| Sidney Bechet had mystic genius.
Like Bach and Beethoven, he was a musician who, as a man, was also a mystic.
His playing embodied the spirit of the whole art, and he had a supremely
poetic understanding. As a musician, he was unexcelled in talent. No one,
not even Louis Armstrong, had more talent or a greater natural ear. Sidney
Bechet had a completely original sound, backed up by the kind of unbelievably
strong rhythm that can sway a whole band. This meant that he could take
over a musical situation purely on the basis of his gifts, not his ego.
He was an instrumental virtuoso of the first magnitude. Sidney Bechet was
also a man who understood and lived, by choice, in a way that resulted
in his no being recognized on the level of his abilities and contributions.
Regardless of consequence, he did what he wanted to do. He understood profound
things about humanity that were timeless. |
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