Steve Cropper

Steve Cropper, guitarist and member of Stax Records' Booker T and the M.G.'s, has died at age 84
Steve Cropper, who co-wrote classic songs, including “(Sittin' on) the Dock of the Bay” and “In the Midnight Hour,” during his years playing guitar at the legendary Stax Records in Memphis, has died

Steve Cropper, the legendary guitarist whose work as an instrumentalist, producer and songwriter at Stax Records left an indelible impression on Memphis soul music, has died at the age of 84.

In a 2020 interview with The Associated Press, Cropper discussed his career and how he mastered the art of filling gaps with an essential lick or two.

"I listen to the other musicians and the singer," Cropper said. "I'm not listening to just me. I make sure I'm sounding OK before we start the session. Once we've presented the song, then I listen to the song and the way they interpret it. And I play around all that stuff. That's what I do. That's my style."

Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards, asked once about Cropper, said simply, "Perfect, man."

He was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2005, and two years later received a Grammy Award for lifetime achievement.

Cropper continued recording into his later years, including 2024's "Friendlytown," which was nominated for a Grammy. Earlier this year, Cropper received the Tennessee Governor's Arts Award, the state's highest honor in the arts.

Photo: David Reed

Don's Tunes

How could we not!?

Green Onions - Booker T and The MGs

Mo’ Birthdays this week : Happy 84th birthday to Steve Cropper!🎸

Photo by David Reed

"It was pretty much of a one-shot deal at Stax, cause we didn’t have the money to buy a three-track or some of these other fancy machines, they were out, and built, but not too many people had them. Atlantic had one of the first eight-tracks - I think Sun had one of the first three-tracks, and that’s how they were able to get that echo on the Elvis and Jerry Lee records, just by throwing it back through and letting it slap, getting it phasing against itself. We later went to a four-track, and started advancing on our capabilities and the technical side of things. Most all of the original stuff, Green Onions and all the earlier Eddie Floyd and Wilson Pickett and Rufus Thomas stuff was all cut in mono. So it had to be done in the studio, during the day, with everybody ready to go, and it had to be right. You could edit takes together, if you had a fade-out that was better than another one, or an intro better, you could do that and piece them together, but that didn’t happen too often. It’s a good thing we had Al Jackson!

When it comes to songwriting, do you have any particular approach?

- Well there are two ways I do it - basically one is that I start with a title, if I’m writing a song with lyrics. I like to come up with a title that pretty much says it, and then you just write about it. You just embellish on the title. The other way, if I’m writing an instrumental, I just start working on the groove and a little bit of the melody, and try to carry that out, and find if it’s going to go to the bridge or whatever. And then I just bring that forward, and seldom ever do we title instrumentals till they’re finished. And then we try to think, well, what does it remind us of. That’s usually the way we title them.

I guess that’s how Green Onions came about, then.

- Yeah, I sort of liked that! We had it cut, and we were listening to it, and somebody said, ”Man, that is stinky!” So I said, ”What are we going to name it? What’s stinky?” ”Well, how about onions, onions are stinky.” And I just sort of said,”Yeah, I like onions, but onions is kind of a negative, they’re so stinky, but *green* onions, people put them on their plate and eat them!” And they said, ”Yeah, you’re right, Green Onions sounds better.” So that’s what we went with. Stinkin’ green onions. (Laughs) Somebody suggested Wild Onions, but I just said no, I don’t think Wild Onions sounds as good. Actually, I think somebody put one out called Wild Onions, a copy kind of thing.

Interview by Paul Guy 1999

Don's Tunes 

Green Onions - Booker T. & Steve Cropper, Keb Mo, Albert Lee who else can you spot?!

... Live Guitar Festival New York 2013

Steve Cropper

Steve Cropper Play It Steve

Don's Tunes - Steve Cropper Time is what?

Steve Cropper makes a surprise appearance with the group at Hunter College, New York City, 21st January 1967. 

(Photo by Don Paulsen/Michael Ochs Archives)

Steve Cropper: I've been asked that. "How'd you play so tight with Al Jackson if you were in a big studio with no headphones?" Real simple, I watched his snare drum out of the corner of my eye and came down with his left hand. It's just one of those things. We were tight like that. I know I was playing with feeling, but there's a little delay when you just play to yourself what you hear. What you're hearing and what you're seeing are two different things. It's more like the doppler effect.

