Maybe the problem is more one of audience development? I.E lets say I'm an artist (just for the sake of argument) demanding £1K for a gig - silly money, go with me on this.

Club needs to make more than £1K - ie, to break even, sell 100 tickets at £10.

Now, I reckon there's a lot of good acts you can book for a lot less than £1000.

Lets say you book me direct (don't go through the agent) and I'm dead generous and agree to play for £500 - suddenly at £10 a ticket you've made £500 profit (and can either book me again next week or pay your mortgage whichever seems more sensible)

I also reckon there's a lot of places where £10 a ticket is small beer - look at the gigs that kids go to - How much is it to see the kaiser chiefs? £10? £12? £28? I don't see rock venues in decline...

People pay, because they want to go.

Now, we all know folk music is (or at least, can be) excellent - so how do we communicate with potential punters?

We want to see folk music thriving in clubs, so how do we get the clubs to be full every night? Wouldn't it be nice to have to turn people away at the door - Then you might even find new clubs opening... They tell me it happened before, so how do we recreate the sense of excitement for the music that people felt in the 60's?

If we can crack it, then artists would start to make a living, even club organisers could make a living!

People buy what they they think is good, and they think what they're told to think.

Do WE think folk music is a commercially viable product?

>steps down off soapbox<

Cheers,
Jon