Born in Havana on February 2, 1933, Orlando "Cachaíto" López first got actively involved in music when he was only nine years old.

His early desire was to play the violin, but his grandfather Pedro insisted he take up the double bass, as there had been a long tradition of bassists in the López family, a trend that they did not want stopped.

Cachaíto also collaborated with renowned pianists Peruchín, Frank Emilio Flynn and Chucho Valdés, as well as percussionists Tata Güines and Angá Díaz.

In 1996 López was hired by Juan de Marcos González for his Afro-Cuban All Stars, signing to World Circuit, and at the same time becoming a member of the resulting Buena Vista Social Club project and appearing in Wim Wenders' documentary Buena Vista Social Club.

[1][3] After a career spanning some 60 years, Cachaíto made his debut solo album in 2001 and continued to tour with the Buena Vista Social Club musicians (Manuel "Guajiro" Mirabal, Jesús "Aguaje" Ramos, Manuel Galbán, etc.).