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Third Day was a
Christian rock Christian rock is a form of rock music that features lyrics focusing on matters of Christian faith, often with an emphasis on Jesus, typically performed by self-proclaimed Christian individuals. The extent to which their lyrics are explicitly Ch ...
band formed in
Marietta, Georgia Marietta is a city in and the county seat of Cobb County, Georgia, United States. At the 2020 census, the city had a population of 60,972. The 2019 estimate was 60,867, making it one of Atlanta's largest suburbs. Marietta is the fourth largest ...
during the 1990s. The band was founded by lead singer Mac Powell, guitarist Mark Lee (both of whom were the only constant members) and Billy Wilkins. Drummer David Carr was the last band member to quit, prior to the band’s farewell tour in May and June 2018. The band's name is a reference to the biblical accounts of the
resurrection of Jesus The resurrection of Jesus ( grc-x-biblical, ἀνάστασις τοῦ Ἰησοῦ) is the Christian belief that God raised Jesus on the third day after his crucifixion, starting – or restoring – his exalted life as Christ and Lo ...
on the third day following his crucifixion. The band was inducted in the
Georgia Music Hall of Fame The Georgia Music Hall of Fame was a hall of fame to recognize music performers and music industry professionals from or connected to the state of Georgia. It began with efforts of the state's lieutenant governor Zell Miller to attract the music ...
on September 19, 2009. They have sold over 7 million albums in the United States and had 28 number one Christian album chart radio hits. Their fans are known as "Gomers" after a song on their second album about
Gomer Gomer ( he, ''Gōmer'', ; el, Γαμὲρ, translit=Gamér) was the eldest son of Japheth (and of the Japhetic line), and father of Ashkenaz, Riphath, and Togarmah, according to the "Table of Nations" in the Hebrew Bible (Genesis 10). The epo ...
.


History


Forming years and independent recordings (1991–1994)

In 1991, high-schoolers Mac Powell and Mark Lee formed Third Day as a Christian music group with pianist Billy Wilkins and guitarist August McCoy. McCoy left the following year to pursue tertiary education. At a 1992 event at Lee's Church, Third Day performed alongside a band called the Bullard Family Singers, which featured David Carr and Tai Anderson. Third Day invited Carr and Anderson to join them shortly after. In 1993, the band started playing more frequently in the
Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...
region in order to save money to record an album. Wilkins left the group in order to pursue his teaching career. Third Day recorded at Furies Studios in Atlanta and with the production help of Carr, ''Long Time Forgotten'' was released in 1994, producing and selling 2,000 copies. In 1995, the band started looking for a second guitarist. Upon hearing Brad Avery play with singer Chris Carder, Avery was asked to audition. After playing ''Consuming Fire'' during the first rehearsal, Avery was officially asked to join the band. The band's second album, ''Contagious'', was self-financed for $3,000 and recorded at Furies Studios in Atlanta, Georgia. 1,000 CDs and cassette copies of the demo were released. While playing in Marietta, at the Strand Theatre, the owners offered the band a contract to sign with new independent record label Gray Dot Records. The band released the album ''
Third Day Third Day was a Christian rock band formed in Marietta, Georgia during the 1990s. The band was founded by lead singer Mac Powell, guitarist Mark Lee (both of whom were the only constant members) and Billy Wilkins. Drummer David Carr was the ...
'', which sold 20,000 copies. Shortly after, Reunion Records bought out their Gray Dot contract and signed the band to a multi-album deal.


