🔗 Share this article Legendary guitarist Steve Cropper, guitarist of the famed band Booker T & the MGs, has died at the age of 84 Steve Cropper formed the backbone of the resident musical group of the pioneering Memphis label Stax Records. The legendary guitarist Steve Cropper, the renowned guitarist with Booker T and the MGs, has passed away at the age of 84. The artist, who played on and co-wrote the classic song Sittin' On the Dock of the Bay and the hit track In the Midnight Hour, succumbed this past Wednesday in Nashville. Considered among the greatest backing bands in soul and R&B, the quartet Booker T. Jones and the MGs was the resident studio band of the historic Memphis label Stax/Volt and is best remembered for their 1962 instrumental track Green Onions. Cropper later became a member of the comedy music group The Blues Brothers in the late '70s and featured on their successful version of Soul Man. "Steve was a beloved artist, writer, and producer whose immense talent inspired generations around the world," his family expressed in a release. "While we feel sorrow for the loss of a loved one and companion, we find comfort knowing that Steve will live forever through his music," they continued. A reason for his passing was not released at this time. A colleague, Eddie Gore, recalled he was with Cropper just the day before in Nashville, where the guitarist had been working on new songs. "He's such a good human," Gore remarked. "We were blessed to have him, for sure." Steve Cropper, pictured on the right, with fellow musicians Sheryl Crow and Eddie Floyd. A Prolific Career Voted the second-best 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 keyboardist 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 thought of myself as a rhythm player," Cropper explained in a past interview. "I take pride in the fact that I can play something over and over, while other guitar players don't want to even know about that. They are reluctant to repeat the same phrase twice." As well as 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 his official biography, he was "involved in the majority of record issued by Stax from 1961 through 1970". "We would literally spend 15 hours a day in the studio," Cropper said. "I think we had nearly 20 artists we worked with, so we had a very hectic schedule."