Yes - I was going to ask: why "prissy"? Getting a good Travis-style piece going, with variations around the melody is anything but prissy - it's hard work that generates callouses like elephant's feet on the fretting finger ends! (Well, mine are).

Yes - a whole evening of this stuff could actually be boring but, interspersed among songs, or used as a backing for some songs, can add a great deal of variety to a performance.

What's harder, IMHO, is the hybrid picking with plectrum & fingers. I use this where the acoustics of the venue require increased volume - and, watching Richard Thompson doing it superbly on Hard News - must practice more!