I'd rather have no instrumentation than poor instrumentation, but I want to be entertained as well as informed. Few unaccompanied solo singers can do this for a whole evening. Vocal harmony groups are using voices as instruments to some extent, hence the "solo" above - I can listen to Coope, Boyes and Simpson, for example, all night. Personally I have few songs I'd inflict on an audience unaccompanied. I have noticed when recording vocals separately that there is much more concentration available for the voice.

Very good thread, this!