A melodic acoustic guitar riff filled the space at Mike’s Music as a bright, late afternoon ray of winter sunshine filled the dark space. The catchy, improvised beat pulsed with energy and life, which is a note that is coursing with irony considering that the man behind the guitar, almost lost his life in a violent biking accident which left him partially disabled.

“I can still play the guitar and the bass. I can’t play for extended periods at one time like I used to,” explained Mike Ricci, owner of Mike’s Music in Carbondale. “But I’m not going to let anything stop me from making music as much as I can.”

The accident was the kind that can recalibrate a person’s entire relationship with existence.

“Since the accident, I appreciate being on the planet, that’s for sure, because it was close,” observed Mike with a curious smile. “I might not have been able to walk at all, but today, I’m okay. I can’t work as much as I used to, just due to fatigue and issues with my health, but I’m here, and I’m in the scene and doing what I can to continue to support the music community in Carbondale and Southern Illinois.”

Mike’s Music store is known for helping anyone interested in music to find their ideal instrument.

“We’re what’s known as a combo shop, which means that we specialize in guitars, basses, other stringed instruments, amplifiers, the types of things that people who play in bands generally will utilize,” stated Mike. “The only things that we don’t focus on are acoustic pianos and band instruments. But we focus on all of the other accessories and instruments involved in music making.”

From Marty Robbins to Black Sabbath

Mike said he has had a love affair with music from the time he was a small boy growing up in Chicago.

“My parents were big music fans. We had hundreds and hundreds of albums at the house,” Mike recalled with a smile. “I spent my entire life around music and started playing guitar at about 16 and have adored it ever since.”

The Ricci household soundtrack was beautifully eclectic. Mike was exposed to a wide range of different genres of music from the country sounds of Marty Robbins to the hard licks of Black Sabbath and The Who.

“I’m also a big Buddy Holly fan,” laughed Mike. “Yeah. So, lots of different music of lots of different genres.”

Mike also told us he loves the music of Frank Zappa and legendary guitar musician John McLaughlin.

His broad music background proved to be invaluable to laying a foundation for a lifelong career in music retail in Carbondale.

“I came down to Carbondale way back in 1985 to visit some friends of mine who were going to SIU (Southern Illinois University), which is our university here in Carbondale,” Mike recalled. “Fell absolutely in love with the place. Fell in love with the music scene, fell in love with the school, and decided that I would take a turn and quit my full time job and go back to college. So, I enrolled at SIU and started in the spring semester of 1987,” added Mike. “I haven’t looked back since.”

While Mike’s Music originally opened its doors in 1993, Mike was working at the local newspaper when a classified help wanted ad caught his eye.

“As I was laying out the classified page, I came across a classified want ad for a music store manager. I had no idea who it was, said Mike. “The ad said must be proficient in keyboards and MIDI. MIDI is Musical Instrument Digital Interface.

“I knew next to nothing about it (MIDI), but I called a friend of mine who was a little more tech savvy. I said, ‘Hey, there’s this ad, I want to apply for this job. And tell me about MIDI,’” observed Mike with a laugh. “So, I got a quick lesson in what MIDI was.”

The ad had been placed by the original owner of Mike’s Music – another Mike who wanted to start a music instrument shop. He needed somebody to run the shop and Mike’s Music opened in July of 1993.

“I was the manager for the store until 1997. Then, the other Mike wanted to sell it to me, and so I went ahead and pulled the trigger again and bought it from the original Mike, and I’ve been the owner ever since,” noted Mike with a chuckle. “So, Mike’s Music got passed from one Mike to another Mike.”

A music scene that punches above its weight

Walk down the streets of Carbondale on any given night and you are likely to hear live music, according to Mike.

“I’ve been to a lot of other college towns, and I can tell you that Carbondale and Southern Illinois has a music scene that far exceeds what you would expect in an area like this,” continues Mike. “And it’s been that way for decades.”

That thriving scene has served a community of musicians while simultaneously helping to nurture new generations. Mike says he always notices that the stress of his customers seems to vanish when they walk into his shop excited about the possibilities.

“Our customers are anybody who’s interested in music in general, and specifically anyone who’s interested in making music,” stated Mike looking around his store. “We are very welcoming to beginners of all ages, as well as the amateur players, the weekend warriors, and the professionals. And that’s a lot of people in Southern Illinois.”

His business model has never been built on aggressive marketing or flashy promotions.

“Remarkably, we build our customer base one customer at a time,” observed Mike. “Whether you’re the parent of a child who wants to take guitar lessons or you’re an adult and you want to take up a new hobby, we’ll get you in here. We’ll treat you right. We’ll give you the good advice. We’ll give you some excellent instruction, and we will support you in your journey to making music and that’s how we build and maintain our customer base.”

Mike himself remains an active musician, although these days his playing time is limited because of the biking accident.

“I play mostly the guitar and the bass. I do play a little bit of drums, a little bit of keyboards. Do a little bit of vocals,” Mike said. “I have played in too many bands to mention. Not all of them great, but all of them a lot of fun. My primary instruments are the guitar and the bass.”

The revenue streams at Mike’s Music extend well beyond instrument sales.

“We do lessons. We also are very into repairs,” Mike explained. “We have a certified luthier (a guitar tech) in the store. So, those are the two other revenue streams that we have.”

Mike harbors no illusions about conquering the world of retail.

