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

The guitar virtuoso, who performed on and helped pen the classic song Sittin' On the Dock of the Bay and Wilson Pickett's In the Midnight Hour, passed away on Wednesday in Music City, Nashville.

Considered among the greatest backing bands in soul and R&B, the group the MGs was the core musical unit 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 late '70s and performed on their popular rendition of Soul Man.

"Steve was a beloved musician, songwriter, and producer whose extraordinary talent touched countless people around the world," his family stated in a release.

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

A cause of death was not released at this time.

A friend, Eddie Gore, recalled he was with Cropper on Tuesday in Nashville, where the guitarist had been working on fresh material.

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

An Illustrious Journey

Named the number two guitarist of all time by a music periodical 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 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 seen myself as a player who focuses on rhythm," Cropper remarked in a past interview. "I take pride in the fact that I can play something over and over, while other guitar players wouldn't consider it. They won't even play the same phrase 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 available information, he was "involved in the majority of record issued by Stax from late 1961 through 1970".

"We would often spend long days in the studio," Cropper once recalled. "I think we had a roster of artists on the roster, so we had a very hectic schedule."