Drag City shows Jan Berry's growing musical expansion, both as a producer and as an arranger. In this album, we can see the composer beginning to incorporate more and more orchestral instruments into the music, an ambitious move as one doesn’t usually associate harps or English horns with the genre of surf and hot rod music. However, by adding these colors, Jan Berry was able to accomplish a heightened experience for the listener, breathing new life into a genre whose days were numbered.

The title track is an energetic Brian Wilson number that spins through a flurry of key changes before finally settling in Eb. ‘I Gotta Drive’ is a string-laden track with an aggressive beat. The sleepy ‘Drag Strip Girl’ and quirky ‘Surfin’ Hearse’ find the duo very much at home, doing the kind of off-beat comedy they do best. Also present here is an early version of ‘Dead Man’s Curve’ without the added horns/harps and slight alterations in the lyrics. Jan and Dean loosen things up with the absolutely hilarious ‘Schlock Rod (Parts 1 and 2). ‘Sting Ray’ is easily the weakest track on the album and is also the duo’s first instrumental (though they can frequently be heard speaking in the background). ‘Little Deuce Coupe’ is a worthy rendition though it pales in comparison to the original. Incidentally, its sound effects come from studio chairs being tossed around a room. ‘Popsicle Truck’ and ‘Surf Route 101’ boast top-notch production. The record concludes with the horn-heavy ‘Hot Stocker,’ going into the double time before the fade-out, showing off Hal Blaine’s drumming finesse.
 
Drag City is perhaps the most orchestral offering from the duo (sans Pop Symphony). The bevy of styles that are amalgamated into the tracks is impressive, and the consistency between songs makes it must have for any fan. Really one of the greatest surf/hot rod albums ever laid to vinyl.