Prime creator of the Stax sound in the 1960s and keeper of its flame.
The world lost one of its most influential guitarists on December 3rd 2025, when Steve Cropper passed away in Nashville, marking the end of his sixty-plus-year career. Through his role as a producer, songwriter, and guitarist with Booker T & the MGs, he was a key architect of the Southern Soul sound of the 1960s through his work with artists like Eddie Floyd, Wilson Pickett, Sam & Dave, and Otis Redding, and over the subsequent decades, he has played with everyone from Levon Helm, Neil Young, Leon Russell, Mavis Staples, Bob Dylan, Paul Simon, Delaney & Bonnie, and John Prine, to name only a few. While he did occasionally play live over the years, his reputation rests on his studio work, where his professionalism meant he always played for the song.
Steve Cropper was born in Dora, Missouri, and moved with his family to Memphis when he was nine. Like many teenagers at the time, Steve Cropper played guitar in bands with his friends, but in his case, it led to him making contact with Charles “Packy” Axton, whose uncle, Jim Stewart, had a recording studio in his garage, which was a precursor to the Stax studio and label. Cropper’s band, the Mar-Keys, had a hit in 1961 with ‘Last Night’, which ultimately led to him being offered the role of A&R with Stax Records, after Chips Moman had left to go to American Records. The Mar-keys became the studio band for Stax Records with a flexible line-up which included Donald “Duck” Dunn, Al Jackson, and Booker T Jones, who, with Cropper, became Booker T & the MGs, who had their own successful recording career as well as becoming the dominant house band for Stax Records. Their first release, with Lewie Steinberg on bass, was the instrumental ‘Green Onions’ in 1962, which became part of the era’s defining soundtrack. By the time Cropper left Stax at the end of 1970, he had worked on over a hundred records in his role as producer, songwriter, and guitarist, and he had written such classics as ‘Knock On Wood’, ‘In The Midnight Hour’, and the iconic ‘(Sittin’ On) The Dock of the Bay’. He had also recorded an instrumental covers album, “With a Little Help from My Friends”, which featured his Telecaster front and centre.
The ’70s saw Cropper play a freelancing role as a producer and guitarist for various artists. In 1975, he moved to Los Angeles, and in 1977, he joined Levon Helm’s band for “Levon Helm and the RCO All-Stars”. Steve Cropper was then asked to join comedians Dan Aykroyd and John Belushi’s Blues Brothers, which proved particularly popular on film and record. While essentially a comedy act, the Blues Brothers band was full of professional musicians and shared a sound and some personnel with Levon Helm’s RCO All-Stars.
The Blues Brothers phenomenon resulted in Steve Cropper securing a solo record deal with MCA. However, the two albums he recorded for them were not particularly successful artistically, though they had their moments, as they featured him as more of a lead vocalist. A move to Nashville followed in 1988, and Booker T & the MGs played live occasionally, culminating with Dylan asking them to be the house band for his “30th Anniversary Concert”, which featured various artists covering Dylan songs. One of the artists featured was Neil Young, who subsequently asked the band to tour with him. The 2000s saw Steve Cropper’s solo career really get started, as he released a series of albums that were more representative of his overall style and legacy. These included a pair of albums with Felix Cavaliere, “Dedicated-A Salute to the 5 Royales”, which includes guests like Buddy Miller, Lucinda Williams, Dan Penn, Dylan LeBlanc, and Steve Winwood. His last album was 2024’s “Friendlytown” with Billy Gibbons.
Without Steve Cropper’s contributions to the music that was recorded at Stax Records in the 1960s, the music of subsequent generations would be very different. This is the measure of his legacy as a producer, songwriter and guitarist, and why artists of the calibre of Levon Helm, Bob Dylan, and Neil Young sought out his support to try and access some of the magic that was created in Memphis in the ’60s. He was given the nickname “The Colonel” when he toured Japan with Levon Helm in the late ’70s because of his habit of keeping the other musicians in line. This professionalism and the fact that he was always humble about his musical achievements mean the world has lost a truly unique musician.
Another time when I was knocked sideways – reading of his death. As you say, such an influential musician, songwriter and producer.
As a long-time admirer of Steve Cropper’s playing I’d maybe be a bit more generous toward “Playin’ my thang” which saw Steve trading on the new interest following the Blues Brothers. And whilst the Blues Brothers had comedy roots the music side was taken seriously – the movie gave a lift to a lot of people who’d slipped somewhat from mainstream consciousness and “Briefcase Full of Blues” is often cited as the best-selling blues album of all time. Which, in a way, is a terrible thing to say – but it did bring attention back to a style of music that for many people had become unimportant.
My first time seeing Steve live was in 2008 in what was in effect a school hall – one of my most memorable gig experiences, and certainly among the most incongruous. His playing was effortless and spot on.
So, a sad day.