If the tradition is alive, then new songs can be created within it. In the North East, there are traditional songs, there are songs from the music halls, from Tommy Armstrong in the mining areas, through Johnny Handle and now Jez Lowe. There is a continuity and you can pass from one to the other and barely notice any join. It's fairly safe to suggest that the best of Jez's songs will be sung for many years.

But there will be no more mining songs, as there can be no more shanties, no more pastoral English folk songs, no more nightvisiting songs. You may get some pastiche, or songs about mining, sailing, ploughing, courting (in a different style!) and some of them may be very good, but there will be a difficulty about absorbing them into "the tradition".

Unless they are very good....