Seasick Steve - no real surprise there then?

I read that article the other day - still good music but not quite as authentic as first thought 

What does crack me up though, is the writer's sense of outrage and disappointment at having been "duped".

"Pop is all about self-invention, but there’s something uncomfortable about Steve’s version of it."

Get over yourself mate. 

I didn't get that from the article at all, which I read when it was published. I thought it was very balanced and well written. It does seem that Steve is something of a con merchant, unlike 'proper' busking types such as the wonderful Ted Hawkins, who really did have a hard time, rather than working as a session musician and pretending to be something he wasn't. 

I'm with Dave. A writer trying to make a story into something it isn't. You can go back to Leadbelly to find outrageous deceptions as to authenticity. 

Pethaps the author ought to read "Faking It: the quest for authenticity in popular music" by Hugh Barker. It's not perfect but it certainly nails the fact that authenticity as a conceit is an old concept. I particularly liked its nailing of Neil Young et al.

I'll still enjoy him at the SSE Arena next Friday...