Ron, I don't think anybody wants a top-list for its own sake. It would just be a way to give more credibility to the idea that people do listen to and buy this stuff, a tool advertisers and broadcasters could understand.

Seems like it could be done once a year on a volunteer 'email us your top 10 sellers/top 10 requested'. Anybody who sells CDs could contribute numbers, including the bands themselves, festivals, resellers. A press release goes out, a few newspapers pick it up, use it to build a feature about 'the changing face of folk music'. Whatever.

Sorry you think it's a dumb idea, but I think preaching to our own choir isn't bringing too many new listeners into the flock.