Six months earlier, the great musical legend Cachao  returned in glory to San Francisco to be honored by Carnaval San Francisco [carnavalsf.com]and hailed as the great mambo King at the Gift Center in a triumphant community October 30, 2004 concert made possible by Comcast. 

MNC Carnaval Committee Chair,Miguel Bustos  and Carnaval producer and event Roberto Hernanez thank Comcast representatives for making the historic night possible. The opening act was the Latin Jazz Youth Ensemble of SF who will be appearing at the beginning of the Carnaval 2005 parade May 29, 2005. Proceeds from 2005 Carnaval SF will go to the expansion of the Carnaval Cultural Arts Education Program (CCAEP) in the San Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD). CCAEP provides the unique opportunity for our children to experience music, dance and journal writing, along with their academic subjects!

Then on March 6, Cachao again visited San Francisco as the honoree of a  two-day celebration of Afro-Cuban culture titled "To Cuba With Love." Sponsored by the College of Creative Arts at San Francisco State University, the events included the awarding of the first Marcus Award for Lifetime Achievement to Cachao at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts. The money for the center and prize was from George and Judy Marcus,who grew up on Potrero Hill and went to SF State in the '60s. George Marcus is best known as the first name in the highly successful local real estate office of Marcus & Millichap.

In 1996, John Santos toured Europe and the United States with Israel "Cachao" Lopez, an 86-year-old Cuban bassist and composer, considered one of the founding fathers of the modern Danzón . From 1976-1980, Santos directed La Orquesta Tipica Cienfuegos, the first group in the San Francisco Bay Area to perform traditional danzones; and in 1978 he published the extensive and highly acclaimed liner notes for the recording, The Cuban Danzón, its Ancestors and Descendants for the Smithsonian-Folkways label. He had composed, performed, and recorded danzones and derivatives for more than 20 years.

John Santos also delivered the keynote speech to to the historic gathering at Bimbos to launch a book examining an important element of the Latin beat and the mythical place the Mission District has in the hearts of those who strove to create a counter culture of global relevance in the 60's & 70's. Speaking before the attentive crowd celebrating publication of VOICES of LATIN ROCK  Mr. Santos called for the reestablishment of drum circles at Dolores Park in the Mission Districk.

The  inauguration of the  International Center for the Arts a ceremony was held the day before the Cachao concert at Bimbos. Here Israel "Cachao" Lopez accepted the plaque and honorarium of $25, 000 with his usual grace. ‘Sin ustedes, no hay Cachao, con ustedes, hay Cachao’, he humbly stated. Both events were sold out well in advance as Cuban actor Andy Garcia graced San Francisco with his presence and on bongos.

The inventor of the mambo rhythm with his brother will live immortally as one of the great bassists of all time, framing our Cuban music inheritance whose historical influence on the American music forms of jazz and rock is still argued by contemporary musicologists and historians like John Santos.

Cachao's music recalls the Afro-Cuban golden age with its mix of mambo, son, guaguancó, rumba, boleros and danzón. The elegant sons and danzons are the precusors in style to the mambo. Nearly every piece, regardless of tempo or style, made room for masterful jams also known as descargas. Descargas are a  Cachao specialty which makes him much revered among fellow musicians.

Thus year's Carnaval graphic by Gabriela Lujan of the Mission Cultural Center references the golden age of Cuba when its culture was celebrated and imitated  throughout the world. In the 1930s Cuban dancehall, and Mambo, a variation on danzón invented by Cachao and his brother, Orestes "Macho" Lopez. Mambo incorporated a series of syncopated bass riffs, punctuating the traditional danzón melodies. This heady new rhythm, el nuevo ritmo, first aired on Cuban radio in 1938, breathing new life into the sedate danzón and sparking a worldwide musical renaissance. An apt metaphor for Carnaval San Francisco's vision of spreading the message of joy in the present inherent in celebrating our diversity in unity when we celebrate Carnaval San Francisco. the greatest multicultural show in the world.

"Being a musician from birth, imagine, my world always has been music 24 hours a day," he said. "I'm a musician, writing, recording, always doing something new musically."

Creating and playing music inspires and uplifts, provokes and saddens, Cachao said. And it can help you keep a youthful outlook.

"It also depends on your mood or situation, but music can always make you feel better about things," he said. "Classical music, of course, makes one feel very relaxed at a stressful time. Upbeat music is pure happiness, and you want to have a good time.
"Music is like therapy, and in fact it is beneficial for all parts of the body," he said. "I've heard they play music during operations. Hopefully I won't have to have an operation, but if it's serious, I'll want to have music."
Cachao told the Houston Chronicle