This thread does seem to have a very negative tone to it. It's no wonder that Jim Carrol gets the impression that English Folk Clubs are dire.

In my limited experience, most people who go to folk clubs and sing on singers nights (I am not talking about guest nights or concert venues here) meet Jim Carrol's minimum standards, which, by the way, seem perfectly reasonable standards to aim at and are achievable by the majority of people.

One thing that does seems to give more people trouble than any other is remembering words and there are some people who are otherwise good singers that seem find this a real problem. In such a case I, for one, would rather they had a prompt in front of them than they "blanked" at a crucial point in the song. I have been to concerts where the performers had words and music in front of them, and not just classical concerts either, so why shouldn't amateurs be permitted the same.

The folk clubs I go to I find are very welcoming to newcomers who are encouraged to sing, but no pressure is put on them if they don't want to. The ethos is to encourage people to "have a go". I have seen people who have been persuaded to have a go after a little gentle arm twisting turn in a creditable performance.

We should not forget singers nights are, by and large, about enjoying the music by taking part rather than just listening to others performing. Certainly that's my motivation. I go because I enjoy singing and playing which I try to do to the best of my ability but I have no particular ambitions to get up in front of an audience and make money by performing.