D e s e r t E x p o s u r e 
January
2008
In Tune
Music Express owner Dave Murphy celebrates 40 years in the music business. Plus: A rash of closings, PNM's credit crunch, new co-owner for Gila Hike & Bike, mobile massage and more.
In a world where "big box" stores dominate the landscape and consumers look for bargains by shopping online, Music Express has flourished for 14 years in downtown Silver City by providing quality goods and the service and know-how you can get only from a guy who lives and breathes music.
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Dave Murphy, owner of Music Express
in Silver City, shows off an "axe" at his shop. The shop has
more than 100 guitars — new, used and vintage, electric and acoustic — in
stock. Murphy also owns Richard's Music Company in Safford, Ariz., the
oldest full-line music store in the state. Photo by Donna Clayton Lawder. |
That's Dave Murphy, a man who's played guitar for some 50 years, backing up on stage such country-music greats as George Jones, Patsy Cline and Roy Clark.
"He's a great guy and a good friend to this day," Murphy says of Clark. "I also got to play with a lot of minor stars, good folks from the Grand Ol' Opry. Do you know of Billy Walker? He was a wonderful man," Murphy says with fond remembrance. Walker, nicknamed "The Tall Texan," was a country-music singer and guitarist who died in 2006.
Murphy's passion for and expertise with musical instruments began early in life, leading him down his professional path. "In high school, I worked at a shoe store and I used to hang out at Richard's Music Company in Safford," Murphy recalls. Established in 1941, that business is the oldest full-line music store in Arizona. Murphy bought Richard's Music in 1968 and this year celebrates owning his one-time "hangout" for 40 years. He's also taught music, teaching guitar at Eastern Arizona College in Safford from 1969 to 1999.
Murphy opened Music Express in Silver City in 1994, replacing the town's only retailer of musical instruments and equipment. "A man by the name of Bob Hornbeck ran Smith Music, a downtown business," Murphy explains. "He wanted to sell me his business, but it focused on consumer electronics with a band-instrument component. But I'm just into music."
Instead of buying out Smith's, Murphy came to a gentleman's agreement with Hornbeck, waiting to open his own shop until Hornbeck was ready to shut down, and then buying Smith's musical inventory. Since then, he's split his time between both stores — three days per week at each — with knowledgeable staff alternating with his schedule.
Murphy says that selling quality goods and having problem-solving expertise is why the shop enjoys its loyal customer base and repeat business.
"We serve everybody, from the most discriminating professionals to schoolchildren just beginning to play an instrument," he says with obvious pride.
As if on cue to prove Murphy's point, a local professional musician walks in, asking technical questions about amps. Seems the young man has a big engagement over the weekend.
"It's a big gig, and I want the sound to really fill the place," the young musician says. The two discuss amp power and options. "What if I bridged it?" the musician asks, then goes into describing a potential interplay between "crossovers" and channels.
"Now, you can only bridge it once," Murphy reminds him. Eventually they come up with an input-bridge-channel connection, the musician ticking off on his fingers his various pieces of equipment and how he might network them.
Murphy responds, "Oh, yeah, that'd work beautifully!"
The satisfied young musician leaves and another customer steps up to the counter. His longish hair is gray at the temples, and he's obviously another regular, as he also greets Murphy by name.
He's ordered a part, which Murphy seems delighted to tell him has come in. It's a sale under $10, but Murphy takes the time to chat about the product and a little about life in general. The next customer is a gentleman looking to buy just one guitar string, a replacement for one he recently broke. Murphy takes the time to make sure he knows exactly how to restring it.
No sooner is this customer out the door when a young man comes in.
"Did you come back for that guitar?" Murphy calls out.
"I sure did," the young man replies with a big smile. Murphy outfits him with a cord and shoulder strap for the electric Peavey guitar he's buying.
"I'll see you again soon," Murphy says, to which the young man replies, "You sure will."
All morning it goes on like this, people coming in with, "Hi, how you doing, Dave," and Murphy solving problems big and small, making sales big and small.
Music Express has all the standard items of a serious modern music store — speakers, amps, monitors, mixers, guitar stands and small electronic accessories. Murphy is big on name brands, like Peavey, Jackson, Fender and Marshall.
"These are the ones people have voted for with their dollars," he opines. "They're the best products; they're the ones the professionals play and use."
He has over a hundred guitars in stock at any given time, he says — everything from used Fender electrics to vintage and new acoustic guitars. For the new electric guitar customer, he's got a Peavey all-in-one starter kit with the standard flashy "axe," a digital tuner, gig bag and shoulder strap, electric cable, picks, a "Learn to Play" DVD and a tube amp, Murphy points out — all for under $300. The store is further chock-full with complete drum kits, keyboards and other stringed instruments, including mandolins, a couple of violins, even a ukelele.
He also sells and rents all the usual band brass and reed wind instruments, like trumpets and clarinets. They're not on display now but stored in cases, being kept dust-free in the "off-season." And of course he has racks full of music books and instructional DVDs.
