Thanks to everyone for chirping in with their opinions on this one - despite the impression I may have created with my starting this thread I have been immersed in folk music for my whole life - I really just wanted to see what people out there thought as I had read many times on the forum of this or that not being "folk"
Thanks also for the links to previous discussions some of them make quite interesting reading...
I have to say though - Mikefule - I like that - I like it a lot - I think you're on to something there!