You can learn a lot from your Uncles Les, young Fence. If he sez its the way it should be sung, he speaks from a wealth of experience.

few people realise that when Martin Carthy is in a quandary as to which finger to stick in which ear - it is to Les that that he turns evry time.

Shall I stick this finger in Les? Martin asks his voice all of a tremor with artistic tension.
Well it all depends, sez Les, who is all too aware that his opinion counts for something and much may depend on the answer. The thing is I've got Seth Lakeman on the other line and he needs the final word on whether to have a white hare calling him, or black mole, and if he needs to go into the specifics of his conversation with a herbivore. Just then the fax machine goes into overdrive it Paddy Moloney - he's onstage in Peking and he doesn't know whether to do three slip jigs and a hornpipe, or a lament. he just can't gauge the mood of the inscrutable Chinese audience....??

People think all Les does is buy a bottle of cooking sherry and some raffle tickets and hopes for the best. But theres more to it than that.......