With his highly infectious brand of melodic rock, and superbly entertaining Gods live performances, Johnny Lima thoroughly endeared himself to the AOR fraternity. His last album, 'Made in California', seemed to take an age to get finished and released, so it's certainly a joy that his latest release has seen the light of day less than 2 years later. But what is surprising is that the new album is mainly a re-recording of his long-deleted debut album, released back in 1996. We needed some answers. Bruce Mee had the questions...

Well, first question is obvious - why did you feel the need to go back and revisit your debut, completely re-recording it?

"There were a couple of reasons why I decided to do that. The first being that I was tired of seeing it going for up to $40 on ebay. You'd think I would be happy that my album (used no less) would go for that much, but it actually pissed me off. No album is worth that much, and I don't like seeing someone make that big of a profit off of my music. So hopefully by re-recording it, it will lower the value of the original and it's now possible for someone to get the same songs with a much better recording at a reasonable price. I've also been thinking about re-releasing that original for a long time, and just didn't know how I was going to go about doing it. Should I release it as is, or should I re-record the the whole thing since I know I could make it sound a 100 times better. Needless to say, I chose option #2."

What lessons do you feel you've learned from making 'Shine' and 'Made in California', and the people you have worked with, that have been put to good use on 'Version 1.2'?

"Lesson number one is... NEVER PREDICT WHEN THE ALBUM WILL BE FINISHED. I can't believe how many times I set a date of completion and had to change it. And that was for all the albums! I've also learned a lot in the studio. I now have four albums under my belt as well as worked on a number of other projects in the studio. I feel like my production chops have really improved over the years. This time around I didn't try to take the easy way out by using a drum machine and plugging the guitar direct into the computer and using software amp simulators. I used the real thing and it made a huge difference in the sound.

I've got to say, I was really amazed at the production and sound quality you have obtained on this CD, for what must surely have been a limited budget. The clarity and separation of the instruments is fantastic, and the backing vocals are just immense! It's clear that this was not just some quick, throwaway project, but has been treated with love and care. So how much of a task WAS it to complete this album, and who were you working with to create it. For instance, the guitars are also superb sounding.

"Thanks for noticing! I spent most of my time in the studio by myself. It's always a huge task when making an album, but it's a labor of love. This time around I had Bernie doing the drums. Craig was back again laying down some killer guitar solos, and my studio partner Dave Gakle engineered some of it. Ryan Freeman from Anatomic was in there laying some backing vocals on a couple of tracks as well. but the majority of the time I was there in the studio by myself. I've learned to work that way, and I've become used to it. For this album I had the luxury of experimenting with different mics, amps, and outboard gear. So I didn't even touch the record button until I was satisfied with the sound I was getting in the room. I think that made a hell of a difference too. I didn't have to settle for something sub-par and hope that I can fix it during the mixing process."

Not having heard your demo, did hindsight allow you to change and re-structure some of those original songs, and if so, what have you done for the better?

"I feel that I've learned quite a bit by writing and recording 3 albums prior to Version 1.2. So when it came time to re-record it, I sat down and really listened to the original debut and decided what I didn't like about it and what I wanted to keep. I've noticed that the guitar solos were WAY too long on the original, so that needed to change. Most of the songs in general were too long. I don't write prog rock, so I needed to cut out some things in order to hit the 3 minute mark. I think there were only four songs that were kept the same, as far as the arrangements and lyrics. All the others were changed. Some had little changes and some others need a complete overhaul."

You've stated on the internet in the recent past that musically, you have moved on from the Bon Jovi/Def Leppard sound that you are most equated with. With that in mind, was it not a little mentally non-stimulating to revisit and re-record your debut?

"I guess as an artist I get frustrated sometimes, and when I'm frustrated I tend to let my mouth run wild. So since I'm in a good mood right now, I'll try to set the record straight so everyone will know where I'm at musically. I love rock music, I will always love rock music, and whenever you see "Johnny Lima" on the cover of an album, you should always expect it to rock your ass off. Now that doesn't mean that rock is the only style of music I'm into. I've grown to admire and number of different genres of music. One in particular is Hip Hop. I've recorded a lot of Hip Hop in the studio and have also been writing a ton of music for other artists. To be quite honest with you, I'm pretty fucking good at writing a killer Hip Hop tune. Not the lyrics, just the music. And whenever these rappers hear my music for the first time, you'd think they found the Holy Grail. I've never seen anyone get that excited about something I've written. It's a great feeling! Rappers would tell me that they've never heard anything like it before. Do you know how long I've waited to hear that? Throughout my entire career as a solo artist, all I've ever heard was "you sound like Bon Jovi", "You sound like Def Leppard". Hell, even in this interview you couldn't even go without mentioning those two bands! HAHAHA!!"

So who inspires and influences you in today's music world? And just what exactly will future Johnny Lima output sound like? Are you still song-writing? If so, what can you tell us about your most recent compostions.

"Bon Jovi and Def Leppard! HAHAHAHA! Just kidding! Not sure what my future output will sound like as far as the rock thing is concerned. I haven't written a rock song in over a year. But I can feel something brewing inside. You know, and monster that's about to awake from a long sleep. He's gonna be a grumpy son of a bitch, so watch out!"

You have quite a new look for today. From blonde, to dark and mysterious. What made you decide to change your image?

"That's the nice thing about having short hair. You can change the style and color without having to commit to it for a long time. I get very bored with my look, so I need to change it constantly. This season, black is in. So I'll keep it for a while."

You've had several very well received slots at previous Gods shows. Have you played live since then, and are there any plans in the future?

"No I haven't played live since. There's really nowhere to play around here unless you want to be the background music at a bar. I'd much rather be in the studio creating music. However, I'm always open to going to Europe to play again."

Do you still keep in touch with any other musos? There were talks at times of projects with the likes of Danny Danzi, and Ted Poley. What happened with those? Is it something you'd be interested doing