Hi Bert

Yes what a long list of material.

I am interested to see Maybe It's Because I am a Londoner there !!

Because it was the first "folk song" that I sang in public.
I was in the RAF in at the time in Inverness and was not used to
the demon drink !!!

So having had a few " half & halfs " we ended up in a Scottish folk session. It was a sing-around and when it came to my turn I was embarrassed and tried to get out of it. But they insisted and ,even more embarrassly, I sang the only song I knew the words to.

Yes it was Maybe It's Because I'm a Londoner.

I am a Mancunian but tried to sing it with a cockney accent. I knew I was rubbish and tried to hide under the seat.

As a result I tried to find out as much as I could about folk music and learned I a few. So that when I went to that Folk club again I made sure that I was sober.....ish and had practiced and learned the words.

The encouragement I received from the Scots gave me the impetus and interest to study the Folk field and I went on to sing and play many kinds of music as a semi-professional for many years.

I returned to my " Folk Roots" after many years and ran a few Folk Clubs and took gigs both as a member of a group and also solo.

Not sure whether M.I.B.Im.A.L would qualify here as folk music but it got me started.

Cheers

Mike