Listening to your stories, it sounds like so much of being a songwriter is just constantly having your eyes and ears open.

Mmhmm. If you're not aware and you're not channeling stuff, you're not going to get the message. You got to open yourself up to it and be ready for it when it hits. You never know where ideas are coming from. I'll give you another example. "Mr. Pitiful."

I was driving home from the studio one night, listening to the radio and the DJ said, "Here's another one from the great Mr. Pitiful." He was talking about Otis Redding, but I'd never heard him been called that before. I went home, but that was still in my head. I get up the next morning and go to take a shower, right before I had to pick up Otis to go to work. I started humming a song, "They call me Mr. Pitiful, everywhere I go / They call me Mr. Pitiful / This everybody now know..."

So I go pick up Otis and sing the song for him. I said, "I got a great idea we need to work on." By the time we got to the studio, he had most of it done. That was the first song we showed the band when we walked in. We cut it first. Two or three takes and it was done.

Corbin Reiff Interview 

Don's Tunes

Booker T & the MGs 'Time is Tight' live in Stax Studio, 1969

Booker T & The MG's - 'Tic Tac Toe' live [Colourised] 1967 Live in Norway

Booker T. & MGs, "Soul Limbo" on Letterman, April 30, 1991 

I always post Green Onions ( and why not) but here’s another slough of hits

Steve Cropper, John Prine, Phil Ochs at Jose Feliciano’s Garden Party! [1975]

Now there’s an afternoon I could get behind!

Wouldn’t you like to have been there?

I know I would!

Chuck us a Bud!

 

John Prine 'Angel From Montgomery' down by the river . . . . . 

Steve Cropper the Soul Legend “my playing has always sucked . . . . “! | Voodoo Wagon - Floppy Boot Stomp Facebook page

 errr say what now Steve!? I er, beg to differ . . .it is SIGNATURE work! Who else is recognisable like this?

Floppy Boot Stomp - Voodoo Wagon

15 hours ago

https://www.musicradar.com/…/my-playing-has-always-sucked-b…

For R&B legend Steve Cropper, playing guitar is all about groove

MUSICRADAR.COM

“My playing has always sucked, but it sells!”: The guitarist who co-wrote two of the most famous songs of all time admits he is no virtuoso

For R&B legend Steve Cropper, playing guitar is all about groove

Steve Cropper

 

Steve Cropper

:  I just pick up a guitar, plug in, and if it doesn’t work, it doesn’t work. I do say this to my guitars – ‘If you don’t perform tonight, you’re going to be firewood in the morning.’ And it always works! 

When we first worked with Albert King, he was a blues guy who had these old blues songs that we took in a different direction and they started hitting,” Cropper says proudly. “Born Under a Bad Sign and Crosscut Saw – I’ll never forget when we cut those – holy mackerel. Albert knew they were something else. Plus, I don’t think Albert had ever really received a real royalty check. He’d gotten screwed out of everything he’d ever done. He was one of those guys that grew up not trusting anybody, because he’d been stolen from all his life. Promoters and club owners and record company folks robbed him. But when he came to Stax, all of a sudden, he got paid for what he did, and for the records that he sold. He was head over heels about that. When he got his checks from Stax, it changed his whole life. He used to come to Duck and me and say, ‘When we going to make another record?’ Because all of a sudden he was making good money for the first time in his life!”

Born Under a Bad SIgn - Booker T, (Crossroads Guitar Festifal 2013) check the line up! Keb Mo, Steve Cropper, Albert Lee, to name but a few . . . . . . 

Steve Cropper Interview

Steve Cropper :: The Aquarium Drunkard Interview

Posted on June 3, 2021

Over the last 60 years, guitarist Steve Cropper has helped defined the sound of soul, rock, R&B, and pop. That’s his clipped rhythms in “Green Onions,” that’s him losing it onstage at Monterey Pop behind Otis Redding. He joins us for a discussion about his history and his new album, Fire It Up, and discusses the secret to fashioning a great R&B instro.

The Maestro is still with us another godfather of Fonk! Great little interview from Aquarium Drunkard!

Steve Cropper Interview - Aquarium Drunkard