0559. Isaac Hayes
Shaft

There are better soundtracks, there are even better blaxploitation soundtracks, but Isaac Hayes' music for Shaft is the best known and, maybe not surprising, the best selling.

It's also the first studio double album released by an R&B artist, as well as being the best selling release from Stax and being heaped with awards and accolades. But statistics aside, this is a great album. Mostly instrumental it's not only the soundtrack to a cool flick, but could easily double as the soundtrack of a fantastic day, with the almost twenty minute long Do Your Thing as the second most memorable track (and I always get fooled into thinking the song's over due to the climactic crescendo, but then realize it's just about halfway though).

The Shaft theme has been used and referenced by everyone from Sammy Davis Jr to the Swedish national TV's Sportspegeln. And while that might not all be a testament to its qualities, the mere fact that just about everyone knows that Shaft is a bad mother[shutyourmouth] without ever having seen the movie should tell you something.

Being snubbed by Richard Roundtree for the title role might have been a blessing as it provided Isaac with time to compose this legendary score.