Check out the sound file at the top of the page I've linked to below -it's a recording of an English duo singing an American song (or at least an American variant of a song) collected by American song collector Max Hunter from a singer whose name shamefully escapes me for the moment. I've heard them do it in a singaround featuring mainly traditional songs from this side of the pond and it fitted like a glove. Songs like this are the roots of American country music - even if we don't necessarily like some of the pop-lite schmaltz that the current country industry pumps out - and has been pumping out in one form or another for forty plus years (Willie, Waylon and the other outlaws weren't kicking back against figments of their imagination back in the 70s!).

Meanwhile, there's a whole otherworld of people in the States outside of the mainstream country scene doing wonderful music deeply rooted in folk traditions, which means - hooray! - that unless you actually like modern mainstream country, you never have to listen to it. Go on, google Charlie Parr, The Black Twig Pickers and Frank Fairfield for starters - all currently on tour in the UK right now - and give yourselves a treat. I'm sure musicians of this sort of calibre singing songs and playing tunes of this sort of quality would (or at least should) be welcome in English folk clubs, even more trad orientated ones...

Rapunzel and Sedayne sing Diver Boy