Fair enough Michael, I am just wary of us lot giving the BBC a hard time when all they did was make quite an interesting little 30 minute programme about a significant part of the Folk Revival.

Hi John, I don't think we are at odds here:

"the oral tradition was a working class 'thing' for economic rather than cultural reasons."

Economic indeed. Sharp et al targeted the rural working class for all kinds of reasons. They existed, before the Industrial Revolution, well below a smallish middle class of farm managers, clerics, traders, shop and property owners and so on. If we enjoy and sing their songs we are enjoying and singing the songs of the agricultural working class and probably sometimes the songs written for middle class entertainmnet.

MacColl and Lloyd and loads of others tried very hard to collect the songs of the Industrial working class with varied success. I guess they were looking historically at both groups.

Isn't the feature that unites most "folk songs" utility - they were created and sung for the joy of singing not for immediate finacial gain - although Broadside ballads certainly were.

L in C#