I don't much like people using the book in folk sings. When I wanted to be a singer, I looked at the ones that were, and thought, "I wanna be able to do that!" Of course, it was just a dream, since I'd never be able to sing in front of people. The thing was, part of 'that' I wanted to do was to learn a song until it belonged to me, until it was in my head and my heart and traveled wherever I went, inside me. You don't get that reading lyrics from a book.

What you get from a book is a bunch of folks being able to sing a song together that they've maybe never heard. It works just fine in church and nobody complains. Folks singing that way don't mind leaving the song behind when they close the book. If that's what they want, there's nothing wrong with it.

The problem is that people may not understand that folk singing sessions and circles are different, how they're different and why. No - not understanding is something we all do simply because we don't know everything. What's obnoxious is when people don't understand and don't realize they're missing something, know they are but don't try to figure it out or expect the world (and your session) to work the way THEY want it to.