Donald "Duck" Dunn

Bass player and songwriter Donald "Duck" Dunn, of Booker T. and the MGs and the Blues Brothers band, has died in Tokyo. He was on tour with his friend and fellow MG Steve Cropper. He played on some of the great soul classics as part of the Stax house band - Respect, Dock Of The Bay and I've Been Loving You Too Long, by Otis Redding; Wilson Pickett's In The Midnight Hour, and Hold On I'm Coming by Sam and Dave.  His full discography is stunning.

Dunn was born in Memphis, Tennessee, in 1941. "I picked up a ukulele when I was about 10 and I started playing bass when I was 16. I tried the guitar but it had two strings too many. It was just too complicated, man! Plus, I grew up with Steve Cropper. There were so many good guitar players another one wasn't needed. What was needed was a bass. I mostly learned just by listening to records. I don't know how to explain it but I knew if I could do it, I'd be good at it!"

He was. Try this - my favourite Booker T and the MGs track - from 1977.