🔗 Share this article The iconic guitarist Steve Cropper, guitarist of the soul group Booker T & the MGs, dies at the age of 84 Steve Cropper formed the backbone of the house band of the seminal Memphis label Stax Records. Steve Cropper, the renowned guitarist with Booker T and the MGs, has passed away at the age of 84. The artist, who contributed to and co-wrote Otis Redding's Sittin' On the Dock of the Bay and the hit track In the Midnight Hour, passed away on Wednesday in Nashville. Considered among the best backing bands in the history of soul music, the quartet Booker T & the MGs was the house band of the influential Memphis label Stax and is best remembered for their classic 1962 track Green Onions. Cropper went on to join the comedy music group The Blues Brothers in the 1970s and featured on their hit cover of Soul Man. "Steve was a cherished guitarist, composer, and producer whose extraordinary talent touched millions of lives around the world," his family stated in a statement. "While we mourn the loss of a husband, father, and friend, we take solace knowing that Steve will live forever through his music," they added. A cause of death was not disclosed. A colleague, Eddie Gore, mentioned he was with Cropper on Tuesday in Nashville, where the guitarist had been working on fresh material. "He's such a kind human," Gore remarked. "We were blessed to have him, for sure." Steve Cropper, pictured on the right, with peers Eddie Floyd and Sheryl Crow. An Illustrious Journey Ranked the runner-up for 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 were formed, 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 considered myself to be a rhythm guitarist," Cropper explained in a past interview. "I take pride in the fact that I can play something repeatedly, while other guitar players wouldn't consider it. They refuse to play the same lick twice." As well as a guitarist, Cropper was a productive songwriter, and alongside Dock of the Bay and In the Midnight Hour, he helped write Eddie Floyd's hit Knock on Wood. According to his official biography, he was "a part of nearly all record issued by Stax from 1961 through 1970". "We would often spend marathon sessions in the studio," Cropper noted in an interview. "I think we had 17 or 18 artists we worked with, so we had a pretty busy schedule."