Legendary guitarist Steve Cropper, musician of the soul group Booker T & the MGs, has died at the age of 84
Steve Cropper, the renowned guitarist with the iconic band Booker T & the MGs, has passed away at the age of 84.
The guitar virtuoso, who performed on and helped pen Otis Redding's Sittin' On the Dock of the Bay and Wilson Pickett's In the Midnight Hour, died on Wednesday in the city of Nashville.
Widely regarded among the best studio bands in soul music, the group Booker T & the MGs was the core musical unit of the influential Memphis label Stax/Volt and is most famous for their classic 1962 track Green Onions.
Cropper also joined the blues revival band The Blues Brothers in the late '70s and performed on their popular rendition of Soul Man.
"Steve was a beloved artist, writer, and producer whose immense talent impacted millions of lives around the world," his family expressed in a statement.
"While we grieve the loss of a husband, father, and friend, we find comfort knowing that Steve will be remembered through his music," they noted.
A specific cause was not disclosed.
A colleague, Eddie Gore, recalled he was with Cropper recently in Nashville, where the guitarist was in the process of creating new songs.
"He's such a kind human," Gore commented. "We were blessed to have him, for sure."
An Illustrious Journey
Named the number two guitarist of all time by a UK publication in 1996, Cropper began working at Stax in 1961 at the age of 20.
A year later, the MGs were formed, consisting of organist Booker T Jones, drummer Al Jackson and bassist Lewie Steinberg - who was succeeded by Donald "Duck" Dunn in 1964.
The band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1992.
"I've always thought of myself as a player who focuses on rhythm," Cropper remarked in a previous conversation. "I take pride in the fact that I can play something over and over, while other guitar players wouldn't consider it. They are reluctant to repeat the same lick twice."
In addition to being a guitarist, Cropper was a prolific songwriter, and alongside 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 the majority of record released by Stax from the fall of 1961 through year end 1970".
"We would literally spend marathon sessions in the studio," Cropper noted in an interview. "I think we had nearly 20 artists we worked with, so we had a extremely demanding schedule."