Do your friends seem bored whenever you go off on a tangent about the comprehensive history of any given traditional song? Do you mention your Martin guitar in conversation as often as other people talk about their kids? Do you own contra dancing shoes and a slew of CDs by people you've jammed with around a campfire? Chances are you could be suffering from folk superfandom. Read on to diagnose your out-of-control folk habit.
1. You think Bob Dylan has a fine voice.
I always know someone who has no room in their heart for folkmania when they make some ridiculous comment about what an awful voice Bob Dylan has. True folk fans couldn't care less, because they know it's not what kind of pretty, clear voice you have that matters here. What matters is that you're saying something that matters. Gritty and raw = honest and beautiful.
2. You have no rhythm, but you're a heck of a dancer.
Folk dancing is almost as big of a deal as picking and playing around campfires. As long as you can tap your toe, chances are you can participate in square dancing, contra, and other folk styles. You're also probably magnificent at the folk twirl and the bounce-around.
3. There are four seasons: Autumn, Winter, Spring, and Festival.
Oh yes! Of course there are festivals taking place somewhere in the spring, winter, and fall, but summer is undeniably festival season. If you're a folk superfan, you probably attend several festivals in the summertime.
4. You belong to a folk song preservation society.
... or a folk alliance. Extra points if you're on the board of your local folklore society or organization, if you attend regular song circles where you sing out of a book, and even more if you host the circle in your living room.
5. Your CD collection consists of people you've jammed with around a campfire.
A real folk fan finds their music everywhere they go – particularly festivals and campouts. If the majority of the CDs in your collection come with a story about the time you wandered into so-and-so's campsite at Kerrville, you may be verging on folk superfan.
6. You categorize yourself as either a picker or a player.
I would personally never make the mistake of referring myself as a guitar picker, and I know few people who could get away with that term. "Picker" is something you earn. Not just anyone can pick a guitar.
7. Whether or not you were ever there, you're nostalgic for the 60s NYC folk clubs.
The Gaslight, Gerdes Folk City, the Bottom Line ... ring a bell? These places aren't around anymore, but we can keep them alive in our collective memory by oohing and ahhing when our friends who were there recollect the scenes that sprang from these old Greenwich Village haunts.
8. You carry pictures of your first Martin in your wallet.
I've never owned a Martin (I play Alvarez), and I don't feel a strong pull toward them. I'm a rare breed in folkland, though. The majority of folk fans – even if they only know three chords – are more proud of their first Martin (which they undoubtably still own) than they are of their first born child.
9. You're still upset that Dylan went electric.
Yeah, you think Dylan has a fine voice, but you're still offended that he dared go electric at Newport over 30 years ago. You listen to folk-rock now, though, you just feel like folk music is not what it was before Dylan went electric.
10. You seriously identified with one or more characters in "A Mighty Wind"
I saw A Mighty Wind in New Orleans. Maybe because NOLA is more of a jazz town than it is full of folkies, but I was the only one laughing hard. I totally identified with Mitch & Mickey, and I know people like the color worshippers, et al. Non-folk fans loved it because it seemed to be making fun of something; but we true bluers know it was funny because it was so true.
Are You a Superfan?
Tell us why in the Folk Forum