Murphy says that while locals make up the majority of his business — from buying a single guitar string to a high-end guitar — he also has customers who make the drive from Phoenix and Albuquerque to patronize his shop. He once sold a unique jazz guitar to famed "Far Side" cartoonist Gary Larson and shipped it to Larson's home in Seattle.
Another customer, a doctor from Albuquerque, Murphy recalls, came down and checked out his high-end guitar inventory, then went back home to the big city to shop around some more.
"Eventually he came back and bought it from me," Murphy says with a smile.
Though Music Express is open from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., six days a week, Murphy is quick to point out that those are not just the best hours for him to do his retail business — they are the only hours he can. He's out and about most mornings by 8 a.m., he says, servicing the band instruments of local schools and churches. And after 5 p.m., he's out tuning pianos.
"Oh, it's a full day," he says with a laugh and shake of his head. But what else would one expect of a man who lives and breathes music?
Music Express, 315 S. Hudson (Hwy. 90), Ste. 27 in Hudson Plaza,
Silver City. 11 a.m.-5 p.m., Mon.-Sat. 388-9405.
Going, Going, Gone. . .
Mountain Desert Gifts, 413 Bullard St., next to the old Gila Theater, closed Dec. 29 after just one month in business. That's all it took the owners to figure out that there might be something fishy with the building's wiring and utility usage allocation — they received an electric bill for more than $330 for their first month in their tiny storefront! That proved to be too much overhead for a business selling sweet little gift items and novelties.
A stitch in time couldn't save Quilting Dragon in Las Cruces. (See article on the Linus Project in December 2007 Desert Exposure.) The Dragon's owners, Barbara and John Nixon, do not own the building on Solano, and are selling off inventory and fixtures with an eye toward retirement. The shop is closing mid-January. 647-4022.
Sol Imports, 1701 Calle de Mercado #5 in Mesilla, will close its doors Jan. 31 after eight years in business. There's still time to hurry in and score some discounted goods and wish owners Ken and Christina Montoya well. 525-9765, www.solimports.com
As long as the instruments last, the Piano Gallerywill be selling its grand pianos at cost. The business has operated in Las Cruces for five years, three years in the mall and two years at its current location at 518 N. Telshor, next to the T-Mobile store. But their lease is up at the end of this month and the owners don't want to renew in such a high-traffic area. "We may look for another location in another part of town," a spokesman says. 522-7800.
Credit-Rating Blues
PNM Resources, the parent company for Public Service Company of New Mexico, got a black eye last month when the Standard & Poor's national rating service lowered PNM's credit rating from BBB to BBB-, the lowest investment grade. S&P said it took action because of continued weak cash flow and a "challenging regulatory environment" that has not allowed the company to recover costs in a timely fashion. Company spokesman Frederick Bermudez said the reduced credit rating means PNM Resources will have to pay more interest on money it borrows, a cost eventually passed onto consumers.
Kudos
The New Mexico arm of SCORE, an organization that offers small businesses free support in the form of business counseling, workshops and seminars, has been named the "most improved district in the country" for 2007. NM SCORE director Cindy Mottle accepted the award last month at the district mangers' meeting in Hilton Head, SC. There are 389 SCORE chapters across the country, including New Mexico chapters in Las Cruces, Albuquerque and Santa Fe. The Las Cruces office is located at 505 S. Main St. 523-5627, www.score.org
New Owners
Local photographer James Hemphill has bought out Mike Sauber's half of Gila Hike & Bike, 103 E. College Ave. in Silver City. Mike and his bride Karen are moving to Maine, where she has family.
The Document Center in Silver City is being bought by Spectrum Imaging out of El Paso. Mouse of All Trades and A.C.T. Systems were bought by Documation, Inc., and combined under the Document Center banner at the 1004 Pope St. location. Long-time A.C.T. Systems manager Joseph Holguin is pleased with the businesses' purchase as their home office will be nearer — Documation has a home base in Texas, but the Silver City location worked with the satellite office in Albuquerque — and he is impressed with Spectrum Imaging's team and business plan. "These guys have a fresh attitude, and I'm happy about the changes they are going to bring," says Holguin. Time will tell if another name change will be part of the new package. 538-9712.
George Rico, who has owned Ridgewood Motors in Silver City for the past seven years and was a part owner in the business for 16 years, has purchased the Chevrolet-Cadillac dealership on Hwy. 180 E. in Silver City.
Bigger and Better
Silver Imaging Photo Lab and Portrait Studio plans to soon move around the corner from its College Avenue address to 1008 Pope St., between Comcast and the Document Center. Silver Imaging's owners George and Melinda Austin hope to begin renovation work on the new space — which will have more room for their growing portrait studio needs — soon after the New Year begins. 538-8658.
