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The legendary guitarist Steve Cropper, the renowned guitarist with Booker T and the MGs, has left us at the age of 84.

The guitar virtuoso, who performed on and co-wrote Otis Redding's Sittin' On the Dock of the Bay and the hit track In the Midnight Hour, died this past Wednesday in the city of Nashville.

Widely regarded among the greatest supporting groups in the history of soul music, the quartet Booker T. Jones and the MGs was the core musical unit of the influential Memphis label Stax/Volt and is primarily known for their 1962 instrumental track Green Onions.

Cropper later became a member of the comedy music group The Blues Brothers in the 1970s and featured on their popular rendition of Soul Man.

"Steve was a beloved musician, songwriter, and producer whose immense talent inspired countless people around the world," his family expressed in a message.

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

A cause of death was not immediately known.

An associate, Eddie Gore, recalled he was with Cropper recently in Nashville, where the guitarist had been working on new songs.

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

A Storied Musical Path

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

A year later, the MGs came together, featuring keyboardist Booker T Jones, drummer Al Jackson and bassist Lewie Steinberg - who was replaced 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 remarked in a previous conversation. "I get off on the fact that I can play something consistently, while other guitar players wouldn't consider it. They are reluctant to repeat the same lick 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 collaborated on Eddie Floyd's hit Knock on Wood.

According to his official biography, he was "a part of nearly all record released by Stax from 1961 through year end 1970".

"We would often spend marathon sessions in the studio," Cropper once recalled. "I think we had a roster of artists on the roster, so we had a very hectic schedule."