The iconic 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 Booker T and the MGs, has left us at the age of 84.

The musician, who contributed to and co-wrote Otis Redding's Sittin' On the Dock of the Bay and Wilson Pickett's In the Midnight Hour, passed away on Wednesday in Music City, Nashville.

Often cited among the greatest supporting groups in soul music, the four-piece band Booker T & the MGs was the resident studio band of the influential Memphis label Stax and is primarily known for their classic 1962 track Green Onions.

Cropper also joined the comedy music group The Blues Brothers in the 1970s and featured on their successful version of Soul Man.

"Steve was a beloved musician, songwriter, and producer whose extraordinary talent touched generations around the world," his family stated in a statement.

"While we feel sorrow for the loss of a loved one and companion, we are consoled knowing that Steve will be remembered through his music," they noted.

A cause of death was not immediately known.

A friend, Eddie Gore, recalled he was with Cropper on Tuesday in Nashville, where the guitarist was in the process of creating new songs.

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

An Illustrious Journey

Voted the runner-up for guitarist of all time by a British music magazine in 1996, Cropper first found employment at Stax Records in 1961 at the age of 20.

A year later, the MGs were formed, consisting of keyboardist Booker T Jones, drummer Al Jackson and bassist Lewie Steinberg - who was succeeded by Donald "Duck" Dunn in 1964.

The band was entered into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1992.

"I've always considered myself to be a player who focuses on rhythm," Cropper said in a previous conversation. "I take pride in the fact that I can play something over and over, while other guitar players wouldn't consider it. They are reluctant to repeat the same phrase 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 "a part of the majority of record released by Stax from late 1961 through the end of 1970".

"We would literally spend marathon sessions in the studio," Cropper once recalled. "I think we had nearly 20 artists on the roster, so we had a pretty busy schedule."