Recording contract with Reunion Records (1995–1997)

Reunion Records released the now official version of ''Third Day'', which has sold over 300,000 copies and was well received by critics. The album also yielded their only mainstream rock radio hit in the U.S., "Nothing at All", which peaked at No. 34 on the Billboard rock charts. Later in 1995, Christian music headliner
Newsboys Newsboys (sometimes stylised as newsboys) are a Christian rock band founded in 1985 in Mooloolaba, Queensland, Australia, by Peter Furler and George Perdikis. Now based in Nashville, Tennessee, the band has released 17 studio albums, 6 of which ...
asked Third Day to open for them at five West Coast shows. The band also launched their own 65-city tour with
All Star United ''All Star United'' is a Christian rock band that was formed by solo artist Ian Eskelin in 1996. The band is known for clever and sometimes sarcastic lyrics, as they frequently use their songs as vehicles to lampoon perceived excesses in Western ...
and
Seven Day Jesus Seven Day Jesus (a.k.a. 7DJ or SDJ) was a Christian rock band formed in Huntington, West Virginia in 1994. The group disbanded in 1998, and reunited for one concert in 2004. Band history Seven Day Jesus was formed by childhood friends, singer ...
opening for them. In 1996, the band was nominated for a
Dove Award A Dove Award is an accolade by the Gospel Music Association (GMA) of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the Christian music industry. The awards are presented annually. Formerly held in Nashville, Tennessee, the Dove Awards ...
in the category of ''New Artist of the Year'' and their video for ''Consuming Fire'' directed by Chris Metzler and Jeff Springer won a
Billboard Music Award The ''Billboard'' Music Awards are honors given out annually by ''Billboard'', a publication covering the music business and a music popularity chart. The ''Billboard'' Music Awards show has been held annually since 1990, with the exception of t ...
in the category of ''Best Christian Video''. The video was shot on location in Bombay Beach, California and other places around the Salton Sea. This experience and discovering
Leonard Knight Salvation Mountain is a hillside visionary environment created by local resident Leonard Knight (1931–2014) in the California Desert area of Imperial County, north of Calipatria, northeast of Niland, near the Slab City squatter/art commun ...
's Salvation Mountain nearby later inspired the album artwork for the band's album ''Revelation''. In 1997, the band started working on their second album, '' Conspiracy No. 5''. The album was produced by Sam Taylor, who had previously worked with
King's X King's X is an American rock band that originated in 1979 in Springfield, Missouri. They were first called The Edge and later became Sneak Preview before settling on its current name in 1985. The band's current lineup has remained intact for m ...
and other Christian bands. The album was nominated for a
Grammy The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pre ...
and won Dove Awards for Rock Album of the Year and Rock Song of the Year ("Alien"). The following year, the band toured around the United States, both alone and again opening for Newsboys. Also in 1998, the band recorded a cover of
Michael W. Smith Michael Whitaker Smith (born October 7, 1957) is an American musician who has charted in both contemporary Christian and mainstream charts. His biggest success in mainstream music was in 1991 when " Place in This World" hit No. 6 on the '' ...
's "Agnus Dei" for his Dove Award-winning compilation project ''
Exodus Exodus or the Exodus may refer to: Religion * Book of Exodus, second book of the Hebrew Torah and the Christian Bible * The Exodus, the biblical story of the migration of the ancient Israelites from Egypt into Canaan Historical events * Ex ...
''.


Mainstream and international success (1998–2006)

