Bards are GREAT in a support role!! I'm playing a game now with two user-made characters, one of which is a Skald, in addition to the usual gang of idiots...er, NPCs
I almost never have my skald enter melee - his role is to sit there and play that harp, giving everyone else +2 to hit and damage and -2 on their ACs. There have been some encounters which, although very tough for me in previous games, my party has sailed through without a scratch because of those bonuses. In addition, because of their cheap levelling up cost and spellcasting abilities, they make excellent backup mages. Imagine a bard having hit the XP cap at 23rd level and doing 23d6 with a Skull Trap or 20d6 with Flame Arrow. Think about how the bard's song can help the survival of a monk or a kensai, among others.
Anyway, in case you haven't guessed, I really like the class - I just can't wait until my skald hits level 15 so his song gets even better!