Tony Nominee Marco Ramirez On The Research Of BUENA VISTA. SOCIAL CLUB

Buena Vista Social Club has thrilled audiences since its first performance, thanks to its music and incredibly moving story of the famed band. Marco Ramirez, who’s nominated this year for Best Book of a Musical, shares some fascinating tidbits from his research trip to Cuba.

Ramirez:

It delights me to remember that perhaps the most popular song on Buena Vista Social Club's breakout album was written by one of its members.

"Chan Chan" was the work of trova guitarist, singer, and composer Compay Segundo (born Máximo Francisco Repilado Muñoz Telles before the First World War).

In the Wim Wenders documentary, Compay steals every frame he's in - a distinguished, old-world figure who talks about dreaming in songs and doles out occasional health tips.

They called him "Segundo" because he often sang "second voice" harmonies, and in many ways, as I wrote the book for the Buena Vista Social Club, I felt his voice - his wisdom - ringing in my ears.

I never got the privilege of meeting the man himself, but in my research trips to Cuba, I felt the mark of his legacy: a raspy baritone, a poet's tongue, and a life lesson in every note.

"On this site, I was born," wrote Compay, just a few years before his death. This was the first picture I ever took in Cuba. At the moment, I wasn't sure what compelled me to do so, but later, I realized his handwriting resembled my grandfather's.

Compay smiling back at us from a billboard. It was hard to read "Alto Cedro" and not start humming a certain earworm. Maybe now it's stuck in your head, too? You're welcome.

"Casa Museo Compay Segundo" serves as a museum for this titan of music. On display, sheet music for his most famous composition, and his trademark jacket and fedora. Funny enough, right now on Broadway, there's a corner backstage that looks a lot like this, where the wonderful Julio Monge puts on a similar costume and channels Compay himself, eight times a week.

For one night, our musical's producer Orin Wolf hosted an amazing jam session at the original Buena Vista Social Club, featuring the titular band's Amadito Valdez and Juan de Marcos.

Compay was laid to rest at a cemetery in Santiago. His tombstone is adorned with 95 flowers - one for each year of his life. I'm happy to report that I had to wait quite a long time to take this picture - there were crowds of Cubans and tourists who came to pay tribute. As it turns out, not all rock stars die young.