“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

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Best of 2024: As the guitarist in Booker T. & the M.G.’s, the house band for Stax Records, Steve Cropper was a key figure in shaping the sound of soul music in the ’60s, backing legendary singers including Otis Redding and Wilson Pickett.

Steve co-wrote the classic songs Green Onions and (Sittin’ On) The Dock Of The Bay, and also recorded with rock icons John Lennon and Rod Stewart.

Steve Cropper & The Midnight Hour - Friendlytown (Official Lyric Video) - YouTube

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“If someone's got groove,” Steve says, “he's gonna last a lot longer than the guy doesn’t, whatever groove means to you. To me it means soul. And I play in the box, not outside it. That's what people like. If you play too far outside the box people aren't gonna like it.”

He adds with a smile: “My playing has always sucked, but it sells, because I keep it simple, I guess. I'm not a guitar player, I never took the time. I use it as a tool. I couldn't afford to hire another guitarist on a lot of Stax records, so I learned to play rhythm and lead at the same time so when I was soloing the rhythm wouldn't drop out.”

Steve also reveals why he never uses a capo. “Randy Bachman from The Guess Who taught me a lick, and it was more of a country lick where you could bend two strings at the same time, but he did it with two fingers. I figured out how to do it with one finger. I'll never use a capo, either. God gave you a capo right here [holds up his first finger] so I learnt how to play a lot of chords with three fingers instead of four. That was important.”

The full interview with Steve Cropper appears in the latest issue of Total Guitar, on sale on 18 October