🔗 Share this article Steve Cropper, member of the soul group Booker T & the MGs, has passed away at the age of 84 Steve Cropper formed the backbone of the house band of the influential Memphis label Stax Records. Esteemed musician Steve Cropper, the acclaimed guitarist with Booker T and the MGs, has passed away at the age of 84. The guitar virtuoso, who played on and collaborated on writing Otis Redding's Sittin' On the Dock of the Bay and Wilson Pickett's In the Midnight Hour, passed away recently in Nashville. Widely regarded among the finest studio bands in soul and R&B, the quartet Booker T. Jones and the MGs was the core musical unit of the influential Memphis label Stax/Volt and is primarily known for their 1962 track Green Onions. Cropper also joined the blues revival band The Blues Brothers in the late 1970s and played on their successful version of Soul Man. "Steve was a cherished musician, songwriter, and producer whose profound talent touched millions of lives around the world," his family expressed in a statement. "While we mourn the loss of a husband, father, and friend, we are consoled knowing that Steve will live forever through his music," they continued. A reason for his passing was not immediately known. An associate, Eddie Gore, recalled he was with Cropper recently in Nashville, where the guitarist was developing new music. "He's such a kind human," Gore commented. "We were blessed to have him, for sure." Steve Cropper, pictured on the right, with fellow musicians Sheryl Crow and Eddie Floyd. An Illustrious Journey Named the number two guitarist of all time by a UK publication in 1996, Cropper first found employment at Stax in 1961 at the age of 20. A year later, the MGs were founded, comprising organist 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 player who focuses on rhythm," Cropper said in a previous conversation. "I enjoy the fact that I can play something over and over, while other guitar players avoid that approach. They won't even play the same riff twice." Not only was he a guitarist, Cropper was a prolific songwriter, and alongside 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 "involved in the majority of record put out by Stax from 1961 through 1970". "We would often spend 15 hours a day in the studio," Cropper once recalled. "I think we had 17 or 18 artists we worked with, so we had a extremely demanding schedule."