The iconic guitarist Steve Cropper, member of the soul group Booker T & the MGs, has died aged 84
Steve Cropper, the celebrated guitarist with Booker T and the MGs, has died at the age of 84.
The guitar virtuoso, who played on and collaborated on writing Otis Redding's Sittin' On the Dock of the Bay and Wilson Pickett's In the Midnight Hour, succumbed this past Wednesday in Music City, Nashville.
Widely regarded among the greatest supporting groups in the history of soul music, the group the MGs was the resident studio band of the groundbreaking Memphis label Stax and is best remembered for their 1962 instrumental track Green Onions.
Cropper also joined the blues revival band The Blues Brothers in the 1970s and performed on their successful version of Soul Man.
"Steve was a cherished artist, writer, and producer whose immense talent inspired countless people around the world," his family stated in a release.
"While we mourn the loss of a family man and friend, we take solace knowing that Steve will live forever through his music," they added.
A cause of death was not released at this time.
An associate, Eddie Gore, recalled he was with Cropper just the day before in Nashville, where the guitarist had been working on new music.
"He's such a kind human," Gore commented. "We were fortunate to have him, for sure."
A Prolific Career
Voted the runner-up for 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 came together, featuring organist Booker T Jones, drummer Al Jackson and bassist Lewie Steinberg - who was succeeded 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 player who focuses on rhythm," Cropper remarked in a past interview. "I enjoy the fact that I can play something consistently, while other guitar players avoid that approach. They won't even play the same riff twice."
Not only was he a guitarist, Cropper was a prolific songwriter, and in addition to Dock of the Bay and In the Midnight Hour, he helped write Eddie Floyd's hit Knock on Wood.
According to available information, he was "involved in nearly all record issued by Stax from 1961 through year end 1970".
"We would truly spend marathon sessions in the studio," Cropper said. "I think we had 17 or 18 artists signed to the label, so we had a very hectic schedule."
