As we come to 1998, after about 5 years or so of stability with the vocal line-up of the Inspirations, change was happening. As I mentioned in my last article, due to some health concerns Ronnie Hutchins had going on, he ended up going on leave in November 1997. Ultimately, he would end up completely bowing out of the group because of his health, but he would return in about a year or so, on a very limited, part-time basis. With Ronnie’s departure in late 1997, the Inspirations found a gem of a singer in Matt Dibler, who filled in for Ronnie during his leave, but was eventually hired full-time in January 1998. Matt pastored Open Door Baptist Church in Easley, SC from 1987-2000 (he continued to pastor that church for another couple of years after he joined the Inspirations, since the group did not sing most Sundays), and he had filled in for the Inspirations a few times prior to joining the group. Matt was a fan of the Inspirations since he was a teenager, as his mom introduced him to their music as an alternative to the music he was listening to at the time. Interesting fun fact, Matt came to hear the Inspirations for the first time during his honeymoon to Gatlinburg, Tennessee back in 1985, where he and his wife heard them sing at Ogle’s Restaurant. Over time, Matt and Mike Holcomb became friends, and Matt would have him come preach for him a few times, and he told Mike he’d love to fill in for the Inspirations if they ever needed someone. Matt first filled in back in 1992 when Eddie needed to be out for a short time, and he would continue filling in whenever needed between 1992 and joining full-time in January 1998. Matt’s voice was a perfect match for the Inspirations, who was young and vibrant, and brought some new blood to the group that I felt was essential to their renewed resurgence in popularity after the turn of the century.

“Two Shoes” would be the first recording featuring Matt as the new lead singer, and Matt definitely gave them a fuller sound, reminiscent of their sound from the 70’s and into the 80’s. Produced by Martin, this would be the third recording the Inspirations recorded at Southern Sound in Knoxville, Tennessee. In fact, along with the Inspirations, quite a number of artists have recorded at Southern Sound over the years, including Greater Vision, Kingdom Heirs, Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver, Rowlands, Triumphant Quartet and many others, including Dolly Parton! “Two Shoes” featured the same musicians as their last few recordings, with Otis Forrest playing piano, Tim Compton on bass, Roger Fortner playing lead guitar, Mike Riddle playing rhythm guitar and David Johnson handling various other instruments including steel guitar, mandolin, harmonica and violin. The understated cover with 2 shoes down towards the bottom right, features a picture of the group with a similar formation as the cover shot from their previous 2 recordings…with 2 seated in front, 4 standing behind them…but has different members of the group in the different positions.

The recording kicks off with that classic Inspirations’ sound on the medium tempo, “Thousands of Tears”. Written by Gene and Val Johnson, the song is a triumphant song about the crucifixion and resurrection of Christ, featuring Eddie on the verses and Archie on the chorus, and leads perfectly into the touching, “In God’s Hands”. Written by Wilma Tomblin (writer of the stunning song, “Under His Wings” recorded by the Ruppes), the song was published by Inspirations Quartet Music, and Mike does a fantastic job on the verses. I’ve stated this before and it bears repeating, Mike has the unique ability to interpret heartfelt lyrics that few bass singers possess, and this is one of my favorite performances by Mike, as well as probably my favorite song on this recording.

Newest member, Matt Dibler steps up next as he sings the medium tempo, “It’s Been Worth Every Mile”. Featuring some nice acoustic guitar, fiddle and steel guitar highlights, the song was written by Evangelist Dean Shook, who sadly passed away a year before the Inspirations recorded his song, at the young age of 37 years old. His son, Jonathan, has followed in his father’s (and grandfather’s) footsteps and has carried the mantel as an evangelist as well. Matt knew the Shook family and was familiar with the song, as it was a popular campmeeting favorite in various church meetings in the area where Matt pastored. He pitched the song for the Inspirations to record, and it’s a highlight of the recording.

After 3 back-to-back songs that were medium to slower tempo, the pace finally picks up for the highly invigorating, “Walk A Little Farther”, which was written by Robert Deel. Featuring Eddie, Mike and Archie on their respective verses, the song features some fun piano, guitar and steel guitar highlights, and it’s one of my favorites from the recording, before Archie slows the pace down a bit as he steps up to sing the thought provoking, “Anything Goes”, which was another tune written by Gene and Val Johnson. As I’ve mentioned in previous articles, the Inspirations were never afraid to sing songs that addressed various social/moral/religious issues, and as this song boldly suggests, that though this country has enjoyed great progress over the years, we have also sadly “…traded what’s right, for anything goes!”.

