Steve Cropper’s pithy intellect on the guitar is the result of years of immersive passion for music — but very little actual time woodshedding. His is an off-the-cuff genius, and that’s entirely on purpose.
“Do I practice guitar?” Cropper repeats, in a talk with Uncut. “My wife asked me that 27 years ago and I said, ‘I don’t practice! We don’t do that!'”
The reason isn’t some sort of latent laziness, but instead a life-long focus on being present in the moment, on improvisational attention to detail — rather than overthinking things.
“We might rehearse a song we haven’t played before, but I don’t want to get too good at this!” Cropper adds, obviously with a wink. “I guess that’s where the simplicity of my playing comes from.”
That’s served Cropper well in a career that began as a key cog in the legend of Stax Records, as notable work with the likes of Booker T. and the MGs, Wilson Pickett, Sam and Dave and Otis Redding helped the guitarist to induction in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. He later collaborated with John Lennon, Levon Helm, the Blue Brothers and Neil Young, among many others.
- Angell & Crane, “Himalayan Dial-Up” from ‘Angell & Crane’ (2024): Video Premiere - November 22, 2024
- Michael Attias, “Avrils” from ‘Quartet Music Vol. II- Kardamon Fall’ (2024): Streaming premiere - October 11, 2024
- Bryn Roberts, “Aloft” from ‘Aloft’ (2024): Video Premiere - September 20, 2024
