Steve Cropper, guitarist of Booker T and the MGs, has died aged 84
Esteemed musician Steve Cropper, the renowned guitarist with the seminal soul group Booker T & the MGs, has died at the age of 84.
The guitar virtuoso, who contributed to and collaborated on writing Otis Redding's Sittin' On the Dock of the Bay and Wilson Pickett's In the Midnight Hour, succumbed on Wednesday in Music City, Nashville.
Considered among the finest backing bands in the history of soul music, the four-piece band Booker T. Jones and the MGs was the resident studio band of the influential Memphis label Stax/Volt and is most famous for their 1962 instrumental track Green Onions.
Cropper also joined the John Belushi-Dan Aykroyd act The Blues Brothers in the 1970s and performed on their popular rendition of Soul Man.
"Steve was a beloved artist, writer, and producer whose profound talent impacted generations around the world," his family stated in a statement.
"While we mourn the loss of a loved one and companion, we are consoled knowing that Steve will endure through his music," they noted.
A reason for his passing was not released at this time.
A colleague, Eddie Gore, mentioned he was with Cropper recently in Nashville, where the guitarist was developing new music.
"He's such a good human," Gore said. "We were fortunate to have him, for sure."
A Storied Musical Path
Voted the runner-up for guitarist of all time by a music periodical in 1996, Cropper began working 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 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 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 lick twice."
In addition to being a guitarist, Cropper was a productive songwriter, and besides Dock of the Bay and In the Midnight Hour, he co-wrote Eddie Floyd's hit Knock on Wood.
According to available information, he was "a part of nearly all record issued by Stax from late 1961 through year end 1970".
"We would often spend marathon sessions in the studio," Cropper said. "I think we had 17 or 18 artists we worked with, so we had a extremely demanding schedule."