Chicago radio superstation WLS, which gave the song much airplay, ranked "Lorelei" as the 77th most popular hit of 1976.

[4] Record World described the song as "a hard rocking number with overtones of The Who and Raspberries in its fiery rhythms.

[5] "Lorelei" was one of the songs that Styx re-recorded for their Regeneration: Volume 1 EP in 2010 with James Young on lead vocals.

It was re-recorded again for the 2023 CD Now Playing, a Styx compilation sold at their concerts, with Lawrence Gowan on lead vocals.

"Lorelei" is written in D-major with a moderately fast rock tempo.