The first time I ever saw a bouzouki used at a folk club was in the late (swinging) sixties at Manchester University F.C. (The Toast Rack)
The guest was a very well known folk star who turned up with her current feller - also a well-known folk star, who had an extremely beautifully crafted bouzouki, which he carefully placed on a chair on the stage.
In the fashion of the time, she was into whacky-backy, of which she had had a surfeit of before the show commenced.
Part of the way through the second half she decided to sing something which required accompaniment, so she announced the song and stood up to hand him the instrument, which she managed to knock off the chair. She tried to catch it, stumbled and overturned the chair onto the bouzouki splintering it into smithereens - brrrrr - still gives me goosebumps.
It was at the same club around the same time that I went to see the late Harry Boardman who had been booked as guest.
Harry had a tendency to rise in pitch on some songs, especially very rangy Flying Cloud, his favourite at that time.
He launched into the song, not noticing that that two students were sharing a joint behind him, just to the side of the stage and had managed to set the backdrop curtains alight.
Harry had progressed about halfway through the song and had risen considerably in pitch so he was somewhat red-facededly straining to reach the top notes.
He proceeded through the song with his eyes shut, impervious of the blazing curtains and the knot of people desperately trying to beat out the flames.
Apocalyptic
Jim Carroll