Did you have a PA, Phil? Nothing cracks me up more than those folk clubs with PAs set at ear-splitting volumes (even for floor singers) and the performer saying to the audience afterwards 'Well sung...'

*

Again, I find it's the joiners-in take great offence when you tell them to desist. It's hard to do this nicely, having had at least one verse of your song ruined by their witless warblings. Once I got so upset I actually asked a woman to STFU, which was a tad heavy handed I admit & caused great offence to others in the club who regarded me as 'rude'*. Another time on a song I stopped singing, but kept playing the zither telling the joiner-in that I didn't do duets but that they were free to finish off the song for me if they liked. 'Er - I don't really know the words,' quoth they, whereupon I asked if they would like me to sing it for them - solo. I was happy with that. Ways and means I suppose, but when I'm in the zone tact isn't really my strong point I'm afraid.

* Not an uncommon opinion percepyion of yours truly in certain quarters of the Folk Realm. I once barged into a Festival singaround in the middle of someone's song with the very irate emcee screaming at me to get out. I refused point blank because they'd overrun by 20 minutes and we had a big show to set up with something like a ten minute window in which to do so. According to my sources, said Emcee still takes every opportunity to publicy slander me, even several years down the line. Granted, I didn't handle that very well either, but when you're running from one venue to another in a tight festival schedule expecting to find the venue empty for your arrival then, I ask you, what is a boy to do?