...have universal appeal...

Yeah right! That's why you hear them on the radio all the time.

...To hear a long ballad sung well is a delight...

Yes very true, listen to Susan of DT, or Marti Rogers. But MOST of the time you hear them murdered by a dreary boring interpretation.

...Why is it then that people have to make this accusation of folk music?.. Well it is just MY accusation against those who were knocking songwriters in the other thread.

Yes there ARE bad songwriters so that makes it all right to 'snigger' at all songwriters.

We must also remember that there are many, many BAD Folksingers and an awful lot of dreary folk songs out there.

And this thread is about PAYBACK TIME for the idiot who coined the snigger/snogwriter phrase.