In 1998, the band started working on ''
Time Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, to ...
'' under the production of Monroe Jones. ''Time'' was nominated for a Grammy Award and won another Dove Award for the band. Some of the songs that were recorded for possible inclusion in the album, but left out during production, are on the EP '' Southern Tracks''. During the band's live shows, they included a significant worship portion, prompting the band to release an album made up exclusively of worship songs. The subsequent album '' Offerings: A Worship Album'' took about a week to record. In 2000, to support both ''Time'' and ''Offerings'', Third Day went on tour alongside
Jennifer Knapp Jennifer Lynn Knapp (born April 12, 1974) is an American-Australian folk rock, and contemporary Christian musician. She is best known for her first single "Undo Me" from her debut album, ''Kansas'' (1998), and the song "A Little More" from her ...
. Later the same year, the band collaborated on the project '' City on a Hill: Songs of Worship and Praise'' with FFH,
Caedmon's Call Caedmon's Call is a contemporary Christian band which fused traditional folk with world music and alternative rock. They were composed of Cliff Young (lead vocals and rhythm guitar), Danielle Young (vocals), Garett Buell (percussion), Jeff Mi ...
, Peter Furler of
Newsboys Newsboys (sometimes stylised as newsboys) are a Christian rock band founded in 1985 in Mooloolaba, Queensland, Australia, by Peter Furler and George Perdikis. Now based in Nashville, Tennessee, the band has released 17 studio albums, 6 of which ...
, Jars of Clay, and others. In 2001, the band played in Australia and New Zealand on the heels of the success of the ''Offerings'' album. While touring in the US, Third Day recorded a concert attended by 15,000 fans at the HiFi Buys Amphitheatre in
Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...
to be released as their first DVD, ''The Offerings Experience''. That same year, the band won five Dove Awards as well as their first Grammy. They closed the year with the release of their fifth studio album, ''
Come Together "Come Together" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles, written by John Lennon and credited to Lennon–McCartney. The song is the opening track on their 1969 album ''Abbey Road'' and was also released as a single coupled with " Somethi ...
'', which won two Dove Awards and a Grammy. The album was certified gold the next year, along with ''Time''. The band appeared in the 2002 film ''Joshua'', the movie version of the story of Joseph Girzone. The Third Day song ''My Hope is You'' was included in the ''Joshua'' soundtrack album. In 2003, the band released a follow-up to their hit worship CD ''Offerings'' entitled '' Offerings II: All I Have to Give''. In 2004, the band released their seventh album, ''
Wire Overhead power cabling. The conductor consists of seven strands of steel (centre, high tensile strength), surrounded by four outer layers of aluminium (high conductivity). Sample diameter 40 mm A wire is a flexible strand of metal. Wire is c ...
'', and toured the States with
tobyMac Toby McKeehan (born Kevin Michael McKeehan; October 22, 1964), better known by his stage name TobyMac (styled tobyMac or TOBYMAC), is an American contemporary Christian music singer, rapper, songwriter, and record producer. He was first known f ...
and Warren Barfield. In June of the same year, they traveled to Europe for a two-week tour. Upon returning, the band recorded a concert at
Louisville Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border. ...
and released it as the live album, ''Live Wire''. During that year, they collaborated on the soundtrack for
Mel Gibson Mel Columcille Gerard Gibson (born January 3, 1956) is an American actor, film director, and producer. He is best known for his action hero roles, particularly his breakout role as Max Rockatansky in the first three films of the post-apocaly ...
's film, ''
The Passion of the Christ ''The Passion of the Christ'' is a 2004 American epic biblical drama film produced, directed and co-written by Mel Gibson and starring Jim Caviezel as Jesus of Nazareth, Maia Morgenstern as Mary, mother of Jesus, and Monica Bellucci as Mary ...
'', played at the Republican National Convention, and were featured on ''
60 Minutes ''60 Minutes'' is an American television news magazine broadcast on the CBS television network. Debuting in 1968, the program was created by Don Hewitt and Bill Leonard, who chose to set it apart from other news programs by using a unique styl ...
''. In January 2007, the band played one night each in Melbourne, Brisbane, and Sydney, Australia. The band's next album, '' Wherever You Are'', debuted on the ''Billboard'' 200 at No. 8. It also won the band their third Grammy Award.


Christmas and compilation albums (2006–2008)

The band recorded and released its first Christmas-themed album, '' Christmas Offerings'', in 2006. In 2007, they released their first compilations of hits, ''
Chronology Chronology (from Latin ''chronologia'', from Ancient Greek , ''chrónos'', "time"; and , '' -logia'') is the science of arranging events in their order of occurrence in time. Consider, for example, the use of a timeline or sequence of events. I ...
''. On February 28, 2008, Third Day released a statement announcing Brad Avery's departure from the band after 13 years and over 1,000 concerts. According to the official press release, Avery left the band to pursue solo projects and Third Day would not replace him, continuing on as a quartet. Following Avery's departure, the band performed at the April 2008 Papal Youth Rally at St. Joseph's Seminary in Yonkers, N.Y.


