I usually get stamped on for commenting on British clubs because I now live in Ireland, but I was part of the folk scene from around 1961 right up to the mid 80s, when I finally left because my choice of what to listen to by most of the clubs adopting a non-definition of the term folk policy and a "near enough for folk" attitude to standards.
I have never lost the belief that the survival of folk song depends on how it is presented to the pubic - the clubs (not concerts) run by non professional enthusiasts has always been the key to this.
I can only reiterate what has happened in Ireland, where the music has moved from being a fringe, often unwelcome activity, to a vital part of Irish culture, now largely in the hands of young people who are playing as well as the masters I was listening to half a century ago.
This is largely instrumental music, but ther are now welcome signs that it is beginning to happen with singing.
This didn't happen by accident but was achieved by small groups of dedicated people who knew what the term 'traditional' meant and proceeded to build a foundation on what was available - the Irish Traditional Music Archive and the Willie Clancy Summer School were fore-runners in this.
At present, the music can look forward to two generations-worth of future and can come with experimentation, dumbing down, being taken up by the pop industry.... all the things that dominated the British scene and left behind a mess to be cleared up.
The foundations are there to remind us what the music is and where it stands in our lives.
Bickering like this only emphasises the need for someone to get a grip and make a start over your side of the Irish Sea.
You might start by removing the barriers to open discussion on what was achieved in the past and stop making 'what is folk song' a no-go area
"Stardom" should never have a place in these discussions - that is no reason to become involved in folk music
Jim Carroll