Steve Cropper, guitarist of Booker T and the MGs, dies aged 84

Steve Cropper, the acclaimed guitarist with the seminal soul group Booker T & the MGs, has passed away at the age of 84.

The artist, who contributed to and collaborated on writing Otis Redding's Sittin' On the Dock of the Bay and Wilson Pickett's In the Midnight Hour, died recently in Nashville.

Widely regarded among the greatest studio bands in soul music, the quartet the MGs was the core musical unit of the influential Memphis label Stax and is primarily known for their classic 1962 track Green Onions.

Cropper later became a member of the John Belushi-Dan Aykroyd act The Blues Brothers in the 1970s and played on their hit cover of Soul Man.

"Steve was a beloved guitarist, composer, and producer whose extraordinary talent touched countless people around the world," his family said in a release.

"While we mourn the loss of a family man and friend, we take solace knowing that Steve will be remembered through his music," they continued.

A specific cause was not disclosed.

An associate, Eddie Gore, mentioned he was with Cropper recently in Nashville, where the guitarist was developing fresh material.

"He's such a good human," Gore remarked. "We were lucky to have him, for sure."

An Illustrious Journey

Named the second-best guitarist of all time by a UK publication in 1996, Cropper began working at the Stax label in 1961 at the age of 20.

A year later, the MGs came together, featuring organist Booker T Jones, drummer Al Jackson and bassist Lewie Steinberg - who was replaced by Donald "Duck" Dunn in 1964.

The band was entered into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1992.

"I've always thought of myself as a rhythm player," Cropper said in a past interview. "I enjoy the fact that I can play something consistently, while other guitar players don't want to even know about that. They won't even play the same riff twice."

In addition to being a guitarist, Cropper was a prolific songwriter, and alongside Dock of the Bay and In the Midnight Hour, he helped write Eddie Floyd's hit Knock on Wood.

According to available information, he was "integral to virtually every record issued by Stax from 1961 through year end 1970".

"We would literally spend long days in the studio," Cropper said. "I think we had 17 or 18 artists on the roster, so we had a very hectic schedule."