The song is sung from the perspective of a man who is wishing his childhood sweetheart sunshine after she asks to be set free so that she can marry another.[3][4]
Epic Records was attempting to have Bobby Vinton's follow-up recording follow the various tropes established by "Roses Are Red" (a "singalong" melody with a sentimental storyline) - but for reasons of his own, Bobby was uninterested in the song.[5] He had already written and recorded "Mr. Lonely", intending that song to be his follow up single; to his shock, he found the label was also giving the song to Buddy Greco, whom the label was grooming to be their next superstar.[5] To Epic, "Roses Are Red" was something of a fluke, with Bobby's true talent laying more in the direction of songwriting as opposed to singing. Bobby was out touring the country enjoying the big success of "Roses Are Red", and without awareness to the fact that Epic had already released "Rain" as his follow-up; he reflected on its chart positioning thus: "Deep down inside, I knew that 'Rain' wasn't number one material."[5]
