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Steve "The Colonel" Cropper (born October 21 , 1941 ) is an American guitarist, songwriter, producer, and Soul Music ian. On June 9 , 2005 , Cropper was inducted into the Songwriters Hall Of Fame alongside Bill Withers , Robert B. Sherman , Richard M. Sherman , John Fogerty , David Porter and Isaac Hayes . BIOGRAPHY Early life Cropper was born Stephen Lee Cropper on a farm outside Dora, Missouri . In 1950, his family moved to Memphis, Tennessee . At age ten, he strummed a guitar for the first time, his brother-in-law's Gibson . Cropper received his first guitar at age 14, and started playing with local musicians. His hero at the time was Lowman Pauling of Memphis's The Five Royales . The Stax years (1961-1970) Steve Cropper at Stax Cropper and guitarist Charlie Freeman formed (as a tip of the hat to Pauling's band) The Royal Spades, who eventually became owned Satellite, and eventually The Mar-Keys began playing on sessions and had a hit single of their own with 1961's " Last Night ". Also in the band were producer/songwriter Don Nix and future legends, bassist Donald "Duck" Dunn and trumpeter Wayne Jackson . Besides being impressed with the young guitarist's playing, the then Stax Records president Jim Stewart saw a business sense, professionalism, and maturity in Cropper beyond his years. When American Records founder Chips Moman left Stax, the young Cropper was given the keys to the studio, which he opened every day; he became the company's A & R man, and shared engineering duties with Stewart. A founding member of Booker T. & The MGs , Stax's house band, Cropper, along with Booker T. Jones on organ and piano, bassist Dunn, and drummer Al Jackson, Jr. , went on to record several hits. His fiery leads and tight rhythm work with the MGs, and his tasteful work on hundreds of records, most notably his work with Otis Redding , were unmistakable and would make him a legend. Cropper's legend was not limited to the United States. The Beatles were in awe of Cropper's playing and his production on Otis Redding records. In fact, when pressed as to who John Lennon and Paul McCartney may want to collaborate with, Steve Cropper 's was the only name they mentioned.http://www.tennesseeconcerts.com/beatles.html McCartney has been quoted as saying "Drive My Car" was based on the bass line on Redding's "Respect". The "Fab Four" approached Stax about recording in their studio, but word quickly got out, and fans (predominantly teenage girls) and the local press made it impossible for this to happen. ''Revolver'' is apparently the album that was to be recorded in Soulsville U.S.A. The MGs, as instrumental artists, worked because they "wrote sounds". Music professor and author of the book ''Soulsville U.S.A.: The Story Of Stax Records'', Rob Bowman , quotes Booker T. Jones as saying, "We were writing sounds too, especially Steve. He's very sound-conscious, and he gets a lot of sounds out of a Telecaster without changing any settings — just by using his fingers, his picks, and his amps". Together, with Jones on a B-3 organ, they could get so many sounds going that they sounded like a much larger group. Besides his influential work with the MGs, Cropper co-wrote " Knock On Wood " with Eddie Floyd , " In The Midnight Hour " with Wilson Pickett , and " (Sittin' On) The Dock Of The Bay " with Otis Redding . His partnership with Redding was particularly fruitful. "(Sittin' On) The Dock Of the Bay", alone, has been played over six million times, making it the sixth most played song of all time (and the ASCAP catalog's second most). In 1969, Cropper released his first solo album, ''With a Little Help From My Friends''. After Stax (1970-present) Cropper left Stax in the fall of 1970.http://www.playitsteve.com/bio2.html The company had already lost Otis Redding in a plane crash, stars Sam & Dave (through Stax's distribution deal breakup with Atlantic), and an also disgruntled Booker T. Jones . When Cropper left, Stax lost their most successful producer, along with his partners David Porter and Isaac Hayes . He formed TMI (Trans-Maximus) with Jerry Williams and former Mar-Key Ronnie Stoots. There he lent his guitar and producing skills to Jeff Beck , Tower Of Power , John Prine , and Jose Feliciano (on his 3 RCA albums; 1972 "Memphis Menu", 1973 "Compartments", 1974 "For My Love"). Also during this time, he played on Ringo Starr 's 1973 album ''Ringo'' and the following year's ''Goodnight Vienna'', and John Lennon asked him to play on his ''Rock 'n' Roll'' album. By 1975, Cropper had closed shop and moved to Los Angeles, where Booker T. Jones was also living. They called up Al Jackson and Duck Dunn , still at Stax, and decided to reform the MGs. But Jackson, who Cropper called "the greatest drummer to ever walk the earth", was murdered in his Memphis home. In the late seventies, Cropper and Dunn became members of ( The Band 's drummer) Levon Helm 's RCO All-Stars , and then they went on to lead The Blues Brothers Band with Al Jackson protégé`, drummer Willie Hall . This led to several albums and two movies. Cropper lived in L.A. for the next thirteen years before moving to Nashville. Cropper remains in the The Blues Brothers Band , reunited in 1988. He and Dunn have circled the globe many times with various front men, including Larry Thurston and Stax Soul men Sam Moore and Eddie Floyd . In February 1998, he released ''Play It, Steve!'' where he described the inspirations behind his creation of some of Soul Music 's most enduring songs. It was released on Play It, Steve! Records. The phrase is exclaimed by Moore on Sam & Dave 's "Soul Man" and later by John Belushi (a.k.a. "Joliet" Jake Blues) with The Blues Brothers . Cropper is also a part of many charities and lends his name to benefits every year. Cropper is generally regarded as the most well known and influential Soul guitarist and because of his ability to adapt to many different styles, in 1996, he was named the greatest living guitar player (second all-time behind Jimi Hendrix ) by Britain's '' Mojo '' Magazine. When asked what he thought of Cropper, the guitarist at number four, The Rolling Stones ' Keith Richards , said "Perfect, man". REFERENCES EXTERNAL LINKS
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