absolutely spot on, Sminky.
logically[Using Howards logic] a song like Caledonia becomes a folk song,because Dougie decided to change a verse,yet Ewan MacColls Freeborn Man,hasnt because no one has changed it,that is ridiculous.
what one should make clear,is that it is one of the ingredients but not the sole defining point,that a song can be a Folk song without it being folk processed.there are other factors that are important
in the Computer age,and in the future,songs will and are being learned orally via the computer,people can go back and check the words of a new song in minute detail.
so the accidental changing of words could well disappear.
does that mean the only new folk songs will be modern songs that have been deliberately altered, if that is the case logically I could claim
That if I [for example ]altered the words of Sailortown, or The January Man that makes it a folk song but if it isnt altered it cant be a folk song.
no ,that will not do ,we must also look at why traditional folk songs have survived,it is not solely to do with the fact they have been folk processed,it is do with quality,those that were no good have been forgotten.
also if one follows Howards logic further ,modern songs could not become a folk song until they have passed a certain amount of years duration,what does this have to be ten years,25 years, fifty?.
no the folk process is only a part ingredient,one cannot rule out a quality song ,and say it is not a folk song just because the words are so well written and timeless that no one can improve them