It consisted of fourteen tracks from blues and soul musicians such as such as Bobby Womack, The Staple Singers, Sam & Dave, and John Lee Hooker.

[1] Drawing inspiration from the 1970s musician, an original song "Do You Feel Me" was written by Diane Warren and performed by Anthony Hamilton, released as a single on October 2, 2007.

After viewing an early screening of the film, Def Jam's president and rapper Jay-Z, who was "deeply moved" by Washington's performance as Frank Lucas, inspired to create an album drawing his past experiences as an hustler and drug dealer, parallel to the criminal's life.

AllMusic's James Leonard wrote "Streitenfeld doesn't quote from the popular music of 1970s Harlem, but through biting themes, insidious harmonies, and bass-driven rhythms he succeeds in evoking its atmosphere".

[7] Filmtracks.com wrote "a very effective score overall, one that presents challenges on album because of its distinctive attitude, but you can't help but admire how Streitenfeld handled this assignment".