This really belongs in another thread... perhaps the "no Scottish sessions thread", but slightly off at a tangent from that. As I pointed out in that thread, sessions of the ITM type are tune sessions, because it takes a while for players to get into the swing, to gel, whatever you like to call it. I daresay shanty sessions can be much the same thing, though not knowing many shanties I don't go to them much. And Blues sessions. And improvised jazz sessions, God forbid. Self- organising music is quite a different experience from performance, whether individual or group. You can't criticise music for not being what it never wanted to be.

What we don't know of course is whether BD's criticism was because she was in a bad mood, because she felt superior to less-than-perfect players, because the playing was in fact dire (it does happen) that night or every night, or because she was overcome by a wave of nostalgia for the days when women had to stand outside in the rain. Citizen Bogle above put it well.

Perhaps someone local could nip along one evening and give an informed assessment of the situation. I'd trust Jack Campin's judgement.