Leslie Johnson (June 20, 1933 – August 22, 2018), also known as Lazy Lester, was an American blues musician who sang and played the harmonica and guitar. His career lasted from the 1950s until 2018, and he helped start the swamp blues style. He also played harmonica blues, rhythm and blues, and Louisiana blues.

Lazy Lester is best known for popular songs recorded with Ernie Young's Nashville-based Excello Records. He also helped record songs for other Excello artists, such as Slim Harpo, Lightnin' Slim, and Katie Webster. Other musicians, including the Kinks, the Flamin' Groovies, Freddy Fender, Dwight Yoakam, Dave Edmunds, Raful Neal, Anson Funderburgh, and the Fabulous Thunderbirds, have recorded cover versions of his songs. In the later part of his career, starting in the late 1980s, he released new albums with musicians such as Mike Buck, Sue Foley, Gene Taylor, Kenny Neal, Lucky Peterson, and Jimmie Vaughan.

Biography

Leslie Johnson began playing the guitar at age 11 and performed with Raful Neal in Baton Rouge during his teenage years. He later helped start the Rhythm Rockers. In the mid-1950s, Lester was part of the Louisiana blues scene. According to Rolling Stone (February 2006), Buddy Guy, before moving to Chicago, played with blues musicians such as Lightnin' Hopkins, Lazy Lester, and Slim Harpo in Louisiana. When Guy left for Chicago in 1957, Lester took his place as a guitarist in a local band, even though he did not own a guitar at that time.

Lester’s career grew when he sat next to Lightnin’ Slim on a bus heading to an Excello recording session. At the studio, the scheduled harmonica player did not arrive. After failing to find him, Lester offered to play the harmonica. His performance on that session led producer Jay Miller to record Lester as a solo artist and use him as a multi-instrumentalist on percussion, guitar, bass, and harmonica for other artists, including Slim Harpo. "Percussion" included unusual items like a rolled-up newspaper hitting a cardboard box. Miller gave Lester the nickname "Lazy Lester" because of his calm and relaxed style.

Lester is best known for songs later covered by many rock, country, blues, and Tex-Mex artists, including "I'm a Lover Not a Fighter," "I Hear You Knockin'," and "Sugar Coated Love." He claimed to have written these songs, but most credits were given to Miller or to both Lester and Miller. Lester said he received few royalties, which made him distrustful of the music industry. By the late 1960s, he left the industry, working manual labor and fishing as hobbies. He eventually moved to Pontiac, Michigan, and lived with Slim Harpo’s sister.

In 1971, Fred Reif organized a Lightnin’ Slim concert at the University of Chicago Folk Festival, and Lester traveled from Louisiana to join him. After the performance, Lester returned to Louisiana. Later, Reif and Lester were both in Michigan, where Reif helped Lester make a comeback. Lester recorded and performed across the United States and internationally, often with blues bands like Loaded Dice.

His recordings during this time were released on blues labels Alligator and Telarc, as well as European labels, especially the British label Flyright Records. In September 2002, he received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Boston Blues Society. In 2003, Martin Scorsese included Lester in a blues tribute concert at Radio City Music Hall, which was later released as the film and album Lightning in a Bottle. A group photo in the album showed Lester smiling at the center with musicians like B.B. King, Buddy Guy, and others.

Lester lived in Paradise, California, with his girlfriend and appeared in the 2015 documentary I Am the Blues. He continued performing nationally and internationally until 2018, often returning to Louisiana to play with artists like Lil’ Buck Sinegal, Carol Fran, and Kenny Neal. That year, he appeared in a national television commercial for Geico Insurance. Lester died of cancer on August 22, 2018, at age 85.

Selected discography

• True Blues – 1967, Excello Records
• Lazy Lester Rides Again – 1987, King Snake Records
• Harp & Soul – 1988, Alligator Records (featuring Lucky Peterson, Kenny Neal)
• Lazy Lester – 1989, Flyright Records (includes previously unreleased Excello recordings from the 1960s)
• I'm a Lover Not a Fighter – 1994, Ace Records
• I Hear You Knockin': Best of the Excello Singles – 1994, Excello/AVI Records
• All Over You – 1998, Antone's Records (recorded in 1997; featuring Derek O'Brien, Sue Foley, Sarah Brown, Mike Buck)
• Lazy Lester – 2000, APO Records (6-song audiophile 12" EP; recorded October 12–13; featuring Henry Gray, Jimmy D. Lane)
• Superharps II – 2001, Telarc Records (performed with Carey Bell, Raful Neal, Snooky Pryor)
• Blues Stop Knockin' – 2001, Antone's Records (featuring Jimmie Vaughan)
• Blues On My Radio – 2004, SWMAF Records (featuring Louisiana Red)
• Blues Harp Meltdown Vol. 3: Legends – 2004 (performed with Mark Hummel, Carey Bell, Cephas & Wiggins) (Mountain Top Records)
• Family Meeting – 2008, Ruf Records – double album by Wentus Blues Band
• One More Once – 2010, Karonte/Cambaya Records (produced by Mike Vernon)
• You Better Listen – 2011, Bluestown Records (recorded in Notodden, Norway)
• "New Orleans" – 2011 (featuring Maurice 'Big Mo' Huffman) on Huffman's album Torn