The Southwest Women's Fiber Arts Collective will open a fiber arts center this month on Texas Street in Silver City, in the space recently vacated by the Reese-Benton Gallery. The non-profit group promotes grassroots economic development and cultural entrepreneurship, and will continue to operate The Common Thread, its Silver City storefront on Broadway. The new center will be used for meetings, classes, outreach programs, a summer fiber arts camp and studio space for members. The first class will be a Rigid Heddle Weaving class, Jan. 26, 10 a.m.-2 p.m., with renowned fiber artist Tina Salmon instructing. Participants will go home with a scarf. Register at The Common Thread, 107 W. Broadway, or call 538-5733. www.fiberartscollective.org
New in Town
Adding to Silver City's fiber arts fanaticism, "Saguara Gypsy" has opened Saguara Gypsy House of Fiber, selling hand-crafted fiber arts items. 956-5432.
Paul Jasso has opened Healthy Bodies, a mobile therapeutic massage practice serving Silver City and its surrounds and all the way down to Las Cruces. "I'm going to a lot of businesses and schools, anywhere this will help build wellness," Jasso says, describing his style as "a little bit of everything." His specialties include the "De-stressor," a seated massage, and a signature foot massage incorporating acupressure. 313-7300.
Cassandra Colley is offering professional graphic design through her new company, Designer's Eye Graphics in Silver City. Colley, a degreed designer who lived in Cliff for six years prior to moving to Silver City about a year ago, has been doing graphic design for seven years. She also does some book publishing, turning authors' work into ready-to-print text and overseeing the publishing process for them. 313-5208.
E.J. Horton and partners, in the mining business locally since the 1980s, have started two new businesses in Silver City: Western Precious Metals, LLC, offering precious-metals research, and Outlaws Gold and Cattle, a gold and refining company. 538-0001.
Alicia A. Palacios has opened New Phaze Beauty Salon at 2345 Ranch Club Road in Silver City. 534-4165.
Hidalgo Medical Services (HMS) has opened a new mental-health clinic at 301 West College St., Suite #16, in the College Street Plaza in Silver City. 542-8384.
Kirsten Hardenbrook has opened Starbrook Enterprises in Silver City, offering offering continuum movement therapy and Peru tours. 534-0221.
Peter Seguin is operating Lone Wolf Woodworks, offering professional woodworking to order. 590-8847.
Melissa Busby and Jamie Lewis have opened Remember When, a portrait studio, at 1950 Hwy. 180 E. in Silver City. The two have been in the professional photography business for five years. By appointment. 313-1795 or 590-2827.
Ron Culshaw has opened Whiskers, a new barbershop, at 3530 Foothills Road, near Hooters in Las Cruces. Culshaw, formerly of Phoenix, has hired on Suzette Miller and Anesa Bustamonte, and is looking for more barbers. Mon.-Fri., 8 a.m.-6 p.m.; Sat., 8 a.m.-1 p.m. 522-9773.
Rustics For Less, a new home-furnishing place featuring cozy, rustic goods for every room in the house, has opened at 750 N. Valley Dr. in Las Cruces, near the intersection with Picacho. 523-1733.
Alegre Health Haven, a center offering massage therapy, infrared saunas, yoga, Qi Gong and meditation, has opened at the corner of Alameda and Main in Las Cruces. Walk-ins welcome. 523-0685.
Coming Soon
Julie Schultz and others are putting together a cooperative alliance of individuals and practitioner-educators looking to offer a range of holistic services united with a common vision, under the banner of vibrational healing and sustainable lifestyle. Services will include epfx machine, classes in sustainable living options, Emmanual Swedenborg and other practitioners and therapists. The group is looking for more holistic practitioners to join the effort and hopes to rent space where the old Southwest Copper Shopper was located on Swan Street in Silver City. Express interest and/or your good wishes at: 590-8434, swsustainability@gmail.com
A new Circle K fuel-and-food convenience store is coming to Las Cruces. The nearly 3,000-square-foot store will be built at the northeast corner of Motel Boulevard and Picacho Avenue, along with a new strip center. There are approximately 2,100 Circle K locations across the US, including two in Las Cruces, at 617 W. Picacho Ave. and at 801 E. Thorpe Rd.
The Real Estate Institute, a division of Las Cruces' Steinborn Inc. Realtors, will open this month, offering traditional and "fast track" real estate pre-licensure and continuing education classes at Steinborn's 141 Roadrunner Pkwy. location. 532-2215, www.rei-lascruces.com
Las Crucens who wipe out on their fitness New Year's resolution by February will have another shot to make things right in March, when Millennium Physical Therapy's new 40,000-square-foot facility is slated to open on East Lohman Avenue. The location will house Millennium Chiropractic and Physical Therapy as well as a fitness center. 521-0793.
The extended-stay hotel Value Place soon will open at the corner of Triviz Drive and Wisconsin Avenue, bringing 113 rooms to Las Cruces. The company projected a December 2007 opening, but evidently has hit one of those construction-related snags. The company's Web site still lists only the Albuquerque location, and the local phone number — 382-5759 — is not yet functioning. www.myvalueplace.com
On the Move
Sha-Bangs salon has moved from Elks Drive to 3291 Del Ray Blvd. in Las Cruces. Mon.-Fri., 8 a.m.-8 p.m.; Sat., 10 a.m.-6 p.m.; Sun., 12-4 p.m. 525-9600.
Send business news and tips to donna@desertexposure.com