Soneros de Siempre

Not least among the multitude of treats lavished upon participants on the last Songlines Music Travel tour of Cuba was an afternoon in a back garden in eastern Cuba at a rehearsal by the most successful performing band in the land – at that time totally unknown internationally. Now the rest of the world can catch up, thanks to the indefatigable Tumi Music. Though it has to be said, on the strength of this album, Feverson may be better live than on record.

Among the 14 assorted Caribbean song genres represented, there are some real gems. The opening track, for example, is a bustling son driven by tres guitar, while ‘La Suegra’ is a Colombian-Cuban hybrid that calls to mind the charanga vallenata invention of great Miami bandleader and anti-Castrist Roberto Torres. Indeed, it features its very own gem within a gem: a wonderful old-time saxophone solo blessed with a hint of Haiti. For that alone, this is an album worth buying.