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Steve Cropper, the acclaimed guitarist with Booker T and the MGs, has passed away at the age of 84.

The artist, who performed on and collaborated on writing the classic song Sittin' On the Dock of the Bay and Wilson Pickett's In the Midnight Hour, passed away this past Wednesday in Music City, Nashville.

Widely regarded among the finest supporting groups in the history of soul music, the four-piece band the MGs was the house band of the historic Memphis label Stax Records and is primarily known for their classic 1962 track Green Onions.

Cropper also joined the John Belushi-Dan Aykroyd act The Blues Brothers in the late '70s and played on their popular rendition of Soul Man.

"Steve was a cherished musician, songwriter, and producer whose profound talent inspired millions of lives around the world," his family stated in a message.

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

A specific cause was not released at this time.

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

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

An Illustrious Journey

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

A year later, the MGs were formed, featuring organist 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 player who focuses on rhythm," Cropper explained in a previous conversation. "I take pride in the fact that I can play something consistently, while other guitar players wouldn't consider it. They refuse to play the same phrase 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 co-wrote Eddie Floyd's hit Knock on Wood.

According to historical accounts, he was "integral to the majority of record issued by Stax from the fall of 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 on the roster, so we had a extremely demanding schedule."