Burke, I'm not much for "rhetoric" and I apologize to you if that's what I sound like. Most of what I know about this kind of music I know from reading and listening to recordings. Much of what is written and recorded is by and about people who are no longer with us. Their contributions are huge and I spend a good deal of time with that. I have also had the good luck to meet and get to know a few really good singers of traditional ballads, such as Sheila Kay Adams and Bobby McMillon. I know of others mostly by their CDs.

I have purposely tried to make my request broad to discover and recognize as many singers as we can. When I go to festivals and conferences, the singing of ballads is a pretty small part of the overall emphasis. Granted, I may not have discovered the best gatherings and would like to hear about others.

I'm not asking you to do my work for me. I can make a list of a lot of people who have recorded Child ballads. But I know there are also lots of people out there who haven't made CDs who sing this stuff and love it. I don't know who they are, but now I'm beginning to find out, and that is exciting. It is also good know what others on Mudcat think about this kind of music and the people who make it. I plan to submmit some names of my own as we go along. T.O.M.