GENE TOMKO is a photographer, writer, and artist based in Lafayette, Louisiana. Inspired by his love of the music, he has been committed to documenting the blues, soul, and rhythm & blues tradition in both words and pictures for the past three decades in such musical hotbeds as Louisiana, Texas, Chicago, the Mississippi Delta, Georgia, and the Carolinas. He has a special passion for Louisiana’s unique indigenous music and culture, particularly Cajun, Creole, zydeco, swamp pop, and jazz.

Gene has been a regular contributor to Living Blues magazine for the past 25 years and his work has also appeared in many international publications including Down Beat (US), Juke Blues (UK), offBEAT (New Orleans), Blues And Soul Records (Japan), Twoj Blues (Poland), Block (The Netherlands), Soul Bag (France), In The Basement (UK), Blues Access (US), Jefferson (Sweden), and Now Dig This (UK), as well as the Chicago Sun-Times and USA Today. His photography has appeared in the films Cheat You Fair: The Story of Maxwell Street and Sunshine By the Stars: Celebrating Louisiana Music.

His photography and writing were also featured in the 2-Volume Encyclopedia of the Blues, published by Routledge Press in 2005, as well as on numerous CD and LP releases by artists such as B.B. King, Nappy Brown, Big Jay McNeely, Warren Storm, Byther Smith, Roy Head, Little Freddie King, Doug McLeod, Clinton Broussard, Arthur Williams, Travis Haddix, Birdlegg, and the Campbell Brothers.

In 2006, he co-authored the book What’s the Use of Walking If There’s A Freight Train Going Your Way?: Black Hoboes and their Songs with esteemed blues scholar and writer Paul Garon.