There are certain milestones every band hopes to hit in their career, like a chart-topping song, a sold-out show at a historic venue, winning awards, or even scoring a Gold-certified record. But, making music together for 25 years? That's nearly unheard of these days.
However rare, it's a goal that was attained by the iconic Southern rock/worship/contemporary group Third Day, who disbanded in 2018, following the success of the band's acclaimed 2017 album Revival, an 18-track collection of songs (on the deluxe version, anyway).
Since then, lead vocalist Mac Powell has been churning out his own offerings of country and Southern rock. His most recent release is the single, "River of Life," from his forthcoming album, New Creation. Here's a look at Third Day's 25-year history, going all the way back to the group's beginnings walking through a timeline of the biggest events that have shaped their lives as a band.
1991 to 1995
In 1991, founding members Mac Powell and Mark Lee formed Third Day while in high school. From their first year until 1995, they self-financed three albums as an independent band. Their self-titled third album would be repackaged a year later as their first-length record label studio release.
1996
The year 1996 was the year success really began for the group. After a few independent records, the band signed a multi-album deal with Reunion Records and released their self-titled label debut album, Third Day. The year 1996 also saw Third Day nominated for New Artist of the Year at the Dove Awards and winning a Billboard Music Award for Best Christian Video for "Consuming Fire."
1997
Following the success of their debut, Third Day kicked off the new year with their Alien EP before releasing their sophomore project Conspiracy No. 5 later that year. The album was nominated for a Grammy and landed the band two Dove Awards: Rock Album of the Year and Rock Song of the Year.
1998
Coming off yet another successful album, the band spent much of 1998 touring the U.S. on solo dates and opening for the Peter Furler-led Newsboys as they wrote and prepped for the release of their next album.
1999 Time, an album longtime Third Day fans say is their best all-time project, released, and saw the band being nominated for a second Grammy, while they added another Dove Award to their fast-growing collection. A B-sides EP, Southern Tracks, was also released.
2000
Inspired by the worship portion of their live show, Third Day released Offerings, a worship album (recorded in only a week's time) composed of a few new tracks and live versions of fan-favorite songs.
2001
Third Day released their first DVD, The Offerings Experience, recorded live from a show in Atlanta with 15,000 attendees. They ended 2001, a year that ended with not just another Grammy nomination, but their first win. Not to mention the band won several more Doves, with the release of their fifth studio album Come Together.
2002
Their albums Come Together and Time were certified Gold. The band also appeared in the movie Joshua--an adaptation of the bestselling novel--with their song "My Hope Is You" included on the film's soundtrack.
2003
A follow-up worship album, Offerings II: All I Have To Give released, which NRT's Kevin Davis rated 4.5 out of 5 stars, calling it "a great worship album" that features two of his favorite Third Day songs of all time, "Offering," and "Nothing Compares." It was also nominated for a Grammy.
2004
It was a big year for the group as they toured with pop artists TobyMac and Warren Barfield, played shows in Europe, had a song included on The Passion of the Christ soundtrack, and were featured on 60 Minutes. That year, they also released their seventh album (the Grammy-winning Wire) and a live concert recording of the album, aptly titled Live Wire.
2005
Continuing to crank out hit albums at a frenetic pace, Wherever You Are was released in 2005 and debuted at No. 8 on the Billboard 200, earning the band their third Grammy. This album brought us the timeless track, "Cry Out to Jesus."
2006
Third Day released their first Christmas album, Christmas Offerings, the third in their Offerings series. It hit No. 2 on Billboard's Holiday Albums Chart, and won Best Christmas Album at the Doves a year later.
2007
Now with quite the impressive catalog behind them, 2007 called for the band's first "best of" CD/DVD, Chronology: Volume One, which took fans through the hits of 1996 to 2000 and Chronology: Volume Two later that year that filled in the blanks through 2007.
2008
Never a group to slow down, 2008 brought the release of highly successful Revelation, which led to a performance of their No. 1 song "Call My Name" on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno and performance of the album's title track on The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson. Longtime guitarist Brad Avery parted ways with the band on good terms.
2009
Following up with a live CD/DVD combination, Live Revelations won the group their fourth Grammy for Best Rock/Rap Gospel Album and achieved Gold status the month it was released. Their album Revelation won Pop/Contemporary Album of the Year at the Dove Awards.
2010
Another big release, Move took the band back to their soulful roots as they toured with the Winter Jam Festival alongside contemporary Christian giants Newsboys and Tenth Avenue North.
2011
One of the few years in their career that Third Day didn't release any new music, 2011 saw the band continue to spend time on the road--again with Tenth Avenue North--on their Make Your Move Tour, while prepping for their next album. They did win Recorded Music Packaging of the Year at the Dove Awards that Year for their album, Move.
2012
Drifting back to their Southern rock sound to shake things up, Miracle released in 2012 and featured radio hits "I Need A Miracle" and "Your Love Is Like A River." In his perfect five-star review of the record, NRT's Kevin Davis said Miracle was "the Third Day album I've been waiting for since Time" and "the best overall album of Third Day's distinguished career." In other news, lead vocalist Mac Powell released his first self-titled solo album.
2013
While life was quiet with regard to new music and awards, it wasn't quiet for Third Day, who was touring the new album to fans across the country, the Miracle Tour kicked off with guest artists Colton Dixon and Josh Wilson.
2014
The Miracle Tour wrapped up, ending more than a year for Third Day on the road. Meanwhile, Mac Powell released his second solo album, Southpaw.
2015
Their first worship album since the Offerings series, Lead Us Back: Songs of Worship, was released and climbed to the No. 1 spot on the Christian Albums chart. "Soul On Fire," the album's well-received lead single, spent an incredible 19 weeks on the Billboard charts. Sadly, another longtime core member of the group, Tai Anderson, said goodbye to the band.
2017
Twenty-five years after it all began, Third Day returned to their musical roots for Revival, an album recorded at the legendary Fame Studios in Alabama. They disbanded a year later in 2018.
The original article was written in 2017 by NRT contributor Caitlyn Lassiter. It was updated in 2021 by NRT contributor Paul Phillips.
Paul Phillips is a Canadian journalist with 18 years of experience writing and editing digital and print content. Caitlin Lassiter is a North Carolina girl that loves Jesus, music, concerts, writing, C.S. Lewis, and sweet tea.
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