Tori Brazier
Published December 4, 2025 7:03am
Updated December 4, 2025 7:40am
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One of the most admired guitarists of all time, Steve Cropper, has died (Picture: Getty)
Legendary guitarist for Booker T and the MG’s Steve Cropper, who also played with the Blues Brothers, has died aged 84.
The Grammy Award winner also co-wrote and played on Otis Redding’s defining song Sittin’ On the Dock of the Bay and Wilson Pickett’s In the Midnight Hour.
He died on Wednesday in Nashville, according to the Associated Press, who cited president and CEO of the Soulsville Foundation Pat Mitchell Worley after she said Cropper’s family had told her about his death.
‘Steve was a beloved musician, songwriter, and producer whose extraordinary talent touched millions of lives around the world,’ his family said in a statement, according to Rolling Stone magazine.
‘While we mourn the loss of a husband, father, and friend, we find comfort knowing that Steve will live forever through his music. Every note he played, every song he wrote, and every artist he inspired ensures that his spirit and artistry will continue to move people for generations to come,’ they added.
No cause of death has yet been shared, although Cropper’s longtime associate Eddie Gore told AP he was with the musician on Tuesday at a Nashville rehabilitation facility, after a recent fall.
The Booker T and the MG’s founder, who also played with Otis Redding and The Blues Brothers, was 84 (pictured in 1990) (Picture: David Redfern/Redferns/Getty Images)
The star began his career early, playing in bands from when he was a teenager (Picture: Getty)
Gore also claims that Cooper had been working on new music at the time of his death.
‘He’s such a good human. We were blessed to have him, for sure,’ Gore said.
Booker T and the MG’s was the influential house band at Stax Records, with Cropper a founding member.
He was named as the second-best guitarist of all time by music magazine Mojo, as well as being placed at number 45 in Rolling Stone’s list of the 250 greatest guitar of all time.
Booker T and the MG’s, best known for their iconic 1962 instrumental hit Green Onions, were inducted into the Rock and Rock Hall of Fame in 1992.
Cropper playing with Booker T & the MG’s at Hunter College in New York in January 1967 (Picture: Getty)
Cropper was born in Dora, Missouri, in 1942, co-founding Booker T and the MGs in 1962 after already achieving a number three hit on the Billboard 100 with The Mar-Keys’ hit Last Night in 1961.
The MG’s other popular songs included Mo’ Onions, Soul Dressing, Boot-Leg, Soul Limbo, Mrs Robinson and Melting Pot.
As well as co-writing and playing with Redding and Pickett, Cropper also played on Sam & Dave’s Soul Man, on which he was mentioned by name.
Cropper had to sort the final mix for Sittin’ On the Dock of the Bay within days of Redding’s funeral, after he died in a plane crash in Wisconsin in December 1967.
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He also co-wrote Knock on Wood with Eddie Floyd and worked with the likes of John Lennon, Rod Stewart, Elton John, Paul Simon, Steppenwolf and Ringo Starr.
He was nominated for seven Grammys over his career, winning two (Picture: AP/Mark Humphrey)
Cropper played on two albums with the Blues Brothers and appeared in the movies Blues Brothers and Blues Brothers 2000.
In 2005, Cropper entered the Songwriters Hall of Fame and received his final Grammy nomination out of seven in the contemporary blues album category for 2021’s Fire It Up.
He is survived by loved ones including his second wife, Angel, and their children, Andrea and Cameron.
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