🔗 Share this article Steve Cropper, musician of the famed band Booker T & the MGs, has died at the age of 84 Steve Cropper formed the backbone of the house band of the pioneering Memphis label Stax Records. Steve Cropper, the acclaimed guitarist with the iconic band Booker T & the MGs, has died at the age of 84. The artist, who contributed to and collaborated on writing the classic song Sittin' On the Dock of the Bay and the hit track In the Midnight Hour, died recently in the city of Nashville. Considered among the finest supporting groups in soul and R&B, the four-piece band Booker T & the MGs was the house band of the groundbreaking Memphis label Stax and is best remembered for their classic 1962 track Green Onions. Cropper later became a member of the comedy music group The Blues Brothers in the late '70s and performed on their popular rendition of Soul Man. "Steve was a deeply admired guitarist, composer, and producer whose profound talent touched millions of lives around the world," his family stated in a release. "While we feel sorrow for the loss of a husband, father, and friend, we are consoled knowing that Steve will live forever through his music," they continued. A specific cause was not immediately known. A colleague, Eddie Gore, recalled 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 remarked. "We were lucky to have him, for sure." Steve Cropper, right, with fellow musicians Sheryl Crow and Eddie Floyd. A Prolific Career Ranked the number two guitarist of all time by a music periodical in 1996, Cropper started his career at the Stax label in 1961 at the age of 20. A year later, the MGs were founded, 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 rhythm guitarist," 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 are reluctant to repeat the same lick twice." As well as a guitarist, Cropper was a productive songwriter, and alongside Dock of the Bay and In the Midnight Hour, he collaborated on Eddie Floyd's hit Knock on Wood. According to historical accounts, he was "involved in nearly all record released by Stax from 1961 through 1970". "We would truly spend long days in the studio," Cropper said. "I think we had nearly 20 artists on the roster, so we had a extremely demanding schedule."