I really liked Russ's analysis of this. It works well for anyone who is a regular participant in a song circle or session. However, it's a lot more difficult if you're parachuting into a new established song circle, something I do two or three times a year in association with vacations and business trips; my safest strategy is usually to lead something which is unique because I wrote it or is familar but radically rearranged. It's much more scary for me to sing something that I suspect someone in the group already leads. When I know someone else present leads a song, I usually acknowledge that in my introduction. And sometimes, in a song circle, I have asked other people who I know have a different take on one of "my" songs, to lead their version of it. I have also "given" songs to other members of my band to lead because they can do a better job of delivering it.

So, let's see, who's song can I steal for the next shanty swap?

Cheerily,
Charley Noble