Coming into the new millennium, the Inspirations were entering a new, exciting era for the group. While “The Sooner, The Better” didn’t provide any major chart-topping tunes for the Inspirations, it did set the stage for some great things to come! A lot transpired with the Inspirations over the previous two years, and towards the end of 1999, a young man named Melton Campbell joined as their new baritone singer. Growing up in Georgia, Melton grew up listening to the Inspirations, learning how to sing harmony from his mom. Prior to joining the Inspirations, Melton sang in a group called Common Garments, and they opened for various major groups at concerts in the area, eventually opening for the Inspirations in Warner Robins, GA sometime in early fall of 1998. Jack and Eddie heard Melton sing and approached Martin about hiring Melton to take Eddie’s place (who had already turned in his notice to the group), but Jack wanted to try to handle the baritone part after Eddie left, but physical limitations kept Jack from being able to stand and sing for a full concert 3-4 nights a week, so they brought Ronnie Hutchins back to sing baritone part time. That arrangement lasted about a year, as by fall of 1999, they offered Melton the job, and he sang his first weekend with the Inspirations around October/November 1999. During his first weekend with the group, he sang a song or two the first night, but before the second night, Archie received notice that his granddaughter was being born, and he ended up catching a ride back home for the birth, so Matt moved to tenor and Melton ended up singing lead for the remainder of the weekend! Needless to say, Melton got initiated into the Inspirations really good that weekend!

“The Sooner, The Better” was produced by Martin and is the final recording done at Southern Sound in Knoxville, Tennessee, as the group would eventually sign with Horizon Music Group the next year. Once again, the same musicians are being utilized with Otis Forrest on piano, Tim Compton playing the bass, Roger Fortner and Mike Riddle on electric and rhythm guitar respectively, and David Johnson playing steel guitar, mandolin, harmonica and fiddle. I do want the specifically mention the cover work for this recording, which features individual head shots taken by Paul Wharton, with the cover artwork and design by Creative Images and Melinda Lucas. I really liked the cover work for this recording, as it’s the best one they’ve had in quite a few years!

“The Sooner, The Better” kicks off with one of the most unusual songs the Inspirations ever recorded, as Archie is featured on the thought-provoking novelty tune, “Will Jimmy Make it Home?”. Written by Frances Simpson, who was known for writing unusual songs, this was one of those poignant story songs that Archie enjoyed singing. Using the analogy of a baseball game, the song tells the all-too-familiar story of someone caught in the trappings of this world and the success life has to offer, but when it came to surrendering to Jesus, the sad response is always, “maybe another time”. As the story unfolds, we realize that in the end, it appears Jimmy never got saved or “made it home”, but with that sad ending, it poses an important question to the listener, “will YOU make it home?”. Though it was not a huge charting hit for the group, only climbing to #24 in the Singing News chart for Dec 2000 and January 2001, it did become a popular concert favorite, and one that the fans seemed to enjoy hearing Archie sing. I will admit that I initially didn’t take the time to really “get” this song, and always thought it was rather hokey, and truthfully, it’s the main reason I never bought this recording until just a few years ago. I did eventually “get” the song’s urgent message, and though it’s still not one of my favorites, I highly respect the Inspirations for recording it!

Moving on, the tempo slows down as Mike is featured on the Craig Edwards penned, “Though I’ve Failed the Lord”. Edwards was a preacher, singer and songwriter who also wrote the popular song for Greater Vision entitled, “So Much God” (which was a hit for them back in the early 2000’s). I first heard this particular song (as well as “So Much God”) back in the mid-90’s when the Rowlands originally recorded it, and the song was a perfect match for the Inspirations, allowing Mike to shine on a slower number.

The tempo picks up as Archie sings the fun, unique rhythmic feel of the lively, “He Lives in Me”. Another tune written by Frances Simpson, the song features some fun piano, dobro and mandolin highlights and is my favorite song from this recording. I think this was a missed opportunity, as I feel this could have been a fantastic radio song for the Inspirations at that time, and I strongly believe the current group could bring this song back and have success with it. Eventually, Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver recorded the song a few years later in 2006, but the Inspirations’ version is still my favorite!

Originally recorded by the group on their 1985 album, “Praise God and Country”, Jack and the boys bring back the Lee Penland penned, “It Wasn’t the Nails That Held Him There”, and it’s a classic performance. Keeping the original feel of the song, they re-recorded it with a quicker tempo than the original version, and I can’t decide which rendition I love more, as I enjoy them both, and I was glad to see them bring this great song back for this recording, as it’s one of my all-time favorite Jack Laws features.

