Category Archives: February 2022

Winter Blues Guitarmageddon Set for Later This Month

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Joe Louis Walker (Photo Courtesy: Annie Goodman)

The Scranton Cultural Center at the Masonic Temple will present its 6th Annual Winter Blues Guitarmageddon on Feb. 25 and continue as a one-night Blues festival featuring an eclectic mix of local, regional, national, and international touring artists.

Grammy-nominated, six-time Blues Music Award Winner and Blues Hall of Fame Inductee, Joe Louis Walker is confirmed to headline. 

Boasting a career that spans over 50 years, Joe Louis Walker is regarded by NPR as a “legendary boundary pushing icon of modern blues” and is a true guitar powerhouse with distinctive vocals. He has toured the world’s most renowned music festivals sharing the stage with Muddy Waters, Thelonious Monk, Ronnie Woods, John Lee Hooker, Willie Dixon, Charlie Musselwhite and John Mayall, to name a few.

In addition to his own 25 albums, Walker has played on Grammy-winning records by B.B. King and James Cotton and collaborated with a diverse group of first-rate artists including Branford Marsalis, Tower of Power, Bonnie Raitt, Buddy Guy, Taj Mahal, and Clarence “Gatemouth” Brown. 

King Solomon Hicks (Photo Courtesy: Joe Rosen)

His latest album “Electric Electric,” features a diverse mix of blues-stomping and horn-powered originals as well as a few out of the ordinary covers, like “Werewolves of London” (Warren Zevon) and “Hotel California” (The Eagles).

Adding to the lineup is King Solomon Hicks, who returns by popular demand, after his debut in Scranton at Winter Blues Guitarmageddon: Next Generation in February, 2020. At that time, he was just releasing his latest work, “Harlem” which was awarded Best Emerging Artist Album at the Blues Music Awards.

Dustin Douglas and the Electric Gentlemen

Rounding out the lineup are local blues rock power trio Dustin Douglas & The Electric Gentlemen and the soulful, Philadelphia-based Deb Callahan Duo featuring Allen James.

The concert will take place in the Scranton Cultural Center’s Grand Ballroom at 7 p.m. with the doors opening at 6:30. Seating is reserved and tickets range from $40-50 in advance and $45-55 day of show.  They can be purchased at the Fidelity Bank Box Office at the SCC in person or by calling (570) 344-1111, or via Ticketmaster. 

The 6th Annual Winter Blues Guitarmageddon is sponsored by UGI Utilities, Inc. and LT Verrastro.  It is supported by Lackawanna County and the PA Council on the Arts.

Masks are required for all patrons, regardless of vaccination status.  They can be removed for eating or drinking in the designated area, which will be located on the Lower Level.  For additional information about the SCC’s current COVID-19 Mitigation Policies, visit SCCMT.org/COVID.

For additional information and a full schedule of events, visit SCCMT.org.

Kevin Walsh Steady on Court for Dunmore Bucks

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By Steve Svetovich

Steady and consistent.

Those are the two words to best describe the performance of Dunmore Bucks 6-1 senior forward Kevin Walsh.

Kevin is ninth in Lackawanna League Division III in scoring with an average of 11.0 points per game and seventh in free throw percentage at .667. He is also among the league leaders in rebounds with over eight boards per contest.

Teammate Adriel DeNaples is third in the league in scoring at 14.3 points per game and first in free throw percentage at .805. in Dunmore’s 68-50 win over Carbondale Area, on Thursday, Jan. 27, at Dunmore. He scored 14 in the second half and hit on two 3-point field goals. DeNaples added 21 in the Bucks win. The win increased Dunmore’s record to 10-6, including 5-2 in league play.

“We’ve been clicking as a team recently,” said Kevin. “We started a bit slow, but are really playing well as a team now. If things continue to go well, we will end the season on a high note. We feel winning the league is a strong possibility. Then going for the district title is a goal. We want to go as far as possible in the state playoffs.”

Kevin, 18, tore his ACL playing football for Dunmore in his sophomore year. He worked hard in rehab to bring himself back to play at a high level on the Dunmore basketball team. He is a four-year member of the basketball team.

And although he no longer plays football, Kevin is a two-year member of the Dunmore baseball and golf teams. A versatile athlete, he is a pitcher-third baseman on the Dunmore baseball team.

