Best known for regional hits recorded with Ernie Young's Nashville-based Excello Records, Lester also contributed to songs recorded by other Excello artists, including Slim Harpo, Lightnin' Slim, and Katie Webster. Cover versions of his songs have been recorded by (among others) the Kinks, the Flamin' Groovies, Freddy Fender, Dwight Yoakam, Dave Edmunds, Raful Neal, Anson Funderburgh, and the Fabulous Thunderbirds. In the comeback stage of his career (since the late 1980s) he has recorded new albums backed by Mike Buck, Sue Foley, Gene Taylor, Kenny Neal, Lucky Peterson, and Jimmie Vaughan.
In the mid-1950s, Lester was on the margins of the Louisiana blues scene. According to Rolling Stone (February 23, 2006), Buddy Guy, before moving to Chicago, had played in Louisiana "with some of the old masters: Lightnin' Hopkins, Lazy Lester, Slim Harpo." When Guy left for Chicago, in 1957, Lester replaced him, on guitar, in a local band—even though Lester, at the time, did not own one.
Lester's career took off when he found a seat next to Lightnin' Slim on a bus transporting Slim to an Excello recording session. At the studio, the scheduled harmonica player did not appear. Slim and Lester spent the afternoon unsuccessfully trying to find him, when Lester volunteered that he could play the harmonica. Lester's work on that first Lightnin' Slim session led the producer, Jay Miller, to record Lester as solo artist and also to use him as a multi-instrumentalist on percussion, guitar, bass, and harmonica in sessions headlined by other artists whose recorings were produced by Miller, including, notably, Slim Harpo. "Percussion" on these sessions went beyond the traditional drum kit and included a rolled-up newspaper striking a cardboard box.
Miller dubbed Lester "Lazy Lester" because of his laconic, laid-back style.
More than his vocal delivery, Lester is best remembered for songs that were later covered by a wide range of rock, country, blues, and Tex-Mex stars, chiefly, "I'm a Lover Not a Fighter," "I Hear You Knockin'," and "Sugar Coated Love."
Lester stated that he wrote these songs, but almost all are credited to Miller or to Lester and Miller. Lester also stated he received few royalties, which embittered him and made him skeptical of the music industry. By the late 1960s, he had given up on the music industry, working manual labor and pursuing his favorite hobby—fishing. Lester moved to Pontiac, Michigan, living with Slim Harpo's sister.
In 1971, Fred Reif set up a Lightnin' Slim concert at the University of Chicago Folk Festival, and Lester was brought up from Louisiana to accompany him. A few weeks after that performance, Lester was back in Louisiana. Years later Reif and Lester were both in Michigan, from where Reif orchestrated a comeback. Lester recorded and played around the United States and abroad, backed by blues bands, including, frequently, Loaded Dice.
Lester's recordings in this period are on blues labels Alligator and Telarc, alongside releases in Europe.
If disenchanted, Lester retained his harmonica, guitar, and vocal talents (the songwriting that had been muse to the Kinks and Dwight Yoakam having dried up long before). In September 2002, he was presented with a Lifetime Achievement Award by the Boston Blues Society.
In 2003, Martin Scorsese included Lester in his blues tribute concert at Radio City Music Hall, a record of which was released as the film and album Lightning in a Bottle. The group photograph inside the album depicted Lester grinning, dead-center among peers and musical progeny including B.B. King, Solomon Burke, Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown, Buddy Guy, Levon Helm, Chuck D, the Neville Brothers, Dr. John, John Fogerty, and Aerosmith.
In 2012, Lester teamed up with British Blues Woman Dani Wilde to play a special double headline concert as part of Gloucester Rhythm and Blues Festival.
Lester appeared and performed in a television commercial aired nationally for Geico Insurance in 2018.
He appears in the 2015 documentary film I Am the Blues.
Lester lived in Paradise, California, with his girlfriend. He died in August, 2018.
St Louis Blues
Lazy Lester Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I hate to see that evening sun go down
Cause my baby, he's gone left this town
Feelin' tomorrow like I feel today
If I'm feelin' tomorrow like I feel today
I'll pack my truck and make my give-a-way
Pulls that man around by her, if it wasn't for her and her
That man I love would have gone nowhere, nowhere
I got the St. Louis blues, blues as I can be
That man's got a heart like a rock cast in the sea
Or else he wouldn't have gone so far from me
I love my baby like a school boy loves his pie
Like a Kentucky colonel loves his mint 'n rye
I love my man till the day I die
Lazy Lester's song "St. Louis Blues" is a classic blues track that speaks about lost love and the pity and pain that comes along with it. The lyrics express the hurt and sorrow that comes with a heartbreak as well as the desire to leave town and start a new life. The opening line sets up the tone for the rest of the song, "I hate to see that evening sun go down, cause my baby he's gone left this town". The singer speaks of feeling the same way the next day and the possibility of leaving town, showing a desperation to escape the pain.
The chorus sees the singer talk about a St. Louis woman with a diamond ring that pulls her man around. This shows that the singer's lover may have left her for a wealthy woman. The singer then speaks about having the St. Louis blues and feeling as blue as can be. The man who caused her heartache is described as having a heart like a rock cast in the sea, possibly hinting at his cold-hearted nature. The song ends with the singer professing her love for her man till the day she dies, showing that despite the heartache, she still loves him deeply.
Line by Line Meaning
I hate to see that evening sun go down
I feel sad and dejected when the sun sets and darkness falls
Cause my baby, he's gone left this town
It hurts me deeply that my loved one has left me and gone elsewhere
Feelin' tomorrow like I feel today
My emotions and mood are unlikely to change tomorrow
If I'm feelin' tomorrow like I feel today
Assuming my feelings remain the same, I'll leave this place tomorrow
I'll pack my truck and make my give-a-way
I'll pack up my belongings and leave this town
St. Louis woman with her diamond ring
There's a woman in St. Louis who wears a beautiful diamond ring
Pulls that man around by her, if it wasn't for her and her
This woman has a strong hold on this man, and if not for her, he wouldn't be staying there
That man I love would have gone nowhere, nowhere
The man I love wouldn't be anywhere around here, if it weren't for this woman's influence on him
I got the St. Louis blues, blues as I can be
I feel very sad and blue since coming to St. Louis
That man's got a heart like a rock cast in the sea
The man I love seems to have an unbreakable and unmoving heart
Or else he wouldn't have gone so far from me
If he truly loved me, he wouldn't have left and gone so far away from me
I love my baby like a school boy loves his pie
I love my significant other with the innocence and passion of a schoolboy's love for his favorite food
Like a Kentucky colonel loves his mint 'n rye
My love is as strong and unwavering as a Kentucky colonel's love for his favorite drink
I love my man till the day I die
I will love my man with all my heart until the day I die
Lyrics © Downtown Music Publishing, Peermusic Publishing
Written by: WILLIAM C HANDY
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind