The question of age is a red herring. Some people grow old gracefully and some disgracefully; some stick with one kind of music all their lives and others are always on the lookout for something new and different; some people look for competent musical standards of performance and presentation and others are more willing to cut some slack. There are no rules here - everyone's different.

I've quoted my great-grannie from Kildare before on this forum, and I'll repeat her quote here: "Have what you will - and pay for it" was one of her frequent sayings, and it's a good one. As far as music fits into that, it means you can play exactly what you want to play, in any way you like, any time you like and for as long as you like. But - and here's the rub - the moment you lay it before the public - particularly on a music forum - and ask for comment, then you "pay for it". And because people are so diverse in their likes and dislikes and opinions, you'll get everything from a pat on the back to a kick in the balls, the public being what it is.

Over the years I've put up over 400 of my own videos on YouTube - everything from blues to ragtime to folk tunes to rock'n roll and jazz, plus dozens of instructional videos aimed at beginners - on guitar, tenor guitar and mandolin, with bits of bass and keyboards here and there. Most of the stuff I've done has had pats on the back, but there have been several occasions where someone's come along and planted one in the balls with a pretty shitty comment on the video. And - you know what? - that's just as it should be. The worst sin that can affect a musician is complacency, and a good dose of ice-cold criticism now and then makes you sit up, makes you think about what you're doing, makes you ask yourself what instigated that criticism. I got lots of that when I was a young musician starting off in clubs. I can recall doing floor spots in northern clubs and being told afterwards by the club organiser, in no uncertain terms, "not good enough - come back when you've improved". You don't get a lot of that these days. Whether you think that's a good thing or not is down to you.

I've spent a good deal of the last 40 years teaching guitar - to people of all ages - and try to be both constructive and critical. My website contains dozens of free transcriptions that I've created for guitar and tenor guitar - countless hours of work - and I spend a fair amount of time each day answering queries from people who need help. I don't ask their age. I just try and answer their questions. Sometimes I can help, sometimes I can't.