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

The musician, 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 recently in the city of Nashville.

Considered among the greatest backing bands in the history of soul music, the four-piece band Booker T & the MGs was the core musical unit of the groundbreaking Memphis label Stax Records and is most famous for their 1962 instrumental track Green Onions.

Cropper also joined the blues revival band The Blues Brothers in the 1970s and featured on their popular rendition of Soul Man.

"Steve was a deeply admired musician, songwriter, and producer whose immense talent inspired millions of lives around the world," his family expressed in a message.

"While we grieve the loss of a husband, father, and friend, we are consoled knowing that Steve will endure through his music," they continued.

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

An associate, Eddie Gore, mentioned he was with Cropper on Tuesday in Nashville, where the guitarist had been working on new music.

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

A Storied Musical Path

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

A year later, the MGs were formed, consisting of keyboardist 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 seen myself as a rhythm player," Cropper remarked in a past interview. "I enjoy the fact that I can play something consistently, while other guitar players wouldn't consider it. They won't even play the same lick twice."

As well as a guitarist, Cropper was a prolific songwriter, and besides Dock of the Bay and In the Midnight Hour, he collaborated on Eddie Floyd's hit Knock on Wood.

According to historical accounts, he was "a part of the majority of record released by Stax from 1961 through the end of 1970".

"We would truly 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."