“We’re not here to be greedy. We’re not here to try to take over the world,” Mike said plainly. “We’re just here to provide what the community is asking for.

“The most challenging thing of owning a small business is making sure we make enough money to pay the bills,” added Mike. “If we can pay the bills and we can put a roof over our head and food in our mouth, then we’re happy.”

It is a modest goal, but one that allows Mike’s Music to remain true to his mission rather than chasing endless growth.

“Mike’s Music matters to people because they recognize the support that we provide for the music community and the arts community in general here in Carbondale,” Mike explained to us. “They know that they can come here and we can answer their questions professionally. We can provide the services for them, maintaining their instruments, ordering the lessons, and of course, the gear that we provide.”

The store serves a crucial ecosystem function in the surrounding community.

“The store is an integral part of the music community,” stated Mike with confidence. “I mean, what we really focus on is providing for both the working musicians, the amateur musicians, and then also encouraging that next generation of players, with the young people and the kids, getting them involved in lessons, getting them excited about music. And so, yeah, we’ve become, over the decades, a go-to place for players of all skill levels and different interests.”

In fact, once a quarter, Mike puts on a free concert inside his store, inviting upcoming bands just breaking into the scene. Mike says he believes this opportunity gives them a great platform to be heard.

In an age of smartphones and endless scrolling, you might expect young people to have abandoned hands-on hobbies like music. But not in Carbondale, according to Mike.

“For the young people today, despite everyone on their cell phone and social media and everything else that the young people are involved in, they’re still interested in music,” observed Mike. “We’ve got kids as young as ten and up, who love classic rock music. We’ll get kids in here who can play, and they’re playing Black Sabbath, Metallica, and they’re into guitar.

“I think it provides for the young people real life experience that gets them off of the cell phone and off of social media and doing something that really stimulates their brain,” Mike said. “Music is one of the very few unique things that people do that actually fires all sides of their brain simultaneously. It’s mathematics, it’s art. It’s creativity, it’s discipline, and it’s an experience that you can’t get scrolling on your phone. The kids really seem to appreciate that. I am fully confident that the next generation is going to be featuring some really great music makers.”

Ask Mike about the most rewarding part of running the store and he does not talk about profit margins or successful sales quarters. Instead, he describes a scene that plays out repeatedly, each time tugging at him square in his heart.

“The most rewarding part of what I do? It’s anecdotal and it happens all the time,” said Mike with a smile. “I’ll be in the store and a customer will come in and he might be a handsome, tall gentleman with his wife and his two kids. He’ll come up to me and say, ‘Mike, do you remember me?’ and I’ll say, ‘No. I’m sorry, I don’t remember you.’ and he’ll say ‘Well, I was ten when I took guitar lessons here, and I wanted to introduce you to my family. We’ve come down to visit people in Carbondale. I’ll never forget how much fun I had when you guys first got me started in music. I knew when I came to Carbondale that I had to come see you and show you what I’ve done all of these years.’

“That’s happened over and over and over again, continued Mike. “That is the most fulfilling thing, I think of everything that I do and everything I’ve done over the decades is to know that I provided that for these people who have grown up and remembered the experience that they’ve had here, it makes it all worth it. I put music in their lives and they appreciate it.”

Small business support needed

Running an independent music store in the age of Amazon and Guitar Center requires not just passion but perseverance. When asked what he would say to Illinois legislators about the retail environment, Mike did not mince words.

“I would tell them it’s very difficult. It’s a lot of hard work,” Mike stated. “It would be great if the state recognized the difference between us independent retailers and big chain retailers and do as much as you can to support the independent small businesses in Illinois, through whatever means that they’ve got available. Because small retailers define your community. To have a vibrant community and to have a vibrant arts scene, and you need small retailers. Any barriers that we’ve got that could be reduced by policy from the state would be very welcome.”

Follow your passion

For anyone dreaming of opening your own brick-and-mortar store, Mike offers wisdom earned through three decades in the trenches.

“My advice to anybody considering opening up a brick-and-mortar retail shop is do something you’re passionate about,” advised Mike. “Of course, you’re going to have to survey the marketplace to see what kind of shops are located near where you want to set up. But, go with your passion. Go with something that’s a specialty. Go with something that’s going to stick out.”

Mike also knows that passion alone won’t pay the bills. Success requires a specific temperament and skillset.

“I think that anybody can be successful in retail if they are forward facing,” observed Mike. “I hate to use the cliche, but if you’re a people person, you can do it. It’s a lot of hard work. It’s a lot of blood, sweat and tears. There isn’t always a lot of money in it. But if you can get along with the customers, if you can develop those relationships within the community, you have a shot.”

Making a passion a career

Mike may be moving a bit slower these days, but he is as in love with his work as ever.

“You know, music was my passion. I never thought that it would be my career,” Mike reflected. “I know that I’m providing something that brings a smile to people’s faces. Nobody comes here because they have to buy something. They come here because they want to buy something. They don’t come here because they need the advice. They come here because they want advice, or they want to get better at their instrument. Knowing that I’m helping my customers to have the same passion for music that I do, is extremely rewarding.

“It’s been a fantastic journey. It’s been 32 years,” stated Mike. “I’ve been so lucky and so fortunate to kind of end up where we are and that I’ve been able to have a career in something I never thought I’d have a career that has also been my passion, which is music. I am grateful every single day that I’m able to have the shop and to serve the community, and to be involved in the music scene as deeply as I am. So, it’s really, really been a terrific career.”