David Kaff, known as Spinal Tap keyboardist Viv Savage in This Is Spinal Tap, has died at the age of 79.
According to a statement from his band Mutual of Alameda’s Wild Kingdom, Kaff passed away peacefully in his sleep on July 11th.
Kaff’s role as Savage was limited in This Is Spinal Tap, where he joked about the “magic” of video games and said he was capable of playing Nigel’s bassline in “Big Bottom” because “I have two hands.” Perhaps his most famous line comes in the credits, where he’s asked for his life motto and says, “Have a good time… all the time.”
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His final appearance with the band came during their 1984 appearance on Saturday Night Live. In the mythos of Spinal Tap, Viv Savage was said to have died when visiting the grave of drummer Mick Shrimpton — who had exploded onstage — after a buildup of methane gas caused the grave to also explode.
Born David Kaffinetti in April 1946, Kaff launched his music career with the progressive rock band Rare Bird in the 1970s. In the Europe, the band achieved modest success with their song “Sympathy,” which reached No 1. in both Italy and France, and sold more than a million copies worldwide. Kaff also notably did session work on Chuck Berry’s 1972 album, The London Chuck Berry Sessions.
