The iconic guitarist Steve Cropper, musician of the famed band Booker T & the MGs, has died at the age of 84
Esteemed musician Steve Cropper, the acclaimed guitarist with Booker T and the MGs, has left us at the age of 84.
The artist, who played on and collaborated on writing the classic song Sittin' On the Dock of the Bay and Wilson Pickett's In the Midnight Hour, passed away on Wednesday in the city of Nashville.
Widely regarded among the finest studio bands in the history of soul music, the group the MGs was the house band of the influential Memphis label Stax/Volt and is most famous for their 1962 track Green Onions.
Cropper went on to join the John Belushi-Dan Aykroyd act The Blues Brothers in the late '70s and performed on their popular rendition of Soul Man.
"Steve was a beloved musician, songwriter, and producer whose profound talent impacted countless people around the world," his family said in a release.
"While we feel sorrow for the loss of a husband, father, and friend, we are consoled knowing that Steve will live forever through his music," they continued.
A cause of death was not disclosed.
A friend, Eddie Gore, recalled he was with Cropper recently in Nashville, where the guitarist was in the process of creating new music.
"He's such a good human," Gore remarked. "We were fortunate to have him, for sure."
An Illustrious Journey
Ranked the number two guitarist of all time by a UK publication in 1996, Cropper began working at Stax in 1961 at the age of 20.
A year later, the MGs were founded, comprising keyboardist Booker T Jones, drummer Al Jackson and bassist Lewie Steinberg - who was replaced by Donald "Duck" Dunn in 1964.
The band was honored by inclusion in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1992.
"I've always thought of myself as a rhythm guitarist," Cropper explained in a previous conversation. "I take pride in the fact that I can play something repeatedly, while other guitar players wouldn't consider it. They are reluctant to repeat the same lick twice."
As well as a guitarist, Cropper was a vastly creative songwriter, and in addition to Dock of the Bay and In the Midnight Hour, he helped write Eddie Floyd's hit Knock on Wood.
According to historical accounts, he was "a part of the majority of record released by Stax from late 1961 through year end 1970".
"We would truly spend marathon sessions in the studio," Cropper once recalled. "I think we had 17 or 18 artists signed to the label, so we had a very hectic schedule."