Willie Taylor wasn't a bad fiddler and his hands were a real mess, the missing finger was only part of it.

And what defines a good fiddler? The ability to make people get up and dance? or knowing half a dozen styles of vibrato and being able to describe the difference between staccato and spiccato? Or even spell staccato and spiccato? Artful Codger, if your head and heart are in the music and you have been taught the right technique, you will be good, even if you can't do everything you would like to because of physical problems.

Think of it in song terms. Which would you rather hear, someone who understands what they are singing, knows the culture and context of the song and can communicate the soul of the song to the audience, but who hasn't got a great voice, or someone with a beautiful voice and vocal technique who might as well be singing a shopping list for all the meaning there is in?