Thanks for your thoughts, all.

42, sounds interesting - who was the person you did so much searching for?

George, I heard Dave Stone last year when he played at the Country Music Store in Toronto (which is, of course, the mothership of the Country Music Store in Cheticamp) and I liked his style very much.

Mike, I don't know many of Bogle's songs, but Stan is definitely one of my role models (I love Take It From Day to Day). Jed Marum is another person who I get ideas from on how to write true history - do you know his stuff at all?

McGrath, I don't really understand the distinction you're making between the facts and the truth.

Willie-o, testifying in court, eh? Telling the whole truth is clearly a temptation that must be resisted, but I think there's a lot to be said for nothing but the truth. I like being able to claim that certain of my songs are completely factual, or knowing it about other songs.

My experience has been that Mary Garvey and Sttaw Legend are right - finding another song can stifle your own writing process - so my instinct is to avoid it in the future. But I wonder a little, still, if I'm missing out by averting my eyes.

Marion