C'mon Arnie. Imitators or influenced singers are common, but its probably fortunate that no one has ever cloned either of those two singular gentlemen.

Who the hell cares about "diluting" music--no living culture stays the same. If you like the way it usedta be played, then play it like that. Nothing the least bit new about different regional styles colliding and turning into something new. Jazz & rock n roll for example. Jazz is the interesting amalgam of a couple of black music forms--blues and African rhythms, coupled with the availability of lots of brass instruments that were leftover from Civil War marching bands, and some of the style those bands played.

But there ARE boundaries, at least here in the East. Many of us play music that is demonstrably Canadian, and like it like that. Whatever it might be, it is what we do. I can tell the difference from south of the St Lawrence. Even though as Rick has noted we borrow a lot stylistically from the Americans, the main thing we do differently is sing Canadian songs sung by Canadians.

Willie-O