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

The guitar virtuoso, who contributed to and co-wrote the classic song Sittin' On the Dock of the Bay and Wilson Pickett's In the Midnight Hour, succumbed recently in Nashville.

Often cited among the finest supporting groups in the history of soul music, the four-piece band Booker T & the MGs was the house band of the historic Memphis label Stax Records and is primarily known for their 1962 instrumental track Green Onions.

Cropper also joined the comedy music group The Blues Brothers in the 1970s and played on their hit cover of Soul Man.

"Steve was a deeply admired guitarist, composer, and producer whose extraordinary talent inspired generations around the world," his family expressed in a release.

"While we mourn the loss of a family man and friend, we are consoled knowing that Steve will live forever through his music," they added.

A specific cause was not disclosed.

A colleague, Eddie Gore, mentioned he was with Cropper on Tuesday in Nashville, where the guitarist had been working on new songs.

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

A Prolific Career

Named the runner-up for guitarist of all time by a UK publication in 1996, Cropper first found employment at Stax Records 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 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 thought of myself as a player who focuses on rhythm," Cropper said in a past interview. "I get off on the fact that I can play something over and over, while other guitar players avoid that approach. They refuse to play the same phrase twice."

As well as a guitarist, Cropper was a vastly creative songwriter, and alongside Dock of the Bay and In the Midnight Hour, he co-wrote Eddie Floyd's hit Knock on Wood.

According to available information, he was "a part of the majority of record released by Stax from late 1961 through 1970".

"We would truly spend marathon sessions in the studio," Cropper noted in an interview. "I think we had 17 or 18 artists on the roster, so we had a extremely demanding schedule."