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The legendary guitarist Steve Cropper, the acclaimed guitarist with the iconic band Booker T & the MGs, has died at the age of 84.

The musician, who played on and helped pen 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.

Often cited among the best backing bands in the history of soul music, the four-piece band the MGs was the resident studio band of the groundbreaking Memphis label Stax/Volt and is most famous 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 performed on their hit cover of Soul Man.

"Steve was a cherished musician, songwriter, and producer whose profound talent touched countless people around the world," his family stated in a release.

"While we mourn the loss of a husband, father, and friend, we take solace knowing that Steve will be remembered through his music," they added.

A reason for his passing was not immediately known.

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

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

A Prolific Career

Ranked the runner-up for guitarist of all time by a British music magazine in 1996, Cropper started his career at Stax in 1961 at the age of 20.

A year later, the MGs came together, comprising organist Booker T Jones, drummer Al Jackson and bassist Lewie Steinberg - who was replaced 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 rhythm guitarist," Cropper remarked in a previous conversation. "I take pride in the fact that I can play something consistently, while other guitar players avoid that approach. They refuse to play the same phrase twice."

Not only was he 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 "involved in virtually every record put out by Stax from 1961 through the end of 1970".

"We would truly spend marathon sessions in the studio," Cropper noted in an interview. "I think we had nearly 20 artists signed to the label, so we had a pretty busy schedule."