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Esteemed musician Steve Cropper, the renowned guitarist with the iconic band Booker T & the MGs, has passed away at the age of 84.

The musician, who played on and co-wrote the classic song Sittin' On the Dock of the Bay and the hit track In the Midnight Hour, succumbed this past Wednesday in Music City, Nashville.

Often cited among the greatest backing bands in the history of soul music, the group Booker T. Jones and the MGs was the resident studio band of the historic Memphis label Stax Records and is best remembered for their 1962 instrumental track Green Onions.

Cropper later became a member of the comedy music group The Blues Brothers in the late '70s and featured on their successful version of Soul Man.

"Steve was a cherished guitarist, composer, and producer whose extraordinary talent touched generations around the world," his family stated in a release.

"While we feel sorrow for the loss of a family man and friend, we are consoled knowing that Steve will be remembered through his music," they continued.

A specific cause was not immediately known.

An associate, Eddie Gore, stated he was with Cropper on Tuesday in Nashville, where the guitarist was developing fresh material.

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

A Storied Musical Path

Ranked the runner-up for guitarist of all time by a UK publication in 1996, Cropper began working at Stax in 1961 at the age of 20.

A year later, the MGs were founded, featuring 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 thought of myself as a player who focuses on rhythm," Cropper said in a previous conversation. "I get off on the fact that I can play something consistently, while other guitar players avoid that approach. They refuse to play 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 the majority of record released by Stax from late 1961 through the end of 1970".

"We would truly spend marathon sessions in the studio," Cropper noted in an interview. "I think we had a roster of artists signed to the label, so we had a very hectic schedule."