"Talentless arsehole just about sums up Ewan MacColl;"

It most certainly does not!! You have absolutely no basis for such a slur, SO'P. If you didn't like his singing or his songs you're entitled to that opinion - but, by no stretch of the imagination, could he be described as talentless. To employ such a description sounds to me like extreme and irrational prejudice. Just to provide some perspective, I didn't particularly enjoy the work of your hero, Peter Bellamy and found some of it a bit irritating - but that's my personal preference and I would never dishonour his memory by describing him as "talentless" ... or an "arsehole" for that matter!

For the record I found Ewan's work, particularly his interpretation of traditional songs and ballads, inspirational, and, more's the pity, since he died there's been no-one to replace him.