He later remarked: "I wonder how many people heard 'Rain on the Roof' on their radios in the early fall of 1966 and said, 'Oh, they're back to the wimpy shit,' and disregarded us all over again." After 1966, the band did not achieve the same level of success; Yanovsky and Boone were arrested in California in May 1966 for marijuana possession, and Yanovsky and John left the band in 1967 and 1968, respectively. Critical reception Contemporary reviews Among contemporary reviews, Cash Box magazine predicted a "sure-fire blockbuster", describing the song's "repeating hard-driving riff" as "contagious". Record World review panel selected the song as one of their three "single picks of the week", describing it as "[w]ild, experimental, hypnotic, terrific, positive in approach and a powerhouse release". In the UK, Melody Maker reviewer wrote that the song displayed the musical diversity of the Lovin' Spoonful, given its divergence in style from their earlier 1966 single, "Daydream", and predicted its inclusion on Hums of the Lovin' Spoonful would boost album sales in both the US and the UK. In Billboard, Johnny Borders, the program director of KLIF in Dallas, reported that while the radio station's early summer rotation had been based around oldies due to the poor quality of new music, the release of "Summer in the City" improved the situation. David Dachs' 1968 book, Inside Pop, discusses the song in the context of the Lovin' Spoonful's diverse styles, while also writing its lyrics display "a hip and jazzy swing". Retrospective assessments In a retrospective assessment, author Ian MacDonald categorizes "Summer in the City" as a "cutting-edge pop [record]" and one of many "futuristic singles" to appear in 1966, such as the Beach Boys' "Good Vibrations", the Byrds' "Eight Miles High" and the Four Tops' "Reach Out I'll Be There", among others. He describes it as representative of a time period when recorded songs began to employ sounds and effects difficult or impossible to recreate during a live performance; when the Lovin' Spoonful played the song in concert, John was unable to both sing and play the piano part simultaneously, requiring Butler to perform the lead vocal. Musicologist Charlie Gillett describes the song as one of the band's "evocative 'atmosphere' songs", serving as an alternative to their softer love songs through its "surprising power and intensity". Richie Unterberger similarly writes that it proved the band's ability to extend beyond "sunshine and