Lee Allen Zeno died on Sunday, May 3, 2026 at 3:30 pm at the age of 71 after a long struggle with cancer at his residence in Lafayette, Louisiana.
Lee Allen Zeno died on Sunday, May 3, 2026 at 3:30 pm at the age of 71 after a long struggle with cancer at his residence in Lafayette, Louisiana. An accomplished, world-renowned, and two-time Grammy winning Louisiana zydeco and blues bassist started his career at age seven and is best known for his work with Buckwheat Zydeco.
Lee Allen Zeno, a gifted musician and bassist since the age of 9, studied under the great Alvin Batiste at Southern University, and his playing is featured on recordings by legendary and renowned artists such as Clifton Chenier, Charlie Rich, and Irma Thomas. Lee Allen Zeno was a close friend of Stanley Dural (Buckwheat Zydeco) and key fixture in his band Buckwheat Zydeco & the Ils Sont Partis Band until Dural’s passing in 2016.
He kept the zydeco legacy alive by playing bass guitar with the son of Stanley Dural, Sir Reginald Dural and his band Buckwheat Zydeco Jr & the Ils Sont Partis Band. Lee Allen Zeno received four Grammy Nominations as part of Buckwheat Zydeco & the Ils Sont Partis Band and won two Grammy Awards, one with Buckwheat Zydeco’s (Stanley Dural) 2010 CD “Lay Your Burden Down” and Buckwheat Zydeco Jr’s (Reginald Dural) 2024 CD “New Beginnings.” Lee Allen Zeno also directed the R&B ensemble known as the Ragin’ & Blues Band for the traditional music program in the School of Music and Performing Arts at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette and was one of the lead organizers of the “Blue Monday” blues jam at the Brass Room in Lafayette, Louisiana.
Lee Allen Zeno’s memorial homecoming service was held on Wednesday, May 13, 2026, at 11:00 a.m. at Our Lady of the Assumption Catholic Church and he is buried at Evangeline Memorial Gardens Cemetery located in Carencro, Louisiana.