Steve Cropper, member of Booker T and the MGs, dies at the age of 84
The legendary guitarist Steve Cropper, the celebrated guitarist with the seminal soul group Booker T & the MGs, has left us at the age of 84.
The musician, who played on and helped pen the classic song Sittin' On the Dock of the Bay and the hit track In the Midnight Hour, succumbed this past Wednesday in the city of Nashville.
Widely regarded among the greatest supporting groups in soul and R&B, the four-piece band Booker T. Jones and the MGs was the house band of the historic Memphis label Stax Records and is primarily known for their classic 1962 track Green Onions.
Cropper went on to join the John Belushi-Dan Aykroyd act The Blues Brothers in the late '70s and performed on their hit cover of Soul Man.
"Steve was a deeply admired musician, songwriter, and producer whose immense talent inspired generations around the world," his family stated in a message.
"While we grieve the loss of a loved one and companion, we take solace knowing that Steve will live forever through his music," they noted.
A reason for his passing was not immediately known.
A friend, Eddie Gore, mentioned he was with Cropper just the day before in Nashville, where the guitarist was developing new songs.
"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 British music magazine in 1996, Cropper started his career at Stax in 1961 at the age of 20.
A year later, the MGs came together, consisting of keyboardist 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 considered myself to be 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 phrase twice."
In addition to being a guitarist, Cropper was a productive songwriter, and alongside Dock of the Bay and In the Midnight Hour, he co-wrote Eddie Floyd's hit Knock on Wood.
According to his official biography, he was "integral to virtually every record put out by Stax from the fall of 1961 through 1970".
"We would literally spend long days in the studio," Cropper once recalled. "I think we had 17 or 18 artists on the roster, so we had a pretty busy schedule."
