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(Photo: Atco Records/Free Press archives)

Detroit soul stalwart Sir Mack Rice, who wrote “Mustang Sally,” “Respect Yourself” and other enduring R&B hits, died Monday in metro Detroit. He was 82.

A onetime member of the Detroit group the Falcons in the late ‘50s and early ‘60s — featuring longtime friend and future solo star Wilson Pickett — the Mississippi-born Rice went on to make his name primarily as a songwriter, funneling tunes to artists associated with Memphis’ Stax Records.

“Mustang Sally” was the best known among them: Originally called “Mustang Mama,” a title later tweaked at the urging of Aretha Franklin, the song was recorded by Rice and hit No. 15 on the R&B charts in 1965. A year later, Pickett’s cover version took off and became the song’s signature interpretation.

“Respect Yourself” became a hit for the Staple Singers in 1971 (and Bruce Willis in 1987), while other Rice tunes were picked up by artists such as Johnnie Taylor (“Cheaper to Keep Her”), Rufus Thomas (“Do the Funky Penguin Part 1”) and Albert King (“Cadillac Assembly Line”).