HISTORY

[From Wikipedia.org]

Formation-1992
Newsboys' original core members, vocalist John James, and drummer Peter Furler, formed the band in Mooloolaba, Australia in 1985 along with Furler's guitarist school mate, George Perdikis. The band's original name was The News, but once in the US they changed it to The Newsboys to avoid conflict with another US based band. The band came to the United States in late 1987 after getting signed with Refuge Communications, and released the album Read All About It in 1988. After signing with Star Song Communications, they released two more albums from 1990 to 1991: Hell Is For Wimps, and Boys Will Be Boyz. None of the three albums garnered much attention, and the band's lineup changed with every release.

[edit] 1992-2000
It wasn't until their 1992 album, Not Ashamed, that the band became notable on the Christian music scene. The title track of the album became a huge hit on Christian radio and elevated the band's profile considerably. Notably, Steve Taylor, a quirky singer well-known within the Christian music community, began a partnership with the band, producing the band's record and writing most of the lyrics for their songs; Furler remained the band's primary songwriter.
In 1994, amidst continued lineup changes, the band released Going Public, their fifth album and first smash success. The record proved to be a watershed for the group, winning a Dove Award for "Rock album of the Year" in 1995 [1]. It also produced #1 hits such as "Spirit Thing", "Let It Rain", and, most notably, "Shine". "Shine" quickly became an enormous hit and one of the most recognizable songs in Christian music, also taking the 1995 Dove for "Rock Recorded Song of the Year". In 2006, CCM Magazine listed "Shine" in the top ten in its ranking of the 100 Greatest Songs in Christian music. Going Public turned Newsboys into one of the top acts in Christian music.
The eagerly-anticipated follow-up, Take Me To Your Leader (1996), did not disappoint fans, either. Generally showcasing a bigger rock sound than in past projects, the album produced more #1 hits: "God Is Not A Secret", "Reality", "Breakfast", and the title track. This album also snagged the groups third Dove, this time for "Recorded Music Packaging of the Year". [2] The album solidified the band's place in the Christian music industry; however, their position seemed to move onto shaky ground when lead singer John James left the band in 1997. The band pressed on, though; Furler switched from drums to vocals and Duncan Phillips, who had previously played keyboards and percussion for the band, became the new drummer. From 1998 to 2003, the band's lineup of Furler, bassist Phil Joel, guitarist Jody Davis, keyboardist Jeff Frankenstein, and Phillips stayed constant. At concerts and festivals such as Spirit West Coast, the band often plays "Breakfast" as the final song, and often drag out the song. It is customary for fans to purchase boxes of Captain Crunch and throw the cereal onto the stage due to the line "And Captain Crunch is waving farewell". The band has been known to switch seats between each other while the other band members have a Captain Crunch fight.
When newsboys released its first post-James record, Step Up to the Microphone (1998), it quickly became clear that the band's popularity was still intact; the album sold well and produced, among other hits, the ubiquitous hit "Entertaining Angels", whose video won the 1999 Dove for "Short Form Music Video of the Year". [3] During the resulting "Step Up To The Microphone" tour, the band featured the drums on a rotating platform that could tilt downward up to 90 degrees. In fact, there were two sets of drums and Peter Furler (the original drummer) and Duncan Phillips would wear seat belts, so they wouldn't fall out, and have a rotating drum-off. This feature is still used on their tours and has grown to be quite popular.
The band returned in 1999 with the oddly-titled Love Liberty Disco, the band's only album to majorly deviate from their pop-rock sound. Featuring 60's era-inspired pop and, yes, disco, the album delivered radio single hits such as "Beautiful Sound", "Good Stuff", and "Love Liberty Disco".

[edit] 2000-present
In 2000, newsboys helped start and headlined the annual, traveling CCM festival Festival Con Dios with Audio Adrenaline and The O.C. Supertones. The festival was known for featuring popular Christian bands and for its motorcross stunts.
Also in 2000, newsboys released a greatest hits compilation, Shine: The Hits, which also included four new songs, two of which ("Joy" and "Who") went to #1. The band did not release any all new material until the spring of 2002 when they released Thrive. Featuring a return to pop-rock, the album also showcased one of the band's biggest hits: "It Is You".
The success of the worshipful "It Is You" perhaps paved the way for newsboys' first praise and worship album in 2003: Adoration: The Worship Album. The album soon became the band's best-selling to date, based on the strength of singles "He Reigns" and "You Are My King (Amazing Love)". Late in 2003, guitarist Jody Davis left the band to care for his sick daughter, Bethany; he was replaced by Bryan Olesen.
The band returned in 2004 with another worship album: Devotion, led by the single, "Presence (My Heart's Desire)". The album was not nearly as successful as its predecessor, one reason arguably being the modest impact the singles had on Christian radio. In 2006, Bryan Olesen left the band to focus on his own band, Casting Pearls. Paul Colman, a respected Australian singer-songwriter and long time personal friend of Peter Furler, replaced him as guitarist.
Although the band is currently based in Nashville, its lineup remains predominantly Australian. Of the current lineup of Furler, Frankenstein, Phillips, and Colman, only Frankenstein (Michigan) hails from outside Australia.
The band's latest radio hits came in 2006 with a live version of "I Am Free", and "Wherever We Go". On October 31, 2006, newsboys have released their newest pop/rock record entitled GO, as well as an iTunes GO EP, including the songs "Wherever We Go", "GO", and "I Am Free". The album was the band's first under their new Inpop Records label, and received strong reviews, praising the group's return to its original rock sound. "GO" featured upcoming Christian artiste David Eri as a co-writer.
Newsboys music is featured in the Christian video game Dance Praise. "Woo Hoo" from Step Up To The Microphone is included with the game. "You Are My King" and "It Is You" can be added to the song list via the Dance Praise Expansion Pack Volume 1: Modern Worship. "Devotion" can be added to the game via the Dance Praise Expansion Pack Volume 3: Rock & Pop Hits.
On December 31, 2006, Phil Joel announced he was leaving the band to devote more time to family and personal goals, including his solo project, deliberatePeople. (http://www.newsboys.com/news/123006.php).