration behind the track.
On a list of Madonna's best non-singles compiled by Idolator, the track was ranked at number nine and acclaimed by critic Sal Cinquemani who enjoyed its "heavenly hook".
[2] The Sasha and Victor Calderone remix reached number 41 on Billboard's Dance Club Songs chart in November 1998, despite not being released as a commercial single.
[5] George Rush and Joanna Molloy from the New York Daily News first reported the incident on March 12, 1998, and claimed that "Madonna took care of the sticky issue of credit by paying Blagg" and leaving his name out of the album notes.
[6] Francesca Chapman from Philly.com summarized the report: "Madonna's muses have ranged from the Virgin Mary to porn purveyors, so it's no shock that her latest inspiration might come from... a Gap ad.
[9] Further discussing the track's religious themes, Madonna confessed about the inspiration surrounding both "Sky Fits Heaven" and "Shanti/Ashtangi": I feel that talking about it trivializes it.
[27] In his book Kate Bush and Hounds of Love, Ron Moy disliked the singer's role of "guesting" on the recording, which he found "typical of the work of ...Orbit".
[29] In August 2018, Billboard picked it as the singer's 52nd greatest song, calling it "one of the most musically ambitious tracks of 1990s Madonna, ["Sky Fits Heaven"] blends trance throb with drum n bass propulsion, ambient atmsopherics and even some light rock shredding for a strikingly buoyant soundscape.
Madge's Max Blagg-inspired lyrical meditations occasionally border on the impenetrable, but the chorus lifts even higher than expected with an easily comprehended refrain that practically registers as career-defining".
[31] "Sky Fits Heaven" was also included on the Drowned World Tour of 2001, to support both Ray of Light, and her eighth studio album Music (2000).