Richard Bridge:

"I cannot believe Dino Dini has been at least within rubbing distance of folk music for that long, and has not yet grasped the difference between folk music and singer songwriter."

Erm... so you are sayiong that Singer Songwriters can not create folk music?

"I do not (hereby) assert that one is better than the other, but would you expect pork to be labelled beef or chicken - or sold as such?"

Perhaps the club should simply make it clear then: a big notice saying "Singer Songwriters not welcome". Oh hang on... but the club books singer songwriters. Sorry you are not making much sense.

"I'm not sure that Dartford has ever been that floorsinger-friendly (certainly traddie-floorsinger-friendly) and while Dartford may have found a niche in playing to the paying audience many folk clubs have a different remit.

However, I see Tom Lewis is there shortly, so if I am timely passing on my way back from something very square that night, I may pop in (not armed with a guitar) to listen. He was excellent at Tenterden this weekend.
"

Warning: his site says "If you like songs and stories of the sea, new and old". You may want to double check what new means. He might have written some himself thus casting himself out of Folk Music.

Yep it is the same old.

As I said in my post, fortunately there are outlets these days for singer songwriters, like the Old Down Acoustic club in Somerset where I played a couple of songs tonight (and got a great reaction and many compliments, ironically the second song was an instrumental I wrote at about the time I gave up the scene 19 years ago called "I Can't Get a Gig at my Local Folk Club Blues".

They call it an acoustic club. It is very popular and successful. Once a month they book acts for a featured spot too. The Amazing Mr. Smith is on 1st November, for example. They really do welcome floor singers though, even if they write their own songs.

My problem back then was that such things as acoustic clubs did not exist 19 years ago in my area. It was folk clubs or nothing at all.

But like I already said... I would have no complaint at all if the organisers simply had made it clear that people like me were not welcome. Why pretend that Floor Singers are welcome when they are not? Why not clarify the poistion on Singer-Songriters? This is the crucial point, not the definiton of Folk Music.