CVK
Here are some excerpts from the L.A. Times obituary on Ibrahim Ferrer:

Ibrahim Ferrer, the humble, soft-spoken Cuban singer who achieved long-delayed international fame only after he was recruited for the Grammy-winning Buena Vista Social Club, has died. He was 78…

In 1999, German filmmaker Wim Wenders featured Ferrer and his colleagues in the highly popular Oscar-nominated documentary “The Buena Vista Social Club,” chronicling the history of Cuban music from the 1940s to the present. The film was liberally sprinkled with images of Ferrer, and the soundtrack showcased his plaintive, expressive falsetto voice. The same year, Ferrer released his solo debut album, “Buena Vista Social Club Presents Ibrahim Ferrer,” which sold 1.5 million copies.

At 73, the sprightly Ferrer earned the best new artist award at the first Latin Grammys in 2000. “I had no idea that anybody of this age could be the best new anything,” he later told the Dallas Morning News…

Ferrer was born Feb. 20, 1927, in the eastern Cuban city of Santiago, the crucible of son. His ancestry included French, African, Spanish and Chinese great-grandparents.