The difficulty seems to be that political songs (that's a shorthand expression I'm using there) need a politicised playing and listening community, and one that is attuned to the musical genre in which it's made. People who understand the music, and who understand why the issues matter.

My impression is that this hasn't been there in New York, and the uphill struggle to find it or to build it explains the problems, Larry has been facing. The hope being that people who like the music will be able to open their minds to the words.

Clearly, McGrath, your impression is based on Larry's constant complaint that he's this great guy and that everyone is out to get him. Usually, when someone is constantly right and everyone else is constantly wrong, rational people see the paranoid flag.

New York City has been at the center of political folk song since at least the 1930's. Prior to WWII, Woody Guthrie, Pete Seeger, Sis Cunningham, Mill Lampell, Josh White, Leadbelly, etc. were all writing and singing political songs. The Almanac Singers with Pete, Woody, etc. were formed in the late-1930's.

After the War, NYC was home to the People's Songs movement. By 1950, the People's Song Bulletin was reborn as Sing Out Magazine.

In the 1960's, Broadside Magazine, published in New York City, became the organ for new political folk songs. It's not coincidental that many of the most significant political songwriters of that era, like Bob Dylan, Phil Ochs, Tom Paxton, etc. migrated to NYC.

In recent years that has continued. There are many political songwriters today in NYC. Jack Hardy's Monday night songwriters' get-togethers have thrived for more than 20 years and given rise to countless political songs.

Maybe Larry Otway just can't get along with other people.