Rick Simmons

Innovative sounds in pop, rock and soul in the 1960s and 1970s meant that music appealed to more people than ever before. While some songs appealed to a broad audience, some targeted a much narrower demographic, meaning songs on the pop charts might not do as well on the adult contemporary or soul charts, or vice versa. This book examines forty songs featured on song charts of the 1960s and 1970s. Charts considered are Billboard Pop, Billboard Soul, Adult Contemporary, Cashbox and British Charts. Each listing includes discussion of the factors that contributed to the songs' popularity. Author interviews with songwriters, musicians and artists such as KC (of KC and the Sunshine Band), Mark Farner (of Grand Funk), Jerry Butler, Ron Dante (of the Archies and the Cuff Links), Freda Payne, Lou Christie, Tommy Roe, The Spinners and others tell the stories behind some of the era's most popular songs.

What if you could catalyze your own transformation? Authors Rick and Amy Simmons first uncovered liminal space—the idea that periods of uncertainty have the power to reshape our lives—while studying abroad for their graduate program in organizational behavior. Shortly afterward, they began experimenting with another idea: rather than waiting for an inflection point to occur, they could launch it themselves—curating their own liminal experiences and accelerating their growth. Helping others navigate liminality and create it themselves became the heart of their work. Unleashed: Harnessing the Power of Liminal Space is a two-part guide, illuminating the potential of liminality for individuals, teams, and organizations, and breaking down its elements so readers can launch their own liminal experiences. With stories from leaders helming organizations of all sizes, from a regional health facility to a corporation with products in 90 percent of American homes, Unleashed provides the practical and theoretical insights necessary for transformation. A portion of the proceeds from this book will be used to support the telos Leadership Foundation.

While rock groups such as the Beach Boys and Jan and Dean defined the beach music of Southern California during the 1960s, a different, R&B influenced sound could be heard along South Carolina's Grand Strand. Drawing on extensive research and exclusive interviews, this richly illustrated reference work covers the music, songwriters and performers who contributed to the genre of classic Carolina beach music from 1940 to 1980. Detailed entries tell the stories behind nearly 500 classic recordings, with release dates, label information, chart performance and biographical background on more than 200 artists.

Carolina Beach Music from the '60s to the '80s" "The New Wave" picks up where "Carolina Beach Music" " The Classic Years" left off, covering more of those classic beach music tunes as well as the newer self-aware songs that were the beginning of a new wave of beach music in the late 1970s and early 1980s. This book looks at eighty recordings from the years 1966 through 1982, featuring interviews and insights from the artists who sang them, including Archie Bell, William Bell, Jerry Butler, Clyde Brown of the Drifters, Harry Elston of the Friends of Distinction, Bobbie Smith of the Spinners, Emilio Castillo of Tower of Power, Rob Parissi of Wild Cherry, Billy Scott and many, many others."

Just as the dances of Beach Music have their twists and turns, so too do the stories behind the hits made popular in shag haunts from Atlantic Beach to Ocean Drive and the Myrtle Beach Pavilion. In Carolina Beach Music, local author and Beach Music enthusiast Rick Simmons draws on first-hand accounts from the legendary performers and people behind the music. Simmons reveals the true meaning behind Oogum Boogum," uncovers just what sparked a fistfight between Ernie K. Doe and Benny Spellman at the recording session of "Te-Ta-Te-Te-Ta-Ta," and examines hundreds of other true events that shaped the sounds of Beach Music."

Though today South Carolina's Grand Strand is known primarily for tourism, Hidden History of the Grand Strand examines the area's often-overlooked stories spanning more than five hundred years, from the lost Spanish flagship Capitana in 1526 to the German U-boats that reportedly roamed the Intracoastal Waterway with the help of local collaborators during World War II. Along the way, learn about the hidden history of the now-vanished villages of La Grange and Lafayette, the great canal on North Island and the wrecks of the Freeda A. Wyley, the USS Harvest Moon and the City of Richmond, as well as the real stories behind the legends of Old Gunn Church, the illegal casino at the Ocean Forest Hotel, the U-boat pens on the Waccamaw River and Drunken Jack Island. This work presents a unique look at the area, its history and the legends that enthrall visitors to this day.

In Defending South Carolina's Coast: The Civil War from Georgetown to Little River, area native Rick Simmons relates the often overlooked stories of the upper South Carolina coast during the Civil War. As a base of operations for more than three thousand troops early in the war and the site of more than a dozen forts, almost every inch of the coast was affected by and hotly contested during the Civil War. From the skirmishes at Fort Randall in Little River and the repeated Union naval bombardments of Murrells Inlet to the unrealized potential of the massive fortifications at Battery White and the sinking of the USS Harvest Moon in Winyah Bay, the region's colorful Civil War history is unfolded here at last.