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Esteemed musician Steve Cropper, the renowned guitarist with the seminal soul group 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 Wilson Pickett's In the Midnight Hour, passed away this past Wednesday in Music City, Nashville.

Often cited among the finest studio bands in the history of soul music, the group Booker T & the MGs was the house band of the influential Memphis label Stax/Volt and is primarily known for their 1962 track Green Onions.

Cropper went on to join the John Belushi-Dan Aykroyd act The Blues Brothers in the 1970s and played on their successful version of Soul Man.

"Steve was a deeply admired artist, writer, and producer whose profound talent impacted countless people around the world," his family stated in a message.

"While we mourn the loss of a loved one and companion, we are consoled knowing that Steve will live forever through his music," they noted.

A reason for his passing was not released at this time.

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

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

An Illustrious Journey

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

A year later, the MGs were formed, 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 thought of myself as a rhythm player," Cropper remarked in a previous conversation. "I take pride in the fact that I can play something repeatedly, while other guitar players don't want to even know about that. They refuse to play the same lick twice."

Not only was he a guitarist, Cropper was a vastly creative 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 available information, he was "a part of nearly all record put out by Stax from the fall of 1961 through the end of 1970".

"We would often spend long days in the studio," Cropper said. "I think we had nearly 20 artists we worked with, so we had a extremely demanding schedule."