Guitarist with the American band Booker T and the MGs who was also a successful songwriter and producer
In an era when many rock guitarists appeared to believe that the spoils would inevitably go to the fastest and flashiest, Steve Cropper showed generations of younger players the virtues of economy and concision.
Cropper, who has died aged 84, demonstrated in his early recordings as a member of the instrumental quartet Booker T and the MGs – notably their first hit, Green Onions – and in his backing work with singers such as Otis Redding and Wilson Pickett that a single chord, struck with exquisite timing, could say as much as the longest, loudest solo.
He also enjoyed success as a songwriter, co-writing In the Midnight Hour for Pickett, Knock on Wood for Eddie Floyd, and, most significantly, (Sittin’ on) The Dock of the Bay, a reflective ballad recorded a few days before Redding died in a plane crash in December 1967. Cropper and Redding had worked together on the song, whose gentle introspection seemed to suggest a new artistic direction for the singer. Released within a month of Redding’s death, it went straight to the top of the charts.
At the time Cropper was a key creative force at Stax Records, the independent Memphis label specialising in soul, R&B and gospel music. After business-related disagreements led to his departure in 1971, the many admirers who invited him to contribute to their albums included John Lennon, Rod Stewart, Dolly Parton, Ringo Starr and Etta James.
