As a teacher of English for nearly 40 years I often had the pleasure of sitting with those pupils who had for various reasons become alienated towards the establishment (Actually I was at one with them over this and some of them picked this up). The one thing that could be guaranteed to get their attention was telling them stories and encouraging them to tell theirs, not from a book, from our experiences and imagination. You don't need to be a professional to tell stories and hold an audience. I've always been a singer/musician so I've never felt the need to follow in the wake of Taffy Thomas, Mike Rust or Shonaleigh. I suppose I sing my stories.

However, when you are singing a ballad you are more often not constrained by the staightjacket of the tune and structure ready given, whereas when telling a story you can easily make it your own and craft it and adapt it to different situations.