🔗 Share this article Steve Cropper, guitarist of the famed band Booker T & the MGs, has died aged 84 Steve Cropper formed the backbone of the in-house studio band of the pioneering Memphis label Stax Records. Steve Cropper, the renowned guitarist with Booker T and the MGs, has passed away at the age of 84. The musician, who performed on and collaborated on writing Otis Redding's Sittin' On the Dock of the Bay and the hit track In the Midnight Hour, succumbed recently in Nashville. Considered among the finest studio bands in the history of soul music, the four-piece band the MGs was the house band of the influential Memphis label Stax/Volt and is primarily known for their 1962 track Green Onions. Cropper went on to join the blues revival band The Blues Brothers in the 1970s and featured on their successful version of Soul Man. "Steve was a cherished artist, writer, and producer whose profound talent impacted generations around the world," his family expressed in a release. "While we grieve the loss of a husband, father, and friend, we are consoled knowing that Steve will live forever through his music," they added. A cause of death was not immediately known. An associate, Eddie Gore, stated he was with Cropper on Tuesday in Nashville, where the guitarist was developing new songs. "He's such a wonderful human," Gore said. "We were fortunate to have him, for sure." Steve Cropper, pictured on the right, with artists Eddie Floyd and Sheryl Crow. A Prolific Career Named the number two guitarist of all time by a British music magazine in 1996, Cropper first found employment at Stax in 1961 at the age of 20. A year later, the MGs were formed, featuring organist Booker T Jones, drummer Al Jackson and bassist Lewie Steinberg - who was succeeded 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 wouldn't consider it. They are reluctant to repeat the same phrase twice." In addition to being a guitarist, Cropper was a prolific songwriter, and besides Dock of the Bay and In the Midnight Hour, he collaborated on Eddie Floyd's hit Knock on Wood. According to historical accounts, he was "a part of virtually every record issued by Stax from the fall of 1961 through year end 1970". "We would truly spend long days in the studio," Cropper said. "I think we had nearly 20 artists signed to the label, so we had a pretty busy schedule."