🔗 Share this article The iconic guitarist Steve Cropper, guitarist of the soul group Booker T & the MGs, has died at the age of 84 Steve Cropper was part of the house band of the seminal Memphis label Stax Records. Esteemed musician Steve Cropper, the renowned guitarist with Booker T and the MGs, has left us at the age of 84. The musician, who contributed to and helped pen the classic song Sittin' On the Dock of the Bay and the hit track In the Midnight Hour, died this past Wednesday in the city of Nashville. Often cited among the best backing bands in soul music, the group Booker T. Jones and the MGs was the house band of the groundbreaking Memphis label Stax/Volt and is most famous for their 1962 instrumental track Green Onions. Cropper went on to join the John Belushi-Dan Aykroyd act The Blues Brothers in the 1970s and featured on their successful version of Soul Man. "Steve was a deeply admired artist, writer, and producer whose extraordinary talent inspired generations around the world," his family expressed in a statement. "While we grieve the loss of a husband, father, and friend, we are consoled knowing that Steve will be remembered through his music," they added. A reason for his passing was not disclosed. An associate, Eddie Gore, stated he was with Cropper just the day before in Nashville, where the guitarist was in the process of creating fresh material. "He's such a good human," Gore remarked. "We were lucky to have him, for sure." Steve Cropper, right, with peers Eddie Floyd and Sheryl Crow. A Prolific Career Ranked the number two guitarist of all time by a music periodical in 1996, Cropper started his career 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 succeeded 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 considered myself to be a rhythm guitarist," Cropper said in a previous conversation. "I take pride in the fact that I can play something over and over, while other guitar players wouldn't consider it. They won't even play the same lick twice." As well as a guitarist, Cropper was a productive songwriter, and besides 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 1970". "We would truly spend 15 hours a day in the studio," Cropper once recalled. "I think we had a roster of artists on the roster, so we had a very hectic schedule."