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The legendary guitarist Steve Cropper, the renowned guitarist with the seminal soul group Booker T & the MGs, has passed away at the age of 84.

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

Considered among the greatest supporting groups in the history of soul music, the four-piece band Booker T. Jones and the MGs was the core musical unit of the influential Memphis label Stax Records and is primarily known for their 1962 instrumental track Green Onions.

Cropper later became a member of the blues revival band The Blues Brothers in the 1970s and featured on their successful version of Soul Man.

"Steve was a beloved guitarist, composer, and producer whose extraordinary talent impacted generations 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 added.

A specific cause was not disclosed.

An associate, Eddie Gore, recalled he was with Cropper on Tuesday in Nashville, where the guitarist was in the process of creating new music.

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

A Storied Musical Path

Voted the second-best guitarist of all time by a music periodical in 1996, Cropper began working at the Stax label in 1961 at the age of 20.

A year later, the MGs were formed, consisting of organist Booker T Jones, drummer Al Jackson and bassist Lewie Steinberg - who was succeeded 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 thought of myself as a rhythm player," Cropper said in a previous conversation. "I enjoy the fact that I can play something over and over, while other guitar players don't want to even know about that. They won't even play the same riff 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 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 1970".

"We would often spend 15 hours a day in the studio," Cropper said. "I think we had 17 or 18 artists on the roster, so we had a pretty busy schedule."