Steve Cropper, guitarist of the soul group Booker T & the MGs, has died aged 84
The legendary guitarist Steve Cropper, the renowned guitarist with the iconic band Booker T & the MGs, has passed away at the age of 84.
The artist, who played on and helped pen the classic song Sittin' On the Dock of the Bay and Wilson Pickett's In the Midnight Hour, died on Wednesday in the city of Nashville.
Widely regarded among the best supporting groups in the history of soul music, the quartet Booker T & the MGs was the house band of the influential Memphis label Stax Records and is primarily known for their 1962 track Green Onions.
Cropper also joined the comedy music group The Blues Brothers in the 1970s and featured on their successful version of Soul Man.
"Steve was a deeply admired guitarist, composer, and producer whose extraordinary talent inspired countless people around the world," his family stated in a statement.
"While we feel sorrow for the loss of a family man and friend, we are consoled knowing that Steve will live forever through his music," they continued.
A cause of death was not immediately known.
An associate, Eddie Gore, stated he was with Cropper on Tuesday in Nashville, where the guitarist had been working on fresh material.
"He's such a good human," Gore remarked. "We were fortunate to have him, for sure."
A Prolific Career
Named the runner-up for guitarist of all time by a music periodical in 1996, Cropper started his career at Stax in 1961 at the age of 20.
A year later, the MGs were formed, comprising keyboardist Booker T Jones, drummer Al Jackson and bassist Lewie Steinberg - who was replaced by Donald "Duck" Dunn in 1964.
The band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1992.
"I've always thought of myself as a player who focuses on rhythm," Cropper said in a past interview. "I take pride in the fact that I can play something over and over, while other guitar players don't want to even know about that. They won't even play the same lick twice."
In addition to being a guitarist, Cropper was a productive songwriter, and alongside Dock of the Bay and In the Midnight Hour, he co-wrote Eddie Floyd's hit Knock on Wood.
According to historical accounts, he was "involved in nearly all record released by Stax from the fall of 1961 through 1970".
"We would literally spend 15 hours a day in the studio," Cropper once recalled. "I think we had nearly 20 artists on the roster, so we had a very hectic schedule."
