Mr. R. Lee of Underworld Rag bemoans some "over-ripe adulation" in a post that otherwise praises the biographical work of Jean Pierre Lion:
If you’ve ever spent time with a devotee of Bix Beiderbecke you’ve probably already been treated to more of that kind of tripe than any human could reasonably be expected to bear. These deluded souls maintain all sorts of ridiculous notions concerning the artistic divinity of their dead-boy hero. They speak of the depth and beauty of his playing in such exaggerated terms that it's difficult not to develop a prejudice against him out of sheer spite. They study and document every move he ever made. They worry the details of his messy existence as if each trivial stumble were a clue to some deeper meaning in the music that sang from his Vincent Bach Cornet No. 620 (which he purchased in New York City on February 17, 1927 from a music store on West 48th Street).
[January 9, 2006]