The senior stalwart forward has a highly impressive 3.8 academic average and is a member of the National Honor Society, Engineering Club and French Club.

He aspires to study engineering in college and would like to go to Penn State or the University of Maryland.

Well-spoken and polite, he talked about what it takes to excel at the forward position in high school basketball. “It takes a lot of discipline and listening to your coaches,” he said. “You can’t go off on your own. You need to be a team player.”

The hard working scholar-athlete said he has learned a lot from Dunmore basketball coach Kevin Clark. “He teaches me to trust my game and be patient. Your shot will not always be there. If it is not going in at first, eventually it will. Always trust your shot.”

The senior standout said his best academic subject is math. He loves country music and would like to see Luke Combs in concert.

He talked about his goals. “Well, first of all there are team goals,” he said. “We want to win the league and district titles and compete in the states. Personally, I want to study engineering in college and play some club basketball. Then I want to work as an engineer. I’m not sure what kind of engineer yet.”

Kevin said he gets his strong work ethic from his parents. “They teach me to always work hard in the classroom and with sports. They tell me success comes from working hard.”

The talented senior said he came to Dunmore in eighth grade as a transfer from Saint Paul’s. “It was a great decision for me,” he said. “I made the transition and Dunmore has become my home away from home. I’ve made a lot of friends and developed some great relationships. The coaches and teachers are great. I’ve enjoyed it very much.”

Doin’ Dunmore: Couple’s Fond Memories of First Swinick Home

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By Steve Svetovich

The late Tom Swinick’s first Swinick home was built in 1987 for Robert and Mary Ann Fitzpatrick.

“A quality home is the only kind you can afford.”

Custom built. Choice lots. Fine features. The Swinick Development in Dunmore.

Swinick, who died this past Nov. 15, did not disappoint the Fitzpatrick couple, who are still enjoying their home to this day.

This house located at 421 Shirley Lane was the first sold by the late Tom Swinick in his new development.

The home is located at 421 Shirley Lane, Dunmore.

The home originally was supposed to be 401 Shirley Lane. But due to a simple error made in the County assessor’s office the address became 421 Shirley Lane.

Bobby Fitzpatrick, known by all of his friends as Fitz, explained. “The home is the first in that phase of the development,” he said. “It was originally supposed to be 401 Shirley Lane, but the individual in the County assessor’s office made a slight error by changing the zero to a two, so 401 became 421. No one corrected it, so the homes on Shirley Lane start at 421 rather than 401. Because of this, then that section of the development started at 421. People often ask why it starts at 421. Well, that is the reason.”

Fitz said he met Tom Swinick at the old Igoe’s Bar in Dunmore. “We were in graduate school at the time and would stop by once in a while after classes.

“When my wife Mary Ann and I decided to build a home we contacted Tom Swinick. Tom was such a great guy and very honest and hard working.

“We bought two parcels of land on Shirley Lane in 1987 from him. We decided to build our first home there. It was our first home and the first one Tom built for anyone.

“Well, for our wedding present, the late John Domanish, a local architect, designed our home for us.

“This was Tom’s first house to be built in the development, so he could not wait to get started on it. He was just as excited as we were. He was there everyday for the building of his first home. When it was completed, he was so excited and proud to hand us over the keys.”

And it didn’t stop there. Fitz said Swinick stayed in constant touch, always asking about the initial home and making himself available for any possible issue.

“He was literally there from start to finish, from 1987 until two weeks before he died,” Fitz said.

“Just two weeks before he passed away, I called him. I had a broken lock that I could not fix. Well, Tom came right over. He actually fixed the lock with the exact same apparatus he used in 1987. And that was not all he did. He went on to check every lock in the house. He found other locks that needed repair and promised to come back in a couple weeks to fix them.

“But then he passed away, But he kept his promise, because a few days after he passed I got a call from his son. He told me his dad made a promise to fix the rest of the locks.

“So his son came over to fix the locks to keep his dad’s promise.

“And that’s the kind of guy Tom Swinick was. True to his word and working from the day his first house was built in 1987 until two weeks before he died.

“He was just a tremendous guy right to the end. And we are still enjoying the home he built for us. He was so proud of it.”