Johnny Lima

.. After spending the last three years lending his production skills to artists like DIRTY PENNY, MISS CRAZY, DIAMOND LANE and the new supergroup FREAKSHOW, Johnny Lima is finally back with a new album of his own. The album titled LIVIN’ OUT LOUD (released on May 4th, 2009) showcases a much more guitar oriented approach then Johnny's previous releases, or as one critic put it, “12 stunning new songs! His new stuff sounds more dirty, more catchy and much more rougher than everything else before”. Mission Accomplished! Born in a small town in central California to Portuguese immigrants, Johnny Lima got his first taste of Rock ‘N Roll at the tender age of four, when his parents let him stay up late one night to catch KISS on a TV show. Little did they know that it was that one band, on that one TV show, that would convince their child that all he was meant to do in his life was to Rock ‘N Roll All Nite. After many years of “playing” to his favorite KISS records with a tennis racket, his parents finally gave in and bought him his first guitar eight years later at age twelve. “ I was too impatient to ‘learn’ the guitar the proper way. I wanted to get down to writing songs the minute I picked up the guitar for the first time” says Johnny, “and I’m glad that was the approach I took. To this day I still meet guitar players that blow me away with their technique, but they can’t write a song to save their life. Writing songs is how you make money in this business. Not playing guitar solos”. A few years later, Johnny took his acquired songwriting and vocal talent north to the San Francisco Bay Area in search of the ultimate rock band. After fronting a couple of popular local Bay Area bands, that didn’t amount to much outside of the bay, Johnny decided it was time to take it to the next level. By doing so, he’d have to do it alone. After spending a few years on his own honing his songwriting skills, Johnny entered the studio to record his debut solo album with money his parents gave him. In 1996 his debut album was independently released worldwide. A brave move considering the musical climate had changed drastically and any rock music with hooks and melody was now out of fashion with the mainstream. However it was an album that over ten years later would command upwards of $80 on ebay since it was out of print only two years after it’s release. Although the music business wasn’t kind to him in his own backyard, across the Atlantic, Johnny’s style of music was still respected and got the attention of many independent labels in Europe hell bent on keeping melodic rock alive. Johnny’s music caught the attention of Now and Then Productions in England, who signed him to a production deal in 1998. A year later, the follow-up to his debut album, SHINE ON, was released by Italy’s Frontiers Records. The album got rave reviews all over the world, including a perfect score in Scream Magazine (Norway) and Majestic Magazine (Holland). Johnny was also invited to perform at the annual GODS OF AOR show in England in 1999 and 2000. On his return from England in 2000, Johnny wasted no time and began writing music for his 3rd album that was scheduled to be released in 2001. Little did he know that 2001 was going to be a very important year in his personal life, and that music would take a backseat for the first time. Johnny married his longtime girlfriend Cara that year and in December they welcomed the birth of their son Ashton. MADE IN CALIFORNIA wouldn’t see the light of day until 2003. Released by Frontiers Records, MADE IN CALIFORNIA was an album that showcased Johnny Lima’s knack for big hooks, big vocals, and was the perfect soundtrack to any rock fan’s summer. It was also the last album Johnny would record for Now and Then Productions and Frontiers Records. During this time, Johnny Lima’s debut album from 1996 was becoming a much sought after album amongst rock fans and becoming harder than ever to find. So he decided to re-record the songs from the debut album, and release them so his fans wouldn’t have to pay outrageous prices for the ’96 debut album on ebay. Version 1.2 was released by Escape Music in 2005 and would include brand new versions of most of the songs on the debut album with a new song added for good measure. After the release of VERSION 1.2 Johnny decided it was time for a break. Little did Johnny know that his planned break from music was going to be short lived when four guys with big hair from Santa Cruz, California called him to produce their debut album. Between 2006 - 2007, Johnny kept himself busy in the studio producing and co-writing DIRTY PENNY's debut album “Take It Sleezy” which reached 39 in Classic Rock Magazine’s top 50 albums of 2008, as well as an E.P. for Southern California’s DIAMOND LANE. Johnny was also called on to record and mix albums by MISS CRAZY, and the highly anticipated debut album from the new supergroup FREAKSHOW featuring Frankie Banali from QUIET RIOT , Jeff Labar from CINDERELLA, Markus Allen Christopher from MISS CRAZY, and a bass virtuoso everyone calls Tony Franklin. Also during this time, Johnny decided to do what everyone else was doing and join MySpace. It was then that Johnny realized what an impact his music had on people’s lives. The hundreds of emails and comments he received made him realize that he isn’t ready to hang up the microphone just yet. “It was a lot of fun and a great learning experience recording other artists. I had a blast, but it was time for me to get back in front of the microphone where I belong.” Johnny said. So in the summer of 2008, armed with more than an album’s worth of material, Johnny went back into the same studio (Suspect Studios) that he’s called his “home away from home” for the last few years to record his follow up to 2005’s VERSION 1.2. The new album titled LIVIN’ OUT LOUD was released worldwide on May 4th, 2009 independently. Most who have heard the new album have said that it’s his best work to date. With a renewed passion for making music, Johnny Lima is planning on sticking around for awhile longer, and is not content on having his music only listened to on an ipod or the comfort of someone’s home. So plans for live performances are in the works and fans can rest assured, that any live performance from Johnny will be just as exciting and fun as his music. For over ten years, rock fans could always rely on Johnny Lima to deliver good time, melodic, hard rockin’ music no matter what the flavor of the month was. Remember... if it rocks, and if it’s catchy as hell, then it must be Johnny Lima.