I think another factor is that although there are a lot of people my age (31) coming through as performers, most club organisers and audiences are generally the far side of 50. In other words, there's young blood on stage but not in the audience. Accordingly, I've decided to put my money where my mouth is and start a new type 1 club in Coventry, the URL for which can be found here. Coventry and Warwickshire have a lot of type 2 clubs/sessions and a smattering of type 3 clubs, but the nearest type 1 is in Birmingham.

If you look at the guest list, they're all 'names' or mates further down the food chain who I've persuaded to play for a flat percentage, the finest balti in the city, some beer and a bed for the night! I went with the type 1 for a variety of reasons; the first and most obvious being that 'names' will hopefully pack the place and ensure its survival. Then maybe in 2010 I can use the resulting filthy lucre to put on some less well-known acts and pay them a decent fee even if no bugger shows up. Having being in a couple of situations with Isambarde where we've driven two hours to get to a gig on a working night (for like a lot of bands, we still very much have day jobs!) only to find ourselves playing to the organiser and his dog for a percentage of the door, I feel this is important!

We'll have three resident bands, who will share the supports between depending on availabity and suitability (and yes, one of them is my own band, for I'm not as dopey as I look!) I'll publicise the place to the nth degree with flyers, the net, local press and radio and word of mouth. There will be in-house PA and lighting, a separate dressing room and a designated CD stand for the artist's use plus a member of the club team at their disposal to help with sales if they want it.

What I've promised myself however is that if I ever find myself at the end of a night saying 'Please continue to support us', then I will instantly fold the whole venture. We're charging money on the door (a reasonable amount, but still money) and are therefore entering into a contract with the audience to entertain them. We're not a charity and shouldn't have to rely on anyone's support.

So I've made a decision about the kind of club that I'll be running. I hope it works. If it does, no-one will be more chuffed than me, as I get to go and see a really good concert every month at a venue ten minutes walk away from my house! If it doesn't, well, I'll have tried.

And Tom, I'm really sorry to hear about your decision. But if you've managed to make any sort of a living for 8 years out of being a full-time folkie, my hat, sir, is off to you!