Legendary guitarist Steve Cropper, member of the famed band Booker T & the MGs, has died aged 84

The legendary guitarist Steve Cropper, the renowned guitarist with the iconic band Booker T & the MGs, has died at the age of 84.

The guitar virtuoso, who played on and helped pen the classic song Sittin' On the Dock of the Bay and Wilson Pickett's In the Midnight Hour, died recently in Nashville.

Often cited among the best studio bands in soul and R&B, the quartet Booker T & the MGs was the core musical unit of the historic Memphis label Stax and is primarily known for their classic 1962 track Green Onions.

Cropper later became a member of the blues revival band The Blues Brothers in the 1970s and featured on their hit cover of Soul Man.

"Steve was a beloved artist, writer, and producer whose extraordinary talent impacted millions of lives around the world," his family stated in a message.

"While we mourn the loss of a family man and friend, we find comfort knowing that Steve will endure through his music," they noted.

A cause of death was not immediately known.

An associate, Eddie Gore, stated he was with Cropper recently in Nashville, where the guitarist was developing fresh material.

"He's such a kind human," Gore commented. "We were blessed to have him, for sure."

A Storied Musical Path

Named 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 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 seen myself as a player who focuses on rhythm," Cropper explained in a past interview. "I get off on the fact that I can play something consistently, while other guitar players don't want to even know about that. They refuse to play the same lick twice."

As well as a guitarist, Cropper was a prolific songwriter, and besides Dock of the Bay and In the Midnight Hour, he helped write Eddie Floyd's hit Knock on Wood.

According to historical accounts, he was "integral to nearly all record issued 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."