"Would I sing a 20 verse ballad at a session? "
I dis say a pub session Howard - that seems to be were most of them take place
The surroundings always dictate the session - in my experience (even in Clare, "the home of traditional Irish music") session music tends to be treated as muzak to the drinkers
Maybe the place will quieten down for a solo or duet, but a multi session and the natural bar-room chat tend to to go into competition with each other and the chat gets louder nd louder the nearer it gets to closing time
Even in the old days of Sam Larner, the singing was confined to a back room where the singers can get attention
Home sessions are for the already committed - you're not going to draw in the much needed fresh blood there unless you can get the cat interested
Even at the height of the club scene, festivals were impersonal and focused on the "me singer, you listener" approach
We took Walter to one once and sat in the blazing sun with him for two hours while he waited to be called up for his turn
They are usually, tioo big, too crowded and too impersonal to get anything you can take away with you
Sorry, the intimacy of a well conducted club session cannot be equalled as far as I'm concerned
Jim