The tempo picks back for the fun, “Don’t You Want to Come Along”, which was written by Mike Holcomb and Ila Knight, and naturally features step-out lines by Mike on the chorus. The song was dually published through both of the Inspirations’ publishing companies…Tuckaseigee Publishing (Mike) and Inspirations Quartet Music (Ila). Mike had the original idea for the song and had the chorus written, but did not have any verses yet. While the Inspirations, and the group Ila was singing with (Foundations Quartet), were on the same program together somewhere in West Virginia, Mike approached Ila that night about helping him finish the song. Ultimately, Ila took the song with her and eventually was able to write the verses for it. Having that classic Inspirations feel, the song was a nice inclusion for the recording, which also re-introduced Ila to Inspirations fans everywhere, as this was the first song the Inspirations had recorded that Ila had a part in writing in almost 20 years!

Slowing the tempo back down a bit, Matt sings the comforting, “Resurrection Ground”. Though it wasn’t a chart song for the group, it became a huge concert favorite, and it ultimately became Matt’s signature song during his time with the group. Written by Matt’s brother, Mark Dibler, and published by the Inspirations, Matt was closely connected to this song, as it was inspired by the passing of Mark’s daughter (Matt’s niece) in 1992 at the tender age of 3 years old. After such extreme loss, within about 2 hours after his daughter’s funeral, Mark penned these poignant words…“resurrection ground, no more graves allowed, we’ll meet them in the air, no more parting there, with Jesus we’ll be, for all eternity, this is not the end, it’s resurrection ground!”. In fact, after Matt left the Inspirations in 2018, he formed the Resurrection Quartet (named after the song), which consists of former Inspirations’ members, Mike Holcomb, Melton Campbell and Daron Osborne, and the song remains one of their most popular songs.

Featuring some nice guitar work and harmonica embellishments, Eddie is featured on the Gil Magee penned tune, “Always Have, Always Will”. A beautifully written song about the love Jesus has for us, these are the types of songs that seem to fit Eddie best, and he does a great job with it, before the tempo picks back up for the convention fervor of the Adgar Pace penned, “I Want to Go There”, which is a highlight of the recording. First published in 1939, with its quick tempo and step-out lines by Mike on the chorus, it’s one of my favorites from this recording.

With its iconic opening strains on the mandolin, the recording concludes with the title song, “Two Shoes”. Another song written by Wilma Tomblin and published by the Inspirations, the song was a big hit for the group, peaking at #5 in the Singing News chart for February 1999, and then again, a couple months later, in April. Archie always loved songs that told a story, and Tomblin was inspired to write the song after seeing the immense faith she saw in a lady at her church whose husband was unsaved and wouldn’t go to church, but she believed he would be saved. In fact, the song was a true testament of faith, as it wasn’t until sometime after the song was written, that the gentleman finally came to know the Lord. The song became one of Archie’s best loved songs, and in fact, he re-recorded the song several years later on his 2009 solo recording, “He Lives In Me”. Many fans of the Inspirations really held on tightly to the message found in the song, and it actually inspired people to buy “Sunday Shoes” on behalf of their loved ones, as an act of faith for their salvation. Initially, I was not a huge fan of this song, but I will admit that it has grown on me over the years, especially as I’ve come to understand the meaningful story behind it, as well as what the song has meant to so many people!

“Two Shoes” is the only recording this iteration of the Inspirations recorded. I remember hearing the title song on the radio, as well as by the Inspirations in concert during this era, but I didn’t get this recording until just a few years ago. Comparing “Two Shoes” with their previous 2 releases, “Thank You Lord” and “Old Time Religion”, I think I enjoyed those 2 recordings more than “Two Shoes”. That’s not to say, “Two Shoes” was not a good recording, but as I am looking at it from an overall listener experience, I enjoyed the previous 2 recordings quite a bit more than this recording. “Two Shoes” was very laid-back, featuring several medium tempo songs, with only 3 songs I would consider to be upbeat. The overall quality of the recording was solid, the song selection was good, and the Inspirations really had a strong vocal sound, along with a nice blend with Matt, but I still think the Inspirations were in a bit of a musical “funk” during this time. I do feel that the addition of Matt Dibler (along with the future hiring of Melton Campbell) was a big boost in getting the Inspirations back on track, musically, and within a couple of years, ushered in a time of great renewal for the group.

With Ronnie’s departure at the end of 1997, it started a chain reaction of changes within the Inspirations, as Eddie Dietz would end up leaving the group almost a year later, in October 1998 to start his own family group, “Eddie Dietz and Mountain Gospel”, with his daughter and son-in-law. The group would go on to release 2-3 recordings before they eventually came off the road, allowing Eddie to continue to focus his efforts on pastoring, which he continued to do until he retired in 2016. Other changes were happening within the group that occurred prior to, and after Eddie’s departure, but we’ll get into a bit more detail on those changes in our next few articles, as these forthcoming changes were all leading up to a resurgence of popularity for the Inspirations in the next few years…so stay tuned!

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