I think there's a wider question underlying this thread - which itself, I believe, was started as an offshoot of the still-running "Why folk clubs are dying" discussion. It's a question of performance and the motives behind it. I started playing guitar and performing in folk clubs nearly 45 years ago and, after 40+ years of playing for cash in jazz/funk/blues/rock'n roll bands - I've joined an old friend in his ceilidh band. I've also re-entered the folk world, just for fun, in the last two years. The bands that I played in played for cash and for the enjoyment of the music. Our aims, in the main, were to see that the people footing our bill got their money's-worth, that as many of the audience as possible enjoyed what we played and that - at the end of the session, they went home having had a good time. And if we'd had a good time as well, that was a bonus. And a decent fee was an extra bonus!

Now I'm back, here and there, in the world of folk clubs, singarounds and acoustic sessions, has my attitude changed? Not one whit. If you stand up in public and perform, whether there's cash involved or not, you have to ask yourself some very honest questions. Why do you perform?

1. Do you want all eyes on you - the roar of the greasepaint, the smell of the crowd?
2. Do you want to show an audience something musically that it hasn't heard before?
3. Do you want to bring a message of some sort to the audience?
4. Do you want to tell a story?
5. Do you want to be a musical competitor?
6. Do you want to make money?
7. Do you want to keep the sacred flame of the tradition burning?
8. Do you want to have fun?
9. Do you want to have a cathartic experience?
10. Do you want to compensate for shortcomings in your life?
11. Do you want to entertain the audience?
12. Do you want to educate the audience?
etc....

Add your own questions to the list. Performing is a mixture of any of these elements - the particular mix being different for any individual. BUT - if you answer "No" to very many of these questions, then ask yourself this: What am I doing here in front of these people?. There has to be a motive somewhere - and it might not always be the one you think it is.

In the jazz world (for example), there has always been a long history of "cutting" - of musicians trying to outdo each other on stage. It happened in New Orleans, at the very beginnings of jazz, with bands playing in competition with each other. Barrelhouse, stride and boogie-woogie pianists would have cutting contests at rent parties or in clubs, seeing who could outplay the other. Just read Alan Lomax's "Mister Jelly Lord" or Rudi Blesh's "They All Played Ragtime" to get an idea of it. Soloist tried to top out another soloist in band playing - which can be exhilarating.

Most musicians, whether consciously or unconsciously, are competitive. You may not think you are - you may think this is nonsense - but there has to be a competitive element in music, or you will never progress. "Competition", by the way, means competing with yourself. We improve as musicians by competing with previous versions of outself. We play a piece, or sing a song and - if we've any sense of growth, we try and improve on it. We compete with ourselves subconsciously - if we don't, then we never improve, we lose the vital spark and we lose the audience. And we do have an audience don't we? If you don't want an audience, then stay at home and sing to the mirror.

There is a difference between being a very good performer and being a gross egotist - though it can be a very thin line. There's a very true saying: "You may think you're good, but there's always somebody better..." But it's much healthier, IMHO, to look at yourself seriously and ask yourself why you perform the way you do, how can you do it to the best of your ability, and why you're there in the first place - and what you're bringing to the party.

Apologies for the long rant - but I believe passionately that we should try to make good music and have a healthy and honest understanding of why we do it.