British actor and musician David Kaff – best known for portraying Spinal Tap keyboardist Viv Savage – has died, aged 79.
News of Kaff’s – real name David Kaffinetti – passing was shared via his band Mutual of Alameda’s Wild Kingdom on Facebook. While a confirmed cause of death has yet to be shared, the band wrote that he “passed away peacefully in his sleep”.
Our brother David Kaffinetti passed away peacefully in his sleep yesterday.We are devastated by this event.David…
Posted by Mutual of Alameda’s Wild Kingdom on Sunday, July 13, 2025
Kaffinetti was best known for playing Spinal Tap’s keyboardist Viv Savage in the cult classic 1984 mockumentary This Is Spinal Tap. Besides appearing in the film, Kaff also played live with the band several times, including their Saturday Night Live performance that same year.
Though he had a smaller role than Spinal Tap’s lead actors, Kaff’s Viv Savage left a mark on fans thanks to his quippy one-liners, including the film’s closing line: “Have a good time, all the time – that’s my philosophy.”
Following the film’s release and a handful of live performances to promote the mockumentary, Kaff left the fictional band, and did not return for their subsequent studio albums: 1992’s ‘Break Like the Wind’ and 2009’s ‘Back from the Dead’.
Kaff will not appear in the upcoming highly anticipated This Is Spinal Tap sequel, which is due to arrive in September in the US.
Prior to his involvement with Spinal Tap, David Kaff was a founding member of the British psychedelic rock band Rare Bird. The group recorded and released five studio albums between 1969 and 1974, and nabbed one UK chart hit – 1970’s ‘Sympathy’. In 1972, he also also collaborated with Chuck Berry for The London Chuck Berry Sessions, which yielded the hit single ‘My Ding-a-Ling’.
Following his time in Spinal Tap, Kaff would go on to form other bands, including Oakland’s Model Citizenz and most recently, psych-rock outfit Mutual of Alameda’s Wild Kingdom.
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