Lazy Lester – Lazy Lester – Flyright Records FLYCD 07 

Originally released in 1989 on Flyright Records, this superb collection was subsequently released on the MTE Records label in 2010.  Front-to-back, this is the definitive early Lazy Lester compilation.  Bar none.

The 20 selections offered here are those cut for J.D. “Jay” Miller for the famed Excello label, based in Crowley, Louisiana, in the south central are of the state, from 1957 and roughly ten years forward.  The incredible aspect of this Lazy Lester recorded output is that the cuts toiled unreleased for some 20 years.

The Excello label’s notoriety is that it has been bestowed with the distinction of specializing in “swamp blues”, a brand of Louisiana blues cultivated in southwestern Louisiana in the 1950s that borrowed from other types of regional music, including zydeco and other Cajun influences.

The lore of how Lester came to record for Excello suggests that Lester accompanied another swamp blues giant, Lightnin’ Slim, to an Excello recording session, and when the scheduled harmonica accompanist did not show-up, Lester offered his services to the session.  Impressed, Miller recorded Lester, and then using him behind other of the label’s artists, including Slim Harpo and Katie Webster.  For Miller, Lester provided great musical diversity because of his talents on the bass, drums, and guitar, in addition to his impressive harmonica skill set. 

It must also be noted that Miller is the person credited with providing Lester with his “Lazy” moniker, one imparted upon him due to his easy-going laid-back general personal manner.

Song-by-song session information is difficult to ascertain for these Lester cuts, but the general consensus is that swamp boogie piano titan Katie Webster played on many of the selections, and that saxophone player Lionel Torrence was on-board, as well. 

All the enormously influential blues associated with Lester are found here, including “Tell Me Pretty Baby”, “Bloodstains”, “Strange Things Happening”, “Lover Not A Fighter”, “The Same Thing Could Happen to You”, “Sugar Coated Love”, among 14 other inspired Lester outings.  All the songs feature Lester’s sprightly vocal approach, one that carried weight even with the weighty subject matter of the blues submitted here.  There is a country-ish feel to Lester’s blues, and the dispositions of Lester’s blues ranged from serious to almost humorous.  This ability to be adaptive in his output is a credit to both Miller as a producer, and certainly to Lester as an artist.

One of Lester’s greatest legacies is that many diverse musicians chose his songs to cover.  Those musicians include The Kinks, The Fabulous Thunderbirds, Freddy Fender, Raful Neal, Dave Edmunds, Dwight Yoakam, and Anson Funderburgh, among others.  One listen to this rich introduction to Louisiana swamp blues will signify why that is the case. 

Without a doubt and any sort of qualification, this Lazy Lester compilation is considered essential to any blues collection.  Add it to your blues holdings if you don’t already have it!