Jon:
Listening to the Irish music offered "challenges" that did not exist in the English tunes we knew so we wound up making musical decisions rather than decisions led by any "mainstream" lead.

Pip Radish
I can imagine that. So far my perception is that the Irish tunes are just too damn hard

I think you're both talking nonsense. Irish tunes as a whole are no more easy or difficult than English tunes, or Scottish tunes for that matter. There are easy, moderate and difficult in the traditional tune repertoire of all three countries.

It also depends on the instrument you play. Some tunes that are easy on one instrument are tricky on another.