"the tradition is the zeitgeist that makes you think every day, how can i tell my story better. "

That is the motivation of every songwriter in any genre. It doesn't make it folk. The telling thing is the phrase "how can i tell my story better". That's a fine motivation for a songwriter, but it doesn't make it folk. Folk music isn't about the individual. What turns it into folk is when other people recognise your story as theirs, and not only repeat the song but share it and adapt it to make it truly their own.

Neither does performing in a pub, even in a communal environment, make it folk. As Jim's interviews with Walter Pardon show, in times past when this was more common both traditional and popular songs would be sung, and the singers were perfectly capable of telling the difference, and valuing them accordingly.

Nevertheless, 'folk' is a broad church and will encompass a wide range of music provided it is presented in a way which a folk audience recognises and feels comfortable with. In that context, a modern song may be considered 'folk'. However don't pretend to be continuing a tradition - you are not. For that matter, neither is the most die-hard 'finger-in-the-ear traddie' repeating songs he has learned from a book or a recording. The real tradition, where it still exists, does so outside the world of 'folk'. The folk world can claim to provide an environment for ordinary people to perform music, but so can brass bands, community choirs and local orchestras.

What the folk world does is provide a platform where, in addition to traditional music, other music may find a home which would not fit easily into any other genre and which otherwise would not find an outlet. That's fine, even if in a few individual clubs it is in danger of crowding out traditional music - despite Jim's misgivings, traditional music is thriving and is being taken up by many young performers. All that we ask is that you recognise and respect the traditional music which is at the core of a music scene which allows you to find a voice.