A fair few of the more recently written "in the tradition" songs that resonate are songs of comfort, goodwill, friendship. I think of the Gordon Bok songs like "Hearth and Fire" or "Turning of the Year" - what Caroline Paton calls "comfort songs" Or end of the evening companionship songs like "One More Before We Go" that stress camaraderie, complete with choruses, that tend to feel like keepers.

The balance between great melody and crisp wording that makes a song a pleasure to sing. Richard Thompson manages this quite well.

A universality of feeling in the song - that a wide range of people can identify with the viewpoint of the singer - gives it a wider section of the population to take root. That you WANT to sing along is more important than having a performer who is encouraging you to do so. (though that doesn't hurt any).

I also think, that on a regional basis, some well loved singers who have songs they do often that encourage participation, gives rise to those songs' longevity in their circles.

The watershed between "great" songs and "standards" might very well be when someone records your song, and innocently credits it as "trad" - as Si Kahn and others have found. I don't think you can sit down with the expectation of writing a great song. Intention, sure, but don't all songwriters attempt greatness?

And the more I think of it... some standards aren't all that "great" - it's the direct simplicity that gets to your heart and mind. Mine is the point of view of someone who only sings the songs written or passed down by others...so I have thought about this a wee bit.

Joanne in Cleveland (a sucker for rhyme & scansion)