Revelation and Revelation Live (2008–2010)

Supporting the July 29, 2008, release of their new album ''
Revelation In religion and theology, revelation is the revealing or disclosing of some form of truth or knowledge through communication with a deity or other supernatural entity or entities. Background Inspiration – such as that bestowed by God on the ...
'', the band appeared on ''
The Tonight Show with Jay Leno ''The Tonight Show with Jay Leno'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by Jay Leno that first aired from May 25, 1992, to May 29, 2009. It resumed production on March 1, 2010 and ended on February 6, 2014. The fourth incarnation of the ...
'' where they performed the album's first single ''Call My Name'' and on November 20, 2008, they appeared on ''
The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson ''The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by Scottish actor and comedian Craig Ferguson. This was the third iteration of the ''Late Late Show'' franchise, airing from January 3, 2005, to December 19, ...
'' performing the album's title track. The song ''This Is Who I Am'' also appears in
EA Sports EA Sports is a division of Electronic Arts that develops and publishes sports video games. Formerly a marketing gimmick of Electronic Arts, in which they tried to imitate real-life sports networks by calling themselves the "EA Sports Network" ...
NASCAR The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. The privately owned company was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1948, and hi ...
video game ''
NASCAR 09 ''NASCAR 09'' is the twelfth simulation installment in the EA Sports NASCAR series and the sequel to 2007 game '' NASCAR 08''. It is developed by EA Tiburon and released on the PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and mobile phones in North Amer ...
'', though the album was released over a month after the game. " Call My Name" hit No. 1 and was the fifth most-played song on R&R magazine's
Christian CHR Christian contemporary hit radio (sometimes abbreviated as Christian CHR) is a radio format that is common in the United States and Australia focusing on playing current and recent music as determined by the contemporary Christian music Top 40 I ...
chart for 2008.The band also had two tracks on the soundtrack for the 2008 release of the film "Fireproof.
2008 Year End Charts/Top Christian CHR songs
, R&R magazine, Retrieved January 6, 2009
In April 2009, the band released a live version of the album ''Revelation'' under the title ''Live Revelations'' as a CD/DVD combination. Third Day was inducted into the Georgia Music Hall of Fame on September 19, 2009. In December 2009, Third Day was nominated for three
Grammy Awards The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...
, with ''Live Revelations'' winning ''Best Rock or Rap Gospel Album'', their fourth career Grammy, and receiving nominations for "Born Again" in the two categories ''Best Gospel Performance'' and ''Best Gospel Song''. ''Live Revelations'' achieved Gold status in its month of release, becoming the band's eighth album to do so.


Move (2010)

Third Day was featured on Winter Jam 2010, touring alongside a variety of contemporary Christian groups including the
Newsboys Newsboys (sometimes stylised as newsboys) are a Christian rock band founded in 1985 in Mooloolaba, Queensland, Australia, by Peter Furler and George Perdikis. Now based in Nashville, Tennessee, the band has released 17 studio albums, 6 of which ...
,
Fireflight Fireflight is an American Christian rock band formed in Eustis, Florida in 1999. The band was signed by Flicker Records. The band currently consists of Dawn Michele, Glenn and Wendy Drennen and Justin Cox (who left in 2013 but rejoined in 201 ...
and
Tenth Avenue North Tenth Avenue North was an American contemporary Christian music (CCM) band from West Palm Beach, Florida that was active from 2000 to 2021. The group was formed while its founding members attended Palm Beach Atlantic University took its name ...
. After releasing the single, "Lift Up Your Face" in July 2010, Third Day released their tenth studio album, ''
Move Move may refer to: People * Daniil Move (born 1985), a Russian auto racing driver Brands and enterprises * Move (company), an online real estate company * Move (electronics store), a defunct Australian electronics retailer * Daihatsu Move Go ...
'', on October 19, 2010. On October 30 they finished the
World Vision In its most general sense, the term "world" refers to the totality of entities, to the whole of reality or to everything that is. The nature of the world has been conceptualized differently in different fields. Some conceptions see the worl ...
-sponsored tour ''Make a Difference Tour 2010'' with TobyMac, Michael W. Smith, Jason Gray and
Max Lucado Max Lucado (born January 11, 1955) is an American author
"Lucado set a record by concurrently placing seven differe ...
in Fayetteville, NC. The group's song "Follow Me There" from ''Move'' is the featured as the theme song to the TLC Television show '' Sarah Palin's Alaska'' which debuted in 2010.


