Well within living memory on my side of the pond (the right-hand side), there were plenty of traditional folk clubs that wouldn't let you in with an acoustic guitar, let alone an electric. Fair enough, there's not much of a singing tradition here except unaccompanied. Of course, the guitar's been around a long time; the accordian is only around 150 years old (yes, I know about the Chinese sheng), the piano about 200, the violin is about four hundred years old, and the whistle goes back forever. Most of the instruments in the orchestra have been developed way beyond what Beethoven woiuld have had, but few people see that as a problem.

Steve