Madeline Hall
Writer
He's just a radio person.
For more than 36 years, Jimmy Jarrell's life has revolved around two things: radios and his wife, Pat.
Together, the Jarrells own and operate Jimmy's Car Stereo in Auburn and Praise 88.7, a local Christian radio station.
Jarrell's love for music began when he was younger and living in northern Alabama.
"There was the Mussel Shoals Sound Studio recording artists like Hank Jr. and Alabama," Jimmy said. "I always had a dream of doing that."
Jimmy continued to work in the music industry and learn the business.
"I would get involved with some group that didn't last very long," Jimmy said. "I would learn from what I didn't know or do before, then join another group."
His determination paid off when he began getting jobs for rock groups.
"I got to work on the equipment of Walter 'Clyde' Owens and the rest of The Commodores," Jimmy said. "They sang the song 'Brick House.'"
Jimmy switched gears soon after and became involved in law enforcement.
Wanting to expand his education for law enforcement, Jimmy and his wife moved to Auburn, where he attended school, worked at a bakery and built and repaired CB radios on the side.
"One day, he came home and said, 'I quit my job. We're buying a store,'" Pat said. "I about fell out and died. I was a housewife. I didn't know anything about running a business."
But Jimmy knew what he was doing.
"I went into business in 1976," he said. "It grew more and more every year. Business has always been good for me."
He knows why, too.
"It all comes back to having the best products, making good relationships with my customers and taking care of what I sell," Jimmy said.
Jimmy's success spread outside Auburn to his stores in Montgomery, Columbus, Birmingham and LaGrange.
Success hasn't made him greedy though.
"I told the guys if they would work for me for 15 years, I would sell them the business and finance it for them," Jimmy said. "Well I did, and they are still going strong."
The Jarrells have generations of families still coming to his store.
"We're installing systems for grandchildren of our earliest customers," Pat said. "We've been in this business for quite a while."
If there is one thing the Jarrells don't agree on, it is when to retire.
"I'm ready to retire because I want to travel," Pat said. "He's not a retiring-type person though; he's a people person.
"He will probably never retire. It's not in his vocabulary."
Jimmy said he appreciates his wife working beside him for 36 years.
"Everybody says, 'When it comes to music, Jimmy knows,'" he said. "But I would change it to 'Pat knows'.
"We have fun, we have good people coming back all the time, and we like music. That's why I love this business."
Do you like this story? The Plainsman doesn't accept money from tuition or student fees, and we don't charge a subscription fee. But you can donate to support The Plainsman.
