I have no wish to join this rather tired debate. As Leonard Cohen once said: 'Let's sing another song boys, this one has grown old and bitter'. However, I mention some pertinent articles on the subject are available on Rod Stradling's Musical Traditions site: http://www.mustrad.org.uk. In particular, Enthusiasms No 3 has a paper by John Moulden entitled: 'Sing us a folk song, Mouldy'. Fred McCormick's excellent article on the Hammonds Family also has some insights for those who have the inclination to pursue these matters. Enthusiasms No 1 [Traditional?] includes some thoughts from Dick Gaughan.