I didn't arrive in Illinois and learn of "Come for to Sing" until it was just about wrapped up. I have a large stack of back issues that were just being given away at Fox Valley years ago. Every once in awhile I go through them & still get educated, and find songs I didn't know 15-20 years ago, but want to learn now and there they are in CFTS.

I learned much about the Northern Illinois folk music world by reading those back issues & the things I learned - and the community it represents- are part of the reason I go back to Fox Valley every year for the festival. Chicago & environs have, and have had for a long time, such a deep wealth of folk music talent and practitioners. CFTS reflected that, as well as the wonderful folks who were passing through.

The folks writing in CFTS were (and are) wonderful. Ian Robb's articles called "Boreas" were just gems. It might be my memory, but his writing in CFTS was a bit more strongly opinionated than later articles in SING OUT. It'd be great to have some of the more general things reprinted - in writing about traditional music, so much of it transcends the time it came from.   

Joe, wish I had known you'd wanted some - in a recent de-clutter, I got rid of all my duplicates, passing them on to a guitar teacher & union activist in the area. Next time I look, I'll see if there are any duplicates I missed. I know I've got the index issues. Would it make sense to digitize THOSE first? Making this trove of valuable information, interview, insight and strong opinion available would be a serious good deed. It's the sort of thing the historical society here might undertake. It seems like something The Old Town School of Folk Music SHOULD get behind creating and archiving, though what it offered was more allied to SING OUT.

Joanne in Cleveland, who ALWAYS comes for to sing.