The iconic guitarist Steve Cropper, guitarist of Booker T and the MGs, has died at the age of 84
Esteemed musician Steve Cropper, the renowned guitarist with the iconic band Booker T & the MGs, has died at the age of 84.
The artist, who performed on and co-wrote Otis Redding's Sittin' On the Dock of the Bay and the hit track In the Midnight Hour, died on Wednesday in Nashville.
Widely regarded among the greatest backing bands in soul and R&B, the group the MGs was the core musical unit of the historic Memphis label Stax Records and is most famous for their classic 1962 track Green Onions.
Cropper went on to join the comedy music group The Blues Brothers in the 1970s and played on their popular rendition of Soul Man.
"Steve was a cherished guitarist, composer, and producer whose extraordinary talent impacted generations around the world," his family said in a release.
"While we grieve the loss of a family man and friend, we find comfort knowing that Steve will be remembered through his music," they noted.
A specific cause was not disclosed.
A friend, Eddie Gore, mentioned he was with Cropper on Tuesday in Nashville, where the guitarist was in the process of creating new music.
"He's such a good human," Gore said. "We were lucky to have him, for sure."
A Storied Musical Path
Named the number two guitarist of all time by a music periodical in 1996, Cropper started his career at Stax Records in 1961 at the age of 20.
A year later, the MGs were formed, comprising organist Booker T Jones, drummer Al Jackson and bassist Lewie Steinberg - who was replaced 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 rhythm player," Cropper said in a previous conversation. "I take pride in the fact that I can play something consistently, while other guitar players avoid that approach. They refuse to play the same riff twice."
Not only was he a guitarist, Cropper was a productive songwriter, and besides Dock of the Bay and In the Midnight Hour, he collaborated on Eddie Floyd's hit Knock on Wood.
According to available information, he was "a part of the majority of record put out by Stax from the fall of 1961 through year end 1970".
"We would often spend long days in the studio," Cropper noted in an interview. "I think we had a roster of artists signed to the label, so we had a very hectic schedule."
