Harlan Kirgan
In journalism, there are cautions issued about stating something is the biggest, best, largest or tossing out superlatives.
But in David Simpson’s case it is difficult not to use such an absolute.
So here goes.
David Simpson has produced the largest collection of photos of Acadiana’s music and festival scene assembled by any single photographer.
And, they are free for the public to view.
And, he offers them free for use by newspapers or anyone else.
There are an astonishing 37,547 images — as of noon Friday — at cajunzydecophotos.com. The site gets the viewer to Simpson’s Flickr account where the photos are available in albums.
If every picture is worth a thousand words, Simpson now has photos worth 37,547,000 words online.
These are not just photos. In most cases, Simpson identifies the musicians, the place and the date, which creates a remarkable record.
Want to see what Steve Riley looked like two decades ago? You’ll likely find it and more in Simpson’s photos.
On Thursday, Herman Fuselier, executive director of the St. Landry Parish Tourist Commission, announced that he nominated Simpson for a Louisiana Ambassador Certificate to be presented at the Lieutenant Governor’s Tourism Summit this month.
Fuselier was speaking at a parish tourism networking meeting at the the Prairie Acadian Cultural Center at Jean Lafitte National Park & Preserve in Eunice.
“Simpson has traveled across south Louisiana to capture musicians at dance halls, festivals, Mardi Gras, state parks and special events. Simpson, who has always made his photos available to the media and musicians, refuses to accept payment for his invaluable work,” Fuselier read from a nomination letter.
“Simpson became interested in photographing musicians during his work as an English professor at LSU Eunice. He retired from the classroom in 2009, but continues to take music pictures almost every weekend,” he said.
Fuselier, who spent about 30 years in journalism, much of it covering south Louisiana culture, noted Simpson is a “treasured resource of Louisiana music and culture.”
Simpson, 72, traced his interest to the 1997 Festival International where he heard Christine Balfa perform.
The music inspired him and he bought a CD, and he began photographing the area’s musicians and posting his photos on LSUE’s website.
Seeing Gene Delafose perform at Downtown Alive in Eunice drove home his passion for the “power and emotion” of the music, he said.