The iconic guitarist Steve Cropper, member of Booker T and 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 artist, who performed on and co-wrote Otis Redding's Sittin' On the Dock of the Bay and the hit track In the Midnight Hour, succumbed on Wednesday in the city of Nashville.

Often cited among the best backing bands in soul and R&B, the group the MGs was the house band of the influential 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 played on their popular rendition of Soul Man.

"Steve was a deeply admired guitarist, composer, and producer whose profound talent inspired millions of lives around the world," his family expressed in a release.

"While we mourn the loss of a family man and friend, we take solace knowing that Steve will endure through his music," they added.

A specific cause was not disclosed.

A friend, Eddie Gore, mentioned he was with Cropper just the day before in Nashville, where the guitarist was developing new music.

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

A Storied Musical Path

Ranked the number two guitarist of all time by a music periodical 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 considered myself to be a rhythm player," Cropper said in a past interview. "I take pride in the fact that I can play something repeatedly, while other guitar players avoid that approach. They are reluctant to repeat the same phrase twice."

In addition to being a guitarist, Cropper was a productive songwriter, and besides Dock of the Bay and In the Midnight Hour, he helped write Eddie Floyd's hit Knock on Wood.

According to his official biography, he was "integral to the majority of record released by Stax from 1961 through year end 1970".

"We would literally spend marathon sessions in the studio," Cropper said. "I think we had a roster of artists signed to the label, so we had a extremely demanding schedule."