This week,I shall be learning to play,on guitar," Kitty Lie Over Next To The Wall", and a version of "Buttons and Bows" in Morris Dance time-signature------what fun !!

What fun indeed! The interesting question for me therefore is, if I run a "traditional" club - in the sense of the 1954 definition - and the performers perform a mixture of songs and instrumental tunes, what's "permissible" to play? Do I frown on "Ashokan Farewell" because it was composed just some years ago by Jay Ungar - outside the "tradition" - or what?

I know this seems like splitting hairs and that my example is probably tenuous, but I'm only doing it to illustrate a point: that the authenticity/appropriateness or otherwise of songs seem to generate much more heat than the authenticity/appropriateness or otherwise of tunes. Now - is this because the content of songs - their social context, the viewpoint and experience of the singer (I can't say composer) from whom it was collected, is the key factor?