The first vibe I felt after listening to "The Express" is one of determination.  The music is written with fight inside of it without always outwardly expressing it.  To that end, the underscore for this soundtrack is compelling to engage in and more appropriately, it captures the essence of the story in every note.  Given that racial tension and intolerance was a key obstacle in this account, the music represents that struggle effectively.  There is more of a serious tone to this score than you would hear in most sports movies and a fair amount of credit should be given to Isham and the powers that be who decided on this course.  That said, there are also moments to celebrate as well.

 

"The Express" does offer moments that are uplifting within the context of the score.  When the main 'football theme' is heard, it marches forth with the use of collegiate style percussion behind it and presents a fantastic progression of music that correlates extremely well to the on field successes that are depicted in the film.  When you hear this theme, as stated prominently in track 10, you will gain a further appreciation of what I meant when I stated that this is a score that 'feels' determined.  The music seems to carry on as a perfect background element in the story's fabric, which is a crucial deliverable for any composer.  Isham achieves that here and the result is successful in the film and on the disc.

 

While the dramatic components of "The Express" are further accentuated on the soundtrack's closing cues, I would have relished another reprisal of the lively football action theme to close the album.  Instead, it ends poignantly (as it should given the true events) but without any of the driving energy that represented Ernie Davis on the football field from earlier in the score.  Of course, one needs to abide by the needs of the film but I think in producing a soundtrack, certain liberties should be taken to enhance the listening experience and such a proposed closure would have done that for me.