By Steve Svetovich
There are some people who put their minds on something and go right after it.
It’s a way of looking at the bottle as half full, rather than half empty.
Take Dunmore’s multi-faceted Pat Salvage, for instance. Salvage, a talented, energetic vocalist and bass guitarist, will perform with “We the Living” Saturday, April 20, from 7 to 10 p.m., at the Honky Tonk, 763 E. Drinker St., Dunmore.
Salvage, 63, was always a highly energized, rambunctious sort He has a mind that can go in all different directions.
A 1979 graduate of Bishop O’Hara High School, Salvage went on to receive a degree in mechanical drafting from what was then known as Johnson College in North Scranton. He is a draftsman for Pleasant Mount Welding, Carbondale. A football player in high school, he also played one year of football at Widener University.
Salvage in his younge, wayward years developed a problem with alcohol, but came to the realization he had an addiction and conquered it.He has been sober since Dec. 17, 1998.
“Not everyone who takes a drink is an alcoholic,” he said. “Not everyone who gets drunk now and then is an alcoholic. Some can handle it and others can’t. I accepted that I could not handle it. I went for rehab at Marworth, got better, and haven’t had a drink since.
“Beating my addiction enabled me to see that I could do anything I wanted to do as long as I’m willing to pay the price. And everything has a price.
“I focus on being the best person I can be each day and continue to grow as a person. I feel I can do anything I set out to do.”
His long time significant other/girlfriend is Suzanne Perry who he credits for plenty of support.
And Salvage put his mind to becoming the best possible version of himself.
Number one, he is a proud family man and father of his son Jeremy, 42, and two daughters Jessica, 35, and Kimberly, 34.
Highly-focused and prolific, Salvage put his mind into becoming a dedicated college softball umpire and football referee. As a softball umpire for the past 21 years, he worked his way up the ranks from Division III to Division I games. He served as Umpire in Chief for District 16 softball.
But it was his passion for music that he spent countless hours perfecting.
“I got my first taste of music in elementary school,” he said. “I learned the basics of guitar from the nuns at Saint Paul’s in Green Ridge.
“I played a little bass in the 1980’s and was a roadie for some rock bands. I decided to go back to the bass guitar in 2011. I wondered if I could do it. But I put my mind to it. I practiced thousands and thousands of hours in the garage. I took lessons from Chris Capozza at the Scranton Music Academy in Keyser Oak. I practiced until I perfected it.
“I played my first gig a few years ago with the band, ‘Delta Thunder,’ before 2,500 people for the Valley with a Heart Benefit in Nanticoke. It was a true test with 2,500 people there, but It was a success. I also later played for the ‘Blue Emerald Band’ out of Hawley, New Jersey and Northeast PA, as well as 10 shows for ‘Street Survivors,’ a Lynyrd Skynyrd Tribute Band from Rhode Island. We had a blast.”
The hard-driving musician also was a backup bass player for two other Lynyrd Skynyrd Tribute Bands.
Salvage joined his current band, “We the Living,” in February of 2022 after answering a Facebook ad.
“It’s a great group of highly talented musicians,” he said. “We are like family already. I consider them my very close friends.”
The group includes Salvage on bass guitar and vocals; Marie Maroun as lead vocalist and rhythm and acoustic guitar; Kevin H. Brown on drums, and Tracie Ling on lead guitar.
“We play classic rock with a focus on the 90’s,” Salvage said. “We go from White Rabbit to Maroon 5. It’s quite a mix.”
The group also performs the music of Tom Petty, David Bowie, Led Zeppelin, No Doubt, Lynyrd Skynyrd, and The Counting Crows.
“We the Living” have developed quite a local following and perform five or six times a month. The group has made several appearances at the Honky Tonk in Dunmore and often perform at Drafts in Lake Ariel.
Maroun, the lead vocalist and rhythm and acoustic guitar player, talked about the band’s chemistry.
“The chemistry between band members is like magic,” she said. “We all meshed together and became a little (sometimes dysfunctional) family over the years. I wouldn’t want to share the stage with anyone else.
“And Pat is one of the best people I ever met. He’s a friend for life now. He’s a really good person.”
She explained the band’s name.
“We the Living is the title of a book by my favorite philosopher. Tracie, our lead guitarist, introduced me to Ayn Rand and it completely changed my way of thinking. So the name of the band is a homage to her.”