[Deathwatch] Orlando "Cachaito" Lopez, musician, 76

[Deathwatch Central]

Buena Vista bassist "Cachaito" Lopez dies at 76
Tue Feb 10, 5:57 pm ET

HAVANA – Cuban bassist Orlando "Cachaito" Lopez, who rose to
international fame as a member of the Buena Vista Social Club band, has
died at 76 due to complications following prostate surgery, Cuban state
media said on Tuesday.

Lopez was one of a group of aging Cuban musical stars who were largely
forgotten until U.S. musician Ry Cooder brought them together in 1996.

Cooder and German director Wim Wenders made the documentary "Buena
Vista Social Club" that drew a global audience to the group's
traditional Cuban music. The bestselling album of the same name won a
Grammy in 1998.

Lopez' death was "an irreparable loss for Cuban music," state media
quoted Buena Vista Social Club percussionist Amadito Valdes as saying.

Several other members of the band have died in recent years, including
singers Compay Segundo, Ibrahim Ferrer, Pio Leyva and pianist Ruben
Gonzalez.

(Reporting by Nelson Acosta; editing by Jeff Franks and Pascal
Fletcher)

Many thanks to Deathwatch Central for posting this obituary