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The legendary guitarist Steve Cropper, the renowned guitarist with the iconic band 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, died recently in the city of Nashville.

Widely regarded among the greatest studio bands in soul and R&B, the quartet Booker T. Jones and the MGs was the house band of the historic Memphis label Stax/Volt and is best remembered for their classic 1962 track Green Onions.

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

"Steve was a beloved guitarist, composer, and producer whose extraordinary talent touched millions of lives around the world," his family expressed in a release.

"While we grieve the loss of a family man and friend, we are consoled knowing that Steve will endure 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 was developing fresh material.

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

A Prolific Career

Named 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 founded, comprising organist 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 considered myself to be a rhythm guitarist," Cropper said in a past interview. "I take pride in the fact that I can play something repeatedly, while other guitar players avoid that approach. They won't even play the same lick 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 his official biography, he was "a part of virtually every record issued by Stax from the fall of 1961 through the end of 1970".

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