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Steve Cropper, the renowned 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 collaborated on writing Otis Redding's Sittin' On the Dock of the Bay and the hit track In the Midnight Hour, died on Wednesday in the city of Nashville.

Often cited among the best studio bands in the history of soul music, the quartet Booker T. Jones and the MGs was the resident studio band of the influential Memphis label Stax Records and is most famous for their classic 1962 track Green Onions.

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

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

"While we grieve the loss of a family man and friend, we find comfort knowing that Steve will be remembered through his music," they continued.

A specific cause was not immediately known.

A colleague, Eddie Gore, recalled he was with Cropper just the day before in Nashville, where the guitarist was developing new songs.

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

A Storied Musical Path

Named the second-best guitarist of all time by a UK publication in 1996, Cropper began working at Stax Records in 1961 at the age of 20.

A year later, the MGs were founded, comprising keyboardist 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 considered myself to be a rhythm player," Cropper remarked in a past interview. "I take pride in the fact that I can play something consistently, while other guitar players don't want to even know about that. They are reluctant to repeat 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 "integral to virtually every record released by Stax from 1961 through 1970".

"We would truly spend long days in the studio," Cropper noted in an interview. "I think we had nearly 20 artists signed to the label, so we had a extremely demanding schedule."