Editing Sidney Bechet (section)

=== Autobiography and death ===
Shortly before his death, Bechet dictated his autobiography, ''Treat It Gentle'', to Al Rose, a record producer and radio host. He had worked with Rose several times in concert promotions and had a fractious relationship with him. In his autobiography, Bechet's view of himself was starkly different from the one Rose knew.

"The kindly old gentleman in his book was filled with charity and compassion. The one I knew was self-centered, cold, and capable of the most atrocious cruelty, especially toward women."<ref name="rose2">{{cite book|last1=Rose|first1=Al|url=https://archive.org/details/irememberjazzsix00rosea|title=I Remember Jazz: Six Decades Among the Great Jazzmen|date=1987|publisher=Louisiana State University Press|isbn=0-8071-2571-7|location=Baton Rouge|pages=[https://archive.org/details/irememberjazzsix00rosea/page/60 60–65]|url-access=registration}}</ref>

Though other internet sources have picked up the claim that Bechet dictated his autobiography to Al Rose, the autobiography itself—''Treat It Gentle'' (Twayne, 1960)—notes that "Among those who helped record and edit the tapes on which this book is based are Joan Reid, Desmond Flower, and John Ciardi." The "Foreword" to the book by Desmond Flower explains in detail how the material from the various interviews was put together into book form, and there is no mention of any involvement by Al Rose in the interviewing or editing process.

Although embellished and frequently inaccurate, ''Treat It Gentle'' remains a staple account for the "insider's view of the New Orleans tradition."<ref>{{cite book|author=Stephen Cottrell|title=The Saxophone (Yale Musical Instrument Series)|publisher=Yale Musical Instrument Series|year=2013|page=187}}</ref>

Bechet died in [[Garches]], near Paris, of lung cancer on May 14, 1959, on his 62nd birthday. He is buried in a local cemetery. Two other major jazz musicians died that year: [[Billie Holiday]] and [[Lester Young]].<ref name=":02" />