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While Fabre and his band may not have gained the notoriety bestowed on those falling under the Buena Vista banner they will already be known to many in the UK following their highly-acclaimed appearance at Edinburgh’s Live 8 festival.

Fabre’s appeal lies largely in his ability to draw in an audience, his charisma and his endless improvisations - not necessarily skills that are easy to capture in a recording but are done so perfectly on Cubano Soy.

It’s five years since Fabre’s last release and time has clearly taken its toll on his voice — his tone is harsher and edgier. On tracks such as ‘El Apagon’ and ‘De Cuba Vengo, De Cuba Soy’ it provides texture and colour but on ‘Aqui si la gente baila’ it sounds forced and on the brink of faltering.

Indeed on ‘Aqui si la gente baila’ Fabre makes reference to his damaged voice before going on the offensive, telling critics to go ask Gilberto Santa Rosa - a reference to a recording of the two battling in a musical duel.

Elsewhere Fabre’s subject matter is more familiar; Miami, Habana, everyday Cuban life (including the regular power cuts) and a quiet homage to the late Celia Cruz in which he ponders how she could have died without returning to her homeland.

While Fabre’s voice may put some people off I find it endearing and well complimented by the tightness of his band and their ability to slide effortlessly between the various genres of popular Cuban music.