17-07-2025
- Entertainment
- San Francisco Chronicle
‘Spinal Tap' actor and longtime Bay Area musician David Kaffinetti dies at 79
David Kaffinetti, the British-born musician and actor who brought to life the endearingly vacant keyboardist Viv Savage in the 1984 cult mockumentary ' This Is Spinal Tap ' has died. He was 79.
His death, at his East Bay home on Friday, July 11, was announced by his bandmates in the local group Mutual of Alameda's Wild Kingdom, who wrote on Facebook that Kaffinetti 'passed away peacefully in his sleep.' No cause of death was given.
'David always had a kind word and a quick wit that would slay you where you stand,' they added. 'Then he'd make you smile doing it!'
Born on April 17, 1946, in Folkestone, England, Kaffinetti began studying classical piano at age 5 before discovering rock 'n' roll through artists like Jerry Lee Lewis and Chuck Berry.
He co-founded the progressive rock band Rare Bird in the late 1960s, scoring a U.K. hit with 'Sympathy' in 1969.
But it was as Viv Savage — the mumbling, lab coat–wearing synth player with the immortal mantra, 'Have a good time … all the time' — that Kaffinetti found pop culture permanence.
His turn in Spinal Tap, alongside co-creators Christopher Guest, Michael McKean and Harry Shearer, cemented his place in rock satire history.
Though he left the fictional band later that year, he remained active in music, performing with Bay Area acts like Model Citizenz and continuing to embrace the persona that made him a fan favorite.
A sequel to 'This Is Spinal Tap' is set for release in September. Kaffinetti was not involved in the production.
