Yvonne Staples (The Staples Singers), RIP

Yvonne Staples, of pioneering gospel, pop and soul group The Staples Singers, died in her Chicago home on Tuesday. She was 80 and had been battling colon cancer. From The New York Times obit:

Yvonne Staples joined the group in 1971, when Pervis [Staples] left for military service. The group, whose music blended gospel, soul and pop, had a string of hit songs in the 1970s. “Respect Yourself” reached No. 2 on the Billboard charts in 1971, “I’ll Take You There” reached No. 1 in 1972, and “Let’s Do It Again” was a No. 1 hit in 1975.

“On all the big hit records, Yvonne did the background vocals” in addition to acting as the group’s business manager, Mr. Carpenter said.

When her sister Mavis began a solo career in the 1980s, Yvonne performed the same double duty for her, singing background vocals and managing her tours until just a few years ago. At her death she was “pretty much retired,” Mr. Carpenter said.

Rest in peace, Yvonne. Your music lives on. Check out some classic Staples Singers songs below: