Notes
Born in a small town in central California to Portuguese immigrants, Johnny Lima dreamt of music stardom since the age of four. With a tennis racket strapped around him, Johnny sang & 'played' along to his Kiss albums until his parents bought him his first guitar on his 12th birthday. Not interested in learning the basics, Johnny began writing his own songs from day one. A few years later, Johnny travelled north to the San Francisco Bay Area in search of the ultimate rock band. After singing with CHESHIRE CAT, Johnny formed ATTITUDE with keyboardist Brent De Leo. They went on to play many shows throughout the Bay Area until drummer Jerome De Leo got into a car accident loosing the use of one of his arms. After numerous attempts to find a replacement, ATTITUDE called it quits. It was then that Johnny decided it was time to go out on his own as a solo artist. In 1996 Johnny Lima released his independent debut album, which showcased strong melodies and vocal performances and put a new spin on the familiar styles of Def Leppard, Bryan Adams and Bon Jovi. It didn't take long to catch the attention of Mark Ashton from Now and Then in the UK, who later signed Johnny to a production deal. Two years later Johnny went back to the studio in order to record the follow up to his debut. He spent most of 1998 recording 'Shine On' and he also flew to Manchester, England to sit in on final mixes with Gary Hughes (Ten). In April 1999, 'Shine On' finally saw the light of day in Europe on Frontiers Records. The album got rave reviews all over the world, including a perfect score in Scream Magazine (Norway) and Majestic Magazine (Holland). Later that same year, Johnny was asked to perform at the annual GODS show in England. Backed by Scottish rockers AGE OF REASON, Johnny put on one hell of a show! Shortly after he arrived back in the States, Johnny began writing for his third album, but before he recorded a single note, he was asked to perform again in England at the GODS show in 2000. It didn't take long for Johnny to begin recording the new album once he arrived home from England. Little did Johnny know, 2001 was going to be a very busy year personally. His marriage and the birth of his first son put music temporarily in the back seat. So here we are in 2003 and 'Made In California' is finally completed. From hard rocking songs like 'Made In California', to heartfelt ballads like 'We've Got Tonight', to a punk rock version of The Beatles' 'Help', Johnny Lima has once again delivered the goods and has proven that he's still a major force to be reckoned with in the world of Melodic Rock. Here's what some critics have said about 'SHINE ON': 'Johnny Lima's second album 'Shine On' combines elements of the classic Bon Jovi, Def Leppard, or Winger. Mixed by Ten mastermind Gary Hughes, this CD has a very good, powerful sound. Johnny Lima is an excellent songwriter of melodic hard rock, just listen, for example, to 'Star,' which is the highlight of this higher-than-average CD.' DVSrecords.com 'At first listening to this I thought, man I haven't heard melodic metal done like this in years. Johnny is very, very talented, not only in songwriting, but musicianship. The few people that have heard this at Blast have fell in love with the CD. In fact I almost never got the chance to review it. If your into bands like: Bon Jovi, White Lion, Aldo Nova, and Winger, then you will love this CD as much as the employees at Blast have.' Blast Magazine 'One of the biggest surprises of the year comes from this release by Mr. Lima. Bon Jovi summertime fun at it's best!' AOR.nu.
