"the lonely journeyman in his campervan may soon become extinct"

I feel a song coming on...

Campervan, oh, campervan,
Who's got a berth for a campervan?
Sing you a song of a world gone wrong
And they've got no room for a journeyman in a campervan...

Hmm. Needs work.

Seriously, I think this is a real problem, but I've no idea what the solution is. I remember one night Chorlton FC booked Bandersnatch; they drew a good crowd, but when I looked round the room I didn't see anyone I knew (and if I'm honest I probably wouldn't have gone myself if I'd realised it was a guest night). The way it works these days seems to be that floor spots are the norm - the 'audience' for singers' nights, consisting mainly of singers, turns out in droves when they have a chance of getting a spot, and otherwise stays at home. The exception (from my experience) is when someone does a floor spot that's so good you immediately want to hear a set from them; I've had that experience three or four times. But 'professional guests' are looked on a bit askance, and sometimes only bring in their existing fans in the area.

I think this relates to the question of standards (unfortunately!) - and that word 'open'. The Beech singaround (which has its first birthday next Wednesday) is friendly and welcoming, but the general standard of singing and knowledge is pretty high - I don't think a newcomer could miss that. If you throw the stage wide open - if the only criterion, explicit or implicit, is wanting to have a go - then I think you do end up with an audience who aren't that interested in hearing really great performances, because that's not what they're turning out for in the first place.