Myrtle's cook, technically, we are responding to Guest Jenny's request of 30 May 12 - 06:33 AM; she wisely used an existing thread.

Yes, singing unaccompanied in public is particularly demanding - not only hitting the notes and keeping up intonation, but also conveying the tune and the lyrics in a meaningful and tasteful way.

The song is certainly "sincere", though not to be taken literally (as we observed before; I strongly advise against Breezy's realistic sound effects, which would in their consequence include a strange voice making a terrible sound).

Our Jon Boden does it as expressively as ever; his whole project is praised by many Mudcatters, for good reasons.

There are other possible ways to be "sincere", though, avoiding expressionism and waltz/lullaby alike. Would someone with an ear for harmonies like to comment on measure 7 in various versions, including my above proposal?

Being a "natural" as mentioned by Leeneia (02 Jun 12 - 08:50 PM) is not enough, it takes a good knowledge of the required style. (For example, church organists can usually accompany a hymn of their own tradition at first sight of the melody, but may be at a loss with, say, so-called Gospel music.)