However a usable acoustic guitar is cheaper than most electrics + amp +then you need a drumkit +then you need a PA for the singer +etc, whereas I know one semi pro musician who play a Chantry that cost him £40 from a charity shop and I spotted an amateur last weekend also playing a Chantry presumably since he was out in the open air, when he has a very expensive 12-string at home and a pretty usable mid-range 6 string.

The US depression produced a wealth of hobo musicians and of course Woody Guthrie and in due course Pete Seeger.

There is a school of thought that the wealth of Irish music isrooted in the continued exploitation of Ireland by the English, and look at how much Scottish song is anti-English probably for a similar reason.