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Musician Carlos "Patato" Valdes, a Cuban whose conga playing made him a legend among Latin jazz percussionists, has died aged 81. Valdes, who lived in New York and had been working with his group the Conga Kings, recently performed at this year's San Francisco Jazz Festival last month.
Valdes came to the United States in the 1950s and worked with major Latin and jazz figures of the day, including Herbie Mann and Dizzy Gillespie.
