The Newsboys were one of my favorite bands growing up. The Aussie rockers (well, the original members, anyway) have been around almost as long as I have, but their prime (in my opinion) was 1994 thru 2003. Like many bands, longevity has been achieved by adapting and evolving their sound over the years, as well as member turnover. In fact, I just checked wikipedia to confirm, but at this point, not a single founding member is left in the band - which, in my book, ought to mean they dropped the name and started fresh... unfortunately, that's not what happened, but we're not here to talk about the present. Suffice to say the band had a good run, but even though I do love new frontman Michael Tait from his time in DC Talk, and the other three current members were around for The Good Old Days, it's just not the same as it was in the Golden Age of frontmen John James + Peter Furler + Phil Joel.
Anyway... The band became synonymous with energetic, fun and witty pop-rock in the mid-90s, and each album has some lighthearted romps coupled with some more serious and introspective ballads. It can be a tricky mix, but I think they did it well. Tracks like "Breakfast" (an ode to the best part of every day) and "WooHoo" are just for kicks, but they also got serious with "Always", "Lost the Plot", and numerous others.
This track is from possibly their strangest album, Love Liberty Disco (1999). The album definitely has a campy, funky disco feel, although only the title track is straight up Saturday Night Fever vibe. Forever Man is full of soaring strings and synth over a chunky bass line, and the vocals and harmonic BGVs float over top of it all:
"It's gotta be higher, higher, let it be, carry on from this life's brevity; when this mortal coil is twisting with the love of mercy, carry me..."
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