Picking the tempo back up, we come to the title song, “The Sooner, The Better”, featuring some nice steel guitar, piano and fiddle highlights. Written by one of my favorite writers, Debra Shepherd of the Shepherds (who wrote the Kingsmen’s classic tune, “I’m Saved”, as well as the Shepherds signature hit, “There’s a Miracle in the Making”), it appears the song may have been released to radio, but did not crack the Singing News top 40 chart, as the song bubbled just under the top 40. Nonetheless, it’s a great song and was a perfect fit for the Inspirations, before newest member, Melton Campbell steps up to sing his only feature on this recording, “The Blood Is Still Here”, which was written by Colston Lewis and Sarah Webster. The group was on the bus listening to demos submitted by various songwriters, and after they listened to this song, they all agreed it was a great one. Archie then looked over at Melton and said “I’ve already got a good blood song with “It’s Still the Blood”…you need a good blood song and this will make you a good song!”…and it did make Melton a good song, as he proclaimed many times in concert the promise found in the lyric, that “the power in the blood is still here!”

As a perfect follow-up to the previous song, with the beautiful strains of the steel guitar, Mike and Matt are both featured on the song, “One Lamb”, which was written by Matt’s brother, Mark. Published by the Inspirations, the song was inspired by a sermon Mark himself had preached, and Matt had even sung the song in a group prior to joining the Inspirations. It was a perfect fit for the group and is a highlight of the recording.

The tempo picks back up for the invigorating Stamps-Baxter classic, “Everybody Will Be Happy Over There”. Written by E.M. Bartlett and featuring Mike on the bass notes, the Inspirations first recorded the song 29 years earlier, on their first Canaan record, “Wake Up in Glory”, which came out in late 1971. Mike would eventually cut this song again several years later, with Les Butler’s Old Time Preachers Quartet, on their 2019 recording, “Long Live Old Time Religion”.

With a nice acoustic feel and featuring highlights on the steel guitar and piano, the tempo slows back down just a bit as Matt and Archie sing the Larry Petree penned, “Land of No More Tears”. Larry is an outstanding songwriter, providing gospel music with tons of classic tunes over the years, such as “Children of the Dust” (Freemans), “Lazarus Come Forth” (Bishops), “Outside the Gate” (Wilburns), “Still Drinking Water from the Well” (Cathedrals), “The Glory” (Freemans) and many others. The Inspirations had already recorded a few songs written by Larry’s dad, Arlie, but Archie loved Larry’s song, “Thank God”, that was recorded a few years earlier by Tony Gore & Majesty, so Archie reached out to Larry to inquire about the song. After that conversation, Larry started trying to write some songs in the Inspirations’ style, and penned this song, ultimately pitching it to the Inspirations.

Lastly, we come to the easy-going tune, “There is a Place”, which has that classic Inspirations feel to it. Written by Sydney Coble and published through Inspirations Quartet Music, the song features Archie, along with Mike providing a couple of step-out lines on the chorus. It’s a solid performance, closing out the recording with an effective finish.

I felt that “The Sooner, The Better” was a great recording, but outside of the song “Will Jimmy Make It Home”, I think this recording often gets overlooked, as it’s still part of that transitional period for the Inspirations, though at this point (unknown at the time), that transition period was ending and a new season was dawning for the group. There was a lot of moving parts leading up to this recording, with Ronnie and Eddie leaving, Jack returning (Ronnie returning briefly part-time) and finally, Matt, and then Melton joining the group. You definitely hear a difference with Matt and Melton, who gave the group a more youthful look, but also gave them a certain depth to their sound, while still keeping the style, sound and look of the group distinctively “Inspirations”. It was the start of something totally grand, and it really came to fruition over the course of the next 8 years or so.

As the Inspirations were enjoying a resurgence in popularity, the year 2000 brought a new collaboration with another hugely popular family group, the McKameys, as both groups began touring together for a series of concerts called the “Family and Friends Tour”. Much like the Inspirations and Goodmans concert series called, “Battle of Songs” back in the mid-70’s (which continued for almost 2 years between 1974 and 1975), the Inspirations and McKameys packed out civic centers, auditoriums and concert halls across the country for nearly 20 years! The chemistry between both groups was very different than with the Goodmans, as it was truly more like family with the McKameys. In fact, former Inspirations guitarist Roger Fortner had been with the McKameys since the late 1980’s, and had since married Ruben and Peg’s daughter, Connie, so it truly was a close knit “family and friends” atmosphere. Also, though both groups had slightly different styles, their music was extremely compatible, and they both shared a similar fan base, who had a deep love and appreciation for both groups! Not many concert series’ lasts for almost 20 years, but it was a true testament to the popularity of the McKameys and Inspirations, as well as the strong support their legions of fans showed to both groups!

A new wave of success was surging for the Inspirations, and as they were riding this exciting wave of popularity, Martin Cook struck while the iron was hot, as he, along with famed author, Bob Terrell, came together to write and release a book chronicling the history of the Inspirations titled, “What a Wonderful Time”, which was released in 2000. I bought the book not too long after it was released, and it really helped reignite my love for the Inspirations, and along with all that was going on with the group during this time, helped set the stage for an exciting decade during the 2000’s!

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