Even corrupt ones - antiqqarianism gone barmy?

Like I say, I'll drop those verses that are obviously extraneous to the cause - a recent example would be the version of Child #1 as it appears in The Northumbrian Minstrelsy (Lay the Bent to the Bonny Broom) which concludes with some decidely dodgy verses. I wouldn't add any new ones of my own though. On the subject of Lay the Bent, I have taken issue with those singers who carry on singing Child #10 to this melody after the example set by Pentangle. A minor point of pedantry perhaps, but a crucial one to the paticular poignancy of both melody & refrain.

It really doesn't show in your singing - your privelige of course

The priviledge is all yours, old man - to discredit everything I do for reasons best known to yourself.

Neither dowes this.

Likewise, though seeing as how none of my storytelling work exists on line I fail to see how you can reach this conclusion.

How do you justify using instruments in an almost completely unnaccompanied tradition?

Well, my tradition is that of The Revival where instrumental accompaniment is the rule rather than the exception. That said my main inspiration in instrumental accompaniment is Davie Stewart, even though I don't play the accordion.

You cannot dictate to people how they treat texts if you are going to discard the traditional forms as you choose to do.

I have not dictated anything, just made a few points by way of Devil's Advocacy in the light of people claiming that becase Traditional Singers changed songs it was fine for us to do so too - that this is the essense of The Traditional, and The Folk Process, which of course it isn't. This was in the context of a generally impersonal discussion which you insist on making personal, accusing me of abandoning traditional forms. This couldn't be further from the truth - I embraced them long since & they form the basis of pretty much everything I do. Even as a Revival Singer I eshew many conventions (arrangements, guitars, chords) in favour of traditional forms of improvisation, drones & modality which I feel have been obscured by the more anomalous musical affections of the revival. That's just the way I do things though - I'm not expecting others to do likewise.

I do not criticise you for anything you do

WTF???

I just object to your criticising others for doing similar things.

I would never stoop so low as to criticise / debase the work of any forum member in a discussion, much less drag them in personally as you have done here. Any criticism I have ever made of Ewan MacColl is directed to the Myth he created by way of celebrity, not the mindless sniping which you seem to think it is. Maybe this is part of the Religiosity of the Revival too, replete with its Myths and Holy Cows that must somehow be addressed, or else redressed by those taking part.