Miracle and Lead Us Back: Songs of Worship (2012–2017)

Third Day released ''
Miracle A miracle is an event that is inexplicable by natural or scientific lawsOne dictionary define"Miracle"as: "A surprising and welcome event that is not explicable by natural or scientific laws and is therefore considered to be the work of a divin ...
'' on November 6, 2012. The band toured ''Miracle'' on the ''Miracle Tour'' with artists
Colton Dixon Michael Colton Dixon (born October 19, 1991) is an American singer-songwriter and musician from Murfreesboro, Tennessee. He placed seventh on the eleventh season of ''American Idol''. Early life Colton Dixon was born Michael Colton Dixon on Oct ...
and Josh Wilson as their opening acts, commencing on February 21, 2013, in
Fairfax, Virginia The City of Fairfax ( ), colloquially known as Fairfax City, Downtown Fairfax, Old Town Fairfax, Fairfax Courthouse, FFX, or simply Fairfax, is an independent city (United States), independent city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth ...
and concluding on May 19, 2014, in
Orlando, Florida Orlando () is a city in the U.S. state of Florida and is the county seat of Orange County, Florida, Orange County. In Central Florida, it is the center of the Greater Orlando, Orlando metropolitan area, which had a population of 2,509,831, acco ...
. Third Day released the worship album '' Lead Us Back: Songs of Worship'' on March 3, 2015. The album, produced by The Sound Kids (Jonny Macintosh and JT Daly) as a worship experience with Third Day at the center of a "friend choir", peaked at No. 20 on the ''Billboard'' 200, No. 1 on the
Christian Albums Top Christian Albums is a weekly chart published in ''Billboard'' magazine that ranks the best-performing Christian albums in the United States. Like the ''Billboard'' 200, the data is compiled by Nielsen Soundscan based on each album's weekly ...
chart, No. 5 on the Top Rock Albums chart and No. 13 on the Digital Albums chart. The album has had one single, "Soul on Fire", that spent 19 weeks on the '' Billboard'' charts, peaking at No. 2 on Hot Christian Songs and No. 3 on Christian Digital Songs. In 2015, bassist Tai Anderson announced he would take "a break from the upcoming touring season with Third Day". Anderson has been with the band for 23 years.


Revival and farewell (2017–2018)

To celebrate their 25th anniversary, Third Day released the back-to-their-roots album, ''Revival'', on August 4, 2017, recorded at FAME Studios in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. Third Day reunited with producer Monroe Jones, who had worked with Third Day on six previous albums including ''Time'', ''Offerings I'' and ''II'' and ''Come Together''. On March 2, 2018, Third Day announced their farewell with 12 shows as a last chance to see them live. The farewell tour eventually expanded to 20 concerts. June 27, 2018, in Denver, Colorado was the final show added.


