Sorry Cap'n
Personally I'm not fond of of Roy Bailey and would prefer to hear the singing of even the less talented of our traditional singers - but that's probably me being bloody-minded.
We've argued this before, but I totally refuse to judge a singer from, say Knapton, Winterton, Potter Heigham, Miltown Malbay, The Gower Peninsular - wherever... with the same yardstick I would use to judge a revival singer used to singing regularly in a folk club. For me, most of our source singers bring a depth to the songs that I find sadly lacking in all but a tiny handful of revival singers, and it is this which is the essence of traditional singing, But again, that's me (and you know how I feel about Comhaltas and its bloody kiss-of-death competitions!
I don't expect reverence, just a recognition that our traditional singers occupied a diffent world - and maybe the occasional bit of gratitude for the gift they've given us.
But this isn't about personal taste - it's about whether our singers are capable of differentiation. I believe, based on our experiance, they most certainly are, and it's somewhat patronising to suggest otherwise.
Jim Carroll