Ron, but unlike Wooody, can these artists you mentioned ever have any hope of reaching the masses to make a real "folk song?"

I don't want to turn this into another "what is folk music" discussion, but I would compare the writers of such songs as "We all Live in a Yellow Submarine" and "Ohb Bla Dee Bla Dah" as much closer to Wooody Guthrie as a writer of folk music than many others who strive to leave an impression on how artsy and introspective they are.