This Colorado Springs man is using retirement to build his own temple to ’80s rock gods

Pedestrians walking downtown Colorado Springs may, on an occasional evening, hear what might sound like a nearby rock concert. Or perhaps a loud bar or house party.

They’d probably be surprised to find it’s likely just 72-year-old Mark Jones rocking out, alone, in his garage. The retired garbage collector has transformed the space into a temple of sorts, honoring who he sees as the gods of '80s rock and roll.

The red carpet and walls of the garage match his long, dyed-red goatee. A waist-high speaker with color-changing LEDs pumps out his favorite ballads from his music collection, all DVDs, that he watches from a flatscreen TV set up in the corner of the garage.