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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 guitar virtuoso, who contributed to and collaborated on writing the classic song 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 greatest studio bands in soul music, the group Booker T. Jones and the MGs was the resident studio band of the groundbreaking Memphis label Stax and is primarily known for their classic 1962 track Green Onions.

Cropper went on to join the John Belushi-Dan Aykroyd act The Blues Brothers in the late '70s and featured on their hit cover of Soul Man.

"Steve was a cherished artist, writer, and producer whose immense talent impacted countless people around the world," his family expressed in a message.

"While we feel sorrow for the loss of a husband, father, and friend, we take solace knowing that Steve will live forever through his music," they added.

A cause of death was not disclosed.

An associate, Eddie Gore, stated he was with Cropper on Tuesday in Nashville, where the guitarist was developing new songs.

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

A Prolific Career

Ranked the runner-up for guitarist of all time by a British music magazine in 1996, Cropper first found employment at Stax in 1961 at the age of 20.

A year later, the MGs came together, consisting of keyboardist 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 considered myself to be a rhythm guitarist," Cropper said in a past interview. "I enjoy the fact that I can play something over and over, while other guitar players don't want to even know about that. They refuse to play the same riff twice."

Not only was he a guitarist, Cropper was a vastly creative songwriter, and besides 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 nearly all record released by Stax from the fall of 1961 through year end 1970".

"We would truly spend marathon sessions in the studio," Cropper said. "I think we had 17 or 18 artists on the roster, so we had a very hectic schedule."