R&M4U-Classics: Johnny Lima - "Version 1.2" (2005)

In my last Classic-post I told you, that I was looking for some more stuff in the vein of older Bon Jovi after I've listened to their suberb album "New Jersey". To my luck I found lots of great bands and musicians with a similar style, but nobody else could blew my mind like JOHNNY LIMA did. I just can say it again and again: Lima is one of the most underrated musicians in the Melodic Rock scene. He deserves so much more. He is an excellent songwriter, a pretty good singer and producer, who has much more to offer than the well-known "top-acts" of the scene nowadays. If you need a proof just listen to his album "Version 1.2" from 2005!



"Version 1.2" is a Melodic rock jewel, that consists mainly of re-recordings from Johnny's debut album ("Johnny Lima", 1996). Of course the debut is still a classic to many Lima fans, but I liked the updated sound on "Version 1.2" much more and on this one Johnny added two more great songs, that didn't appear on the debut: "Drift Away" and "Fire Of Love". The latter was the song everything started with. In 2006 I bought a Rock compilation called "Rock Of Ages" and "Fire Of Love" was the absolute stand-out track on this sampler.

When I heard the first notes I thought Jon Bon Jovi was singing. At this time the style of singing and the melodies were very similar to older Bon Jovi records and although the musical direction changed a bit in recent years, Johnny still has to deal with those critics who say he would be a "Bon Jovi clone". To me this is bullshit, I don't care if somebody reminds me at somebody else when I listening to music. As long as the songmaterial is perfect, it simply doesn't matter. Especially in the Melodic Rock genre nobody reinvents the wheel.

Speaking about the songmaterial itself I just can say that every song on "Version 1.2" is a winner. There is no filler in sight. Every song offers anthemic choruses with big choirs in the vein of Def Leppard. The whole album is pure ear-candy and full of catchy melodies. Although the style of the songs is similar to each other you find enough variety on this album: traditional 80's driven Melodic Rock songs like "Little Runaway", "If I Had A Heart" and "Into Your Arms" go hand in hand with dreamy ballads ("Here For You","Another Lonely Day") and groove rockers like "Rock'n'Roll River" and "Something's Gotta Change". So you'll find everything what this genre is all about on this record.

You may ask yourself why Johnny re-recorded his debut album. That's simple: his debut is out of print and he got lots of requests from fans to send them a burned copy of this album. So, he decided to remake his songs. Ironically "Version 1.2" is also out of print nowadays, so if you'd like to get it you can download the digital version on Amazon or on Johnny's Homepage. Maybe you'll also find the physical version in some online-shops, but this is rare and you have to pay ridiculous prices.
To come to an end: "Version 1.2" is worth to check it out as it consists of some of the best songs that were ever written in the Melodic Rock scene! A pure classic indeed!

Now it's your turn - did you already know Johnny Lima and his music? What do you think about him?

Tracklist:

01. Never Gonna Let You Go *
02. Little Runaway *
03. Rock'n'Roll River
04. Here For You *
05. Reckless Heart
06. Drift Away *
07. Crazy
08. Fire Of Love *
09. Another Lonely Day *
10. Into Your Arms *
11. Something's Gotta Change
12. If I Had A Heart *
13. Fly Angel

* best tracks

http://johnnylima.com/