U S Gospel News Stories
The Legendary Inspirations & Their Singing In The Smokies
 

The Inspirations -Legend One: The Quartet     Originally published in May, 2003

    The odds against a high school teacher and four of his students storming the heights of Gospel Music to its top position seemingly as fast as any such singing group ever, then remaining at its forefront for 39 years, and as a result, ranking among its all-time elite groups would be astronomical at best. 

    But it did happen in the form of the legendary Inspirations, whose march to success has been marked by astounding consistency, fueling their descent and ultimate standing as a household name in any musical genre. The Inspirations are famous for their tight harmony, song arrangements and unique sound.  In fact, anyone who follows gospel music can easily distinguish the Inspirations' sound from that of any other singing group. With the possible exception of the Chuck Wagon Gang, Blackwood Brothers Quartet, Stamps Quartet and Speer Family, the Inspirations have been the most consistently successful group in Southern Gospel Music history in terms of record sales, popularity, solvency and number of top hit songs produced.

    The Inspirations originated in 1964 in Bryson City, NC, a tiny town in the southern shadow of the Great Smoky Mountains and on the eastern shore of Fontana Lake,  where Martin Cook, a chemistry teacher at Swain County High School rounded up four of his students and held nightly singing sessions in the basement of his home, purely for fun.  Shortly after, Cook, a lifetime singer of Gospel songs and an accomplished pianist, and four high school kids, (Archie Watkins, Ron Hutchins, Jack Laws and Troy Burns) became the Inspirations Quartet. They soon went on the road to sing professionally.

    In the years since, the Inspirations have been awarded every honor and award Southern Gospel Music has to offer, and they have traveled over four million miles from the smallest hamlet in the middle of nowhere to major cities across America delivering their special brand of music. And along the way, they have sold millions of recordings of their songs.

    Instrumental in the Inspirations success has been a seemingly endless string of quality songs, including four Songs of The Year.  The Inspirations' song repertoire includes such hits as "What A Wonderful Time," "Jesus Is Coming Soon," "Touring That City," "When I Wake Up To Sleep No More,"  "Jesus Is Mine," "A Wedding Invitation," "Is That Footsteps That I Hear," "The Wonder Of Wonders,"  "Thank You Lord" and most recently, "I'll Not Turn My Back On Him Now."

    Through the first 39 years, Cook and Watkins have been constant members of the quartet.  Cook is the group's manager and pianist, and Watkins sings tenor. Currently, Cook's son, Myron, plays upright bass; Mike Holcomb sings bass; Matt Dibler lead; and Melton Campbell baritone. Laws also sings baritone on specialty songs and plays rhythm guitar.

    Martin Cook's skills as a visionary and businessman are unsurpassed, helping make him one of Southern Gospel's best quartet managers. His piano-playing style is so distinctive that few doubt who is playing when he tickles the ivories. Cook received the Marvin Norcross Award at the 2002 National Quartet Convention and will be inducted into the 2003 Class of the Southern Gospel Music Hall of Fame on May 13--the industry's two most prestigious honors.

    "The secret to being successful in Southern Gospel Music is to foremost stay close to the Lord and never forget the primary purpose you're in this field is to serve Him and fulfill His will," Martin Cook said.

    Perhaps Southern Gospel Music's most recognizable voice belongs to Watkins, who is the all-time dean of Southern Gospel tenors for tenure with one group.

    "I've come to love singing more than ever before," Watkins stated. "There are more groups on the road than ever, and there also are more people attending concerts than there's ever been. Therefore, there is more witnessing about the love of Jesus and what happiness He can bring to one's life."

    Mike Holcomb is next on the Inspirations' seniority ladder and is quite possibly the lowest bass singer in the world.   He has been a smash hit with Gospel Music fans ever since he joined the Inspirations in 1972, and is one of two preachers in the group (Dibler is the other).

    "A Bible verse reads, 'Many are called, but few are chosen,' and I know the Inspirations have been chosen to uplift and magnify God's name, and then to bless and help people realize the great need for God in their lives," Holcomb commented.

    One of Southern Gospel's finest singers is Laws, who is noted for his silky-smooth vocals. He is always in demand to sing such songs as "Thanks For Loving Me",  "Only One Door" and "Where We'll Never Grow Old."   Also an excellent musician, Laws has been a member of the Inspirations for 23 years and is in the fifth year of his second tenure with the group.

    "God has a reason for everything, and I'm very thankful He allowed me to be a part of Gospel Music through the Inspirations. My cup has truly overflowed through the Lord's glory," Laws remarked.  

    It may not seem possible to longtime Inspirations followers, but Myron Cook is in his 21st year playing upright bass for the group.  A favorite with people everywhere he goes, the younger Cook, as a classic Inspirations song reads, just wants to "Thank You, Lord."

