Roebuck "Pops" Staples, patriarch of R&B group the Staple Singers, died yesterday (Dec. 19). He would have been 85 on Dec. 28. Staples had suffered a concussion recently in a fall near his home in Dalton, Illinois. Staples, along with daughters Mavis, Cleotha, and Yvonne, is best known for the hits "I'll Take You There" (No. 1) and "Respect Yourself" (No. 12), which garnered the family act their first mainstream success after years of gospel acclaim. In 1976, the Staples moved even further into mainstream R&B music after signing with Curtis Mayfield's Curtom label. There they landed another No. 1 hit with the Mayfield-written and produced "Let's Do It Again," the theme from the Sidney Poitier/Bill Cosby film of the same name. In the mid-80s, the group returned to the scene with a cover of the Talking Heads' "Slippery People," while Pops and Mavis concentrated on solo projects. Pops' 1992 "Peace To The Neighborhood" garnered a Grammy nomination, and in 1994 he released the Grammy-winning "Father, Father." Staples in survived by his children, including a son Pervis, who helped found the group. His wife preceded him in death. Copyright 2000 Billboard.com. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. AP contributed to this report.