I've got to admit - I didn't 'get' Robert Johnson for a long time = or Leadbelly - sounded very African and alien to me. And irish music, its only when I started playing it I got the sublteties, and country music come to that.

I'm pretty conservative in my listening. But then so are most people. Whats opened my ears a lot has been having to play different sorts of music to earn a living.

I remember Mike Storey the country music agent once said to me - the people you deal with from the country music clubs can be pretty stupid, but the folk club/college crowd are just as stupid and narrow minded in their own way.

he was right.