Russ,
Thanks for the support. Your high brow/low brow analogy is a much better way to put it. I wanted to say bourgeoise, but could not remember how to spell it. Basically I was referring to attitudes of taste that disdain the unrefined & is too often reflected by the upwardly mobile trying to flee their roots.

I'd like to go into more detail but lack for time. Maybe just think of the low opinion of popular music in the serious music establishment until fairly recently. Since the 60's or 70's popular music has been viewed much more seriously. Most folk music is popular music of the past that was disdained but the musical establishment.

We've tried to get away from criticism of whole musical genres & try to evalute music on the terms defined by the genre. I think we should try to do the same with this type of material. Maybe folk art is not the best term for it.

But lest I be thought too serious, I did laugh at my first look at it. It's not really to my taste either, I just think it needs to be evaluated according to a different aesthetic than that currently in use among so many of us. I liked Russ's helpful delination of much of it.