Steve Cropper, member of the soul group Booker T & the MGs, has died aged 84
Esteemed musician Steve Cropper, the renowned guitarist with the seminal soul group Booker T & 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, died recently in Nashville.
Widely regarded among the best studio bands in the history of soul music, the quartet Booker T & the MGs was the core musical unit of the influential Memphis label Stax Records and is primarily known for their 1962 instrumental track Green Onions.
Cropper went on to join the John Belushi-Dan Aykroyd act The Blues Brothers in the 1970s and performed on their successful version of Soul Man.
"Steve was a deeply admired musician, songwriter, and producer whose extraordinary talent inspired millions of lives around the world," his family said in a statement.
"While we mourn the loss of a husband, father, and friend, we are consoled knowing that Steve will endure through his music," they noted.
A specific cause was not immediately known.
A friend, Eddie Gore, stated he was with Cropper recently in Nashville, where the guitarist was in the process of creating new music.
"He's such a good human," Gore commented. "We were fortunate to have him, for sure."
An Illustrious Journey
Voted the number two guitarist of all time by a British music magazine in 1996, Cropper started his career at Stax Records in 1961 at the age of 20.
A year later, the MGs were formed, consisting of 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 seen myself as a player who focuses on rhythm," Cropper explained in a past interview. "I enjoy the fact that I can play something consistently, while other guitar players wouldn't consider it. They won't even play the same riff twice."
In addition to being a guitarist, Cropper was a vastly creative 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 "involved in the majority of record released by Stax from the fall of 1961 through the end of 1970".
"We would often spend long days in the studio," Cropper once recalled. "I think we had nearly 20 artists on the roster, so we had a very hectic schedule."
