Donald “Duck” Dunn has passed away.

Born and raised in Memphis, Tennessee, Dunn was the bass player in Booker T. and the MGs as well as a sideman to Neil Young, Muddy Waters, Eric Clapton, Wilson Pickett and many more. He was a key player for Stax recording studios and an integral component in the soulful funkiness of the “Stax sound.”

I remember seeing Neil Young on his 1993 tour when Booker T and the MGs were his backing band. I was expecting something bluesy and jazzy (you never know with Neil), but the band rocked hard. Dunn stood in one spot, blue jeans perfectly pressed with a crease down the middle, and laid down a groove as deep and massive as the Grand Canyon without ever breaking a sweat or mussing his impeccably coiffed hairdo.

Dunn died in his sleep in Japan after playing a couple of gigs at The Blue Note in Tokyo. He was 70 years-old.

Here’s a great clip of Dunn playing with Booker T. and the MGS on 1960s TV show Shindig.