Members

* Mac Powell – lead vocals, acoustic guitar, tambourine (1991–2018) * Mark Lee – electric guitar, backing vocals (1991–2018) * David Carr – drums, percussion (1992–2017) * Tai Anderson – bass, backing vocals (1992–2015) * Brad Avery – guitar (1995–2008). From Third Day Weblog by Third Day. "Third Day and Brad Avery have made the very difficult decision to part ways. We appreciate Brad's many contributions to the band's career to date, including his work on our forthcoming album, but the time has come for us to follow our separate paths. He has been an important part of Third Day for the last 13 years as we've traveled the world together and performed over 1,000 concerts. We will miss him as a band member but he will always remain our brother and our friend. Brad is a wonderful person, gifted songwriter and talented musician. We trust that God has amazing plans for his future." Avery left the band on February 28, 2008. * Scotty Wilbanks – keyboards, backing vocals (2005–2018) * Tim Gibson – bass guitar (2015–2018) * Trevor Morgan – mandolin, banjo, guitar, backing vocals (2016–2018) * Billy Wilkins – keyboards (1991–1994). Wilkins was one of the original members of Third Day, from 1991 to 1994, along with Powell and Lee. He was also with the group when Anderson and Carr joined, both of whom were still in high school at the time. He has not recorded with Third Day since 2004, when he played "Blessed Assurance". In 2007, early footage was released on the two projects ''Chronology I'' ''Chronology and II'', on which Wilkins is included. * Geof Barkley – keyboards, backing vocals (1993). Barkley (formerly of
Geoff Moore and the Distance Geoff Moore (born February 22, 1961) is an American contemporary Christian music singer. He began recording as a solo artist in 1984. In 1987, he formed Geoff Moore and The Distance, his touring band, which released eight albums generating a s ...
) played keyboards on every live album in the band's history and every live show for nearly seven years. Barkley also performed on ''Wherever You Are''. Although never officially a member of the band, Brad Avery has described Barkley as '"in the band", but he's not a "member" of Third Day, that's two different things. But he is in the band, and he plays with us live every night, and he rocks.' Barkley's background vocals in songs such as "God of Wonders" and "Took My Place" as well as "You Are So Good To Me" have become integral parts of Third Day's live sound. Barkley finished touring with Third Day on October 21, 2005, in Raleigh, North Carolina. * August McCoy – guitar (1991–1992) * Jason Hoard – mandolin, banjo, guitar, backing vocals (2010–2012, 2018) * Boone Daughdrill – drums (2018) * Brian Bunn – guitar, harmonica (2012–2016) Timeline


Discography


Awards

As of 2020 the group has received 4
Grammy Awards The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...
and 25
Dove Award A Dove Award is an accolade by the Gospel Music Association (GMA) of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the Christian music industry. The awards are presented annually. Formerly held in Nashville, Tennessee, the Dove Awards ...
s.Gospel Music Association
Past winners : Third Day
doveawards.com, USA, retrieved December 5, 2020


American Music Awards


Grammy Awards


Gospel Music Awards


Billboard magazine best of the 2000s

* No. 3 Christian Albums Artist of the Decade * No. 5 Christian Songs Artist of the Decade * No. 15 Christian Song of the Decade: "Cry Out to Jesus" * No. 27 Christian Song of the Decade: "Call My Name" * No. 39 Christian Song of the Decade: "You Are So Good to Me" * No. 43 Christian Song of the Decade: "Mountain of God" * No. 28 Christian Album of the Decade: "Wherever You Are" * No. 33 Christian Album of the Decade: "Come Together" * No. 37 Christian Album of the Decade: "Offerings: A Worship Album" * No. 39 Christian Album of the Decade: "Offerings II: All I Have to Give"


References


External links

*
Interview with Third Day at Premier.tv
*
2018 Farewell Tour
{{Authority control 1991 establishments in Georgia (U.S. state) Christian rock groups from Georgia (U.S. state) Essential Records (Christian) artists Grammy Award winners Musical groups established in 1991 Musical groups from Atlanta Performers of contemporary Christian music Reunion Records artists American southern rock musical groups