Well, I still haven't read two replies that agree on "folk" songs. I suppose that makes me a troll or whatever they call somebody who doesn't agree with somebody else...

I don't hide, by the way. Steamin' Willie caught on before the interweb and I have been using it in a spoof fashion for years whilst er... singing... "Folk" songs. I do have another name, but not sure it is relevant or indeed known by anybody, hence Steamin' Willie to those who fill my glass.

McColl certainly did say that "First Time.." is not a folk song, which is rather strange as it is a love song and there are many love songs that are classed by just about everybody as "folk." But there again, dare I say, he used to say that you can only sing songs that are indigenous to you, then hide his Salford accent with a phoney Scottish one. (Not to mention hide his name under it.)

I was interested by Jim Carroll's definition of songs that are so old nobody can remember their original meaning. About two years after the Boomtown Rats released "I don't like Mondays" most people had forgotten about the American school shooting Bob Geldof had written about. Does that make it a folk song? (Around that time, Dave Burland started singing it and telling everybody it is a folk song, so that settles that then!)

Sinatra? I will try and dig it out. It is on a "crooning" compilation album I used to play the odd track from when I was a part time radio presenter many years ago. BBC Radio Sheffield may still have a copy or at least a reference to it.