Midchuck - the Zimmerman kid had the benefit of being a gifted songwriter, thereby having his very own muse to follow. This is not the case with a non-writing, interpretive artist such as Mary Black.

I don't mean this as a put-down; I just happen to think that M.B., in her early days, had a great way with traditional material such as "Will Ye Gang, Love", "Mo Ghile Mear", "Rose of Allendale", "Anachie Gordon" etc. And while songwriters like Jimmy MacCarthy and Noel Brazil have come up with the occasional gem for her, I find the bulk of her output decidedly mediocre.

Michael