The iconic guitarist Steve Cropper, member of the famed band Booker T & the MGs, has died aged 84
The legendary guitarist Steve Cropper, the acclaimed guitarist with the seminal soul group Booker T & the MGs, has died at the age of 84.
The musician, who performed on 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.
Widely regarded among the greatest studio bands in soul and R&B, the quartet Booker T & the MGs was the core musical unit of the historic Memphis label Stax Records and is primarily known for their 1962 instrumental track Green Onions.
Cropper went on to join the comedy music group The Blues Brothers in the late '70s and performed on their successful version of Soul Man.
"Steve was a cherished artist, writer, and producer whose immense talent touched millions of lives around the world," his family stated in a release.
"While we feel sorrow for the loss of a loved one and companion, we find comfort knowing that Steve will be remembered through his music," they continued.
A specific cause was not released at this time.
A friend, Eddie Gore, recalled he was with Cropper just the day before in Nashville, where the guitarist had been working on new music.
"He's such a good human," Gore remarked. "We were fortunate to have him, for sure."
A Prolific Career
Ranked the second-best 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 came together, featuring keyboardist 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 considered myself to be a player who focuses on rhythm," Cropper said in a previous conversation. "I enjoy the fact that I can play something consistently, while other guitar players avoid that approach. They refuse to play the same phrase twice."
As well as a guitarist, Cropper was a prolific songwriter, and besides Dock of the Bay and In the Midnight Hour, he co-wrote Eddie Floyd's hit Knock on Wood.
According to historical accounts, he was "a part of virtually every record released by Stax from 1961 through the end of 1970".
"We would literally spend marathon sessions in the studio," Cropper noted in an interview. "I think we had a roster of artists on the roster, so we had a very hectic schedule."
