Although I have no like at all for Ian Anderson, it should be mentioned that he has been responsible for keeping alive a magazine that started as Southern Rag in 1979, then later became Folk Roots in 1985 and in 1998 became fRoots. My understanding is that in order to keep it going he began to 'cover' world music, a decision that peed off some people. Well, listen up, folkies. The magazine wouldn't be there at all had he not done that.

It's very easy to criticize the man for his decisions. The ultimate slap in the face to Ian--who gets more crap thrown his way than any one person deserves--would have been to start a magazine and show him how it's really done. I see no one has done that. So maybe it's time for his detractors to put up or shut up.

That anyone would rejoice in his web forum being down sucks. I was banned from there a few years back for seven (?) words, all of which appear in elementary school dictionaries, and as far as Ian was concerned that was it. So be it. You want to call him whatever--to his face and using your own name--be my guest. But to rejoice in another man's misfortune does not appeal to me at all, and colonial that I am, I think it is also beneath you who do so.

IMO

Bruce Murdoch