What I thought I was doing in Joely's other thread was to state politely, with some humor, but still succinctly, that there are differences of opinion on these things. I didn't want to impune all who feel strongly that it all is folk. I do feel, if I'm to be true to my own musical preferences, that "new folksongs" is an oxymoron of sorts. That said, I love Craig Johnson's songs. I've recorded 4 of them. I also recorded songs by Jimmy Driftwood, Wade Hemsworth and Michael Burton. (Even one or two of my own.) All of them had a feel like they came from the tradition. That's why I gravitated to 'em or made 'em. Always, my main thrust was to push foreward the old traditional songs. There was no better way to introduce modern people to songs that were not part of their actual experience than to do a modern song in the old style first (a song of the Upper Penininsula of Michigan iron mines by Craig Johnson) before I did "RED IRON ORE"---a great traditional ballad from the days of the billowing sails and tall-masted ore carriers. Humor was another way I set up those songs in a way that might speak to the general public which, after all, was who I was playing for in bars and on steamboats where I had to play in order to make a living, pay rent and medical bills and try to get my son through college. The traditional songs were my main mission--always. So it's hard for me to not respond when I see things (and definitions) being turned WRONG-side-out. Moonchild, if your own mission is to shut me and my kind up, I'm sorry, but I can't do that. I'll try to be polite. And I'm certain that you, as you did above, will let me and others of our narrow ilk know when you think we're out of line. We've got a tough job, but somebody's got to do it?!?! ;-) No need to put me in folkie limbo with Gargoyle. Que sera, sera!

Art