By 1965, the group's popularity reached an apex, with the Remains earning four regional hits on Epic Records, and appearing on The Ed Sullivan Show.

The recording time in the studio saw the group explore different musical textures, including a guitar raveup on the opening track "Heart", Jagger-like sneer in "Lonely Weekend", and the band's early R&B influenced regional hits "Why Do I Cry?"

"[7] Arguably, the band's most accomplished piece on The Remains is "Don't Look Back", the tune's regional popularity apparent by The Rising Storm's own rendition of the song in 1968.

[14] Music critic Richie Unterberger, writing for the AllMusic website, said that the Remains' effort "had a lot of professional finesse to their straight-ahead attack and sharp songwriting, sometimes sounding like a fusion of the Beatles and the Zombies with their energetic harmonies and guitar-electric keyboard blend.

"[15] Critic Mark Kemp gives a glowing review in Paste magazine saying, "Had these Boston bad boys stuck it out beyond their 1966 debut, we might today be calling them—and not the Stones—the World's Greatest Rock 'n' Roll Band.