Sidney Bechet, Myths, and Legends

Sydney Bechet was a great musician, but he was also crazy. In his case, and the case of other famous artists, his insanity was the reasoning for him being such a great musician. Bechet felt like he could do no wrong. All of his actions had meaning whether or not people agreed with that logic or not. Bechet also felt that he had to be the best at everything. If anyone came to him with a challenge, he had to prove he could do ten times better than the challenger. Sometimes a myth or legend is created about an artist in order to glorify there greatness. Myths and legends make the artist seem more interesting. Sometimes people seemed to be more intrigued by lies than actual proven facts. Some cannot even tell the difference. Myths and legends are used to make that particular artist stick out in one's mind. One may tell a story about a "normal" artist that does not have any tales to complement their name. The next story might be about one who has many tales, and the listener may pay more attention to the artist who has the tales attached to their name. Sometimes myths or legends are created to keep the artist living. Their fans may not want to believe the truth about their death or that they just were not interested in what they were doing anymore. Tupac fans do not want to believe he is dead because he was considered to be a great rapper. They just do not want to let him go. If an artists just stops what their doing, people may create their own versions of why. The made up story may even be ludicrous compared to the truth, and people will still believe it. Myths and legends are a way to remember people even if they have nothing to do with what really happened.