"What about when there is a group with instruments which need to be in harmony"may be a good indication of why the British tradition is basically an unaccompanied one.
I sang a lot accompanied, but I failed miserably to accompany myself (on the guitar, that is)
I've seen some people make a half-decent job on tha concertina, but even then, there is a tendency to allow the instrument to make the running
"or not be allowed to play until they have learnt the tune off by heart"
As far as I'm concerned, the golden rule is 'private is for practice - public is for the finished article'
No club should ever its singers to practice in public - it gives both the club and the music a bad name
What pisses me off with crib sheets is that it's more often than not that it's youngsters who use them, leaving the impression that they really can't be arsed - extremely patronising
The oldies tend to have spent a lifetime singing their songs in
Jim Carroll