    "One of the best things that's ever happened in my life is my association with Gospel Music, and the Lord richly blessed me by leading me into it," Myron Cook said.  "I've developed a lot of lasting friendships and I've become closer to God because of it. For these and many other great happenings in my life, I'm grateful to Him."

    "The spiritual experience I get from singing to people and praising God is a most exhilarating feeling," Dibler stated.  "Every time I sing, I get the same emotional high.  All Inspirations are continually looking for ways to serve Jesus in even greater capacities.  Praise His name!"

    Rounding out the group is Campbell, who joined the Inspirations as full-time baritone vocalist in 2000 following a stint with the Common Garments Quartet of Georgia. Campbell is a good fit for the Inspirations--both as a singer and as a Christian gentleman.  He is highly regarded by his peers for his crafted baritone voice.

     "I love singing songs about our great Savior," Campbell declared. "People from all walks of life can relate to Gospel Music because its songs contain a special encouragement that God will accept you just as you are. This is the greatest peace and hope anyone can have."

Legacy 2: Their Singing In The Smokies   Originally published in May, 2003

    The Inspirations continue to add chapters to their legacy and another legacy that originated through them is growing just as fast--their annual homecoming festival, the Singing In The Smokies.

Isaiah 55:12 reads:   The mountains and hills will burst into singing, and the trees will shout for joy.   No where is that verse more fulfilled than at Inspiration Park, located on a mountainside overlooking a majestic panorama of the Great Smoky Mountains on Hyatt Creek Road between Bryson City and Cherokee,  NC.  That's where the largest Gospel singing festival in the United States will be hosted by the Inspirations again this summer and fall.  There are few places on Earth that can compare to Inspiration Park for beautiful scenery and natural beauty.

    Before the 2003 Singing In The Smokies runs its course, upward of 25,000 people, perhaps more, will have occupied the hillside singing grounds, hearing more than twenty Gospel Music groups/artists make joyful noises unto the Lord, including the Inspirations, who will sing each day.

    The summer Singing In The Smokies session runs June 30 through July 5, starting at 7 p.m. each day, except for July 4 when a "All Day Singing" will get underway at 10 a.m. and last until ? A two-day Singing In The Smokies will be held on August 30 and 31, beginning at 7 p.m. each evening as a Labor Day Festival. Then, another two-day session will be held on October 17 and 18 as the Fall Color Festival. The first day of the last session will begin at 6 p.m. and the final day will be a repeat "All-Day Singing" beginning at 11 a.m. and lasting until 6 p.m. On July 4 and October 18, The Inspirations will hold reunion concerts featuring former Inspirations, Ron Hutchins,  Eddie Deitz, Marlin Shubert and Chris Smith .

    Two years after the Inspirations were formed, they started the Singing In The Smokies as a one-day concert on the Sylva-Webster High football field in nearby Sylva in an effort to bring more Gospel groups in for the public's enjoyment, and three years later they moved the event to downtown Bryson City.  That fourth year they finally broke even financially on the festival, and it has grown by leaps and bounds every year since. In 1974, the Singing In The Smokies relocated to its present location at the old Bryson City airport. The 1976 Fourth of July Singing In The Smokies was recorded in North Carolina history books as one of the state's great celebrations of our nation's bicentennial.

    "The Singing In The Smokies was started for two primary reasons," said Martin Cook.  "First, the Inspirations realized that since many of our friends and other supporters came to the Smoky Mountains to vacation each year, we needed to be there to sing to them, so we hatched up the idea of hosting a homecoming sing.

    He continued, "The other reason was this, while I was teaching at Sylva High School, there was a vote scheduled in its home county about legalizing liquor sales.  A county commissioner spoke to the school faculty telling us how much of the money the county would make from liquor sales would benefit the schools. However, that county commissioner failed to mention that when lives were lost and homes destroyed because of alcohol, it would be our fault for legalizing it.  The liquor was evil, and each member of the Inspirations knew that the Singing In The Smokies could be a strong force with which to fight it. It was and has been.  That's how to overcome evil--fight it with something good.   We can't fight it on its own terms because the same rules never apply."

    Martin Cook added that naming the Inspirations homecoming sing was easy. "Since we were a singing group based in the heart of the Great Smoky Mountains, the name 'Singing In The Smokies' was a given.  I doubt we could have found another name that would have fit more perfectly," he said.

    Nothing is more pleasing to the soul than hearing the tuneful sounds of Gospel Music echoing from mountaintop to mountaintop at Inspiration Park, making you wonder, "Do the mountains there really sing?"

    It surely seems they do.