The iconic guitarist Steve Cropper, musician of the soul group Booker T & the MGs, has passed away aged 84

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

The musician, who performed on and co-wrote the classic song Sittin' On the Dock of the Bay and Wilson Pickett's In the Midnight Hour, passed away this past Wednesday in Nashville.

Considered among the best studio bands in soul and R&B, the group the MGs was the resident studio band of the historic Memphis label Stax/Volt and is primarily known for their classic 1962 track Green Onions.

Cropper also joined the comedy music group The Blues Brothers in the late '70s and played on their popular rendition of Soul Man.

"Steve was a cherished musician, songwriter, and producer whose extraordinary talent touched countless people around the world," his family said in a message.

"While we feel sorrow for the loss of a husband, father, and friend, we take solace knowing that Steve will endure through his music," they added.

A cause of death was not released at this time.

A colleague, Eddie Gore, recalled he was with Cropper just the day before in Nashville, where the guitarist was in the process of creating new music.

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

A Storied Musical Path

Named the runner-up for guitarist of all time by a music periodical in 1996, Cropper started his career at Stax in 1961 at the age of 20.

A year later, the MGs were founded, 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 remarked in a past interview. "I get off on the fact that I can play something repeatedly, while other guitar players avoid that approach. They are reluctant to repeat the same riff twice."

As well as a guitarist, Cropper was a productive songwriter, and in addition to 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 the majority of record put out by Stax from late 1961 through year end 1970".

"We would often spend 15 hours a day in the studio," Cropper noted in an interview. "I think we had nearly 20 artists signed to the label, so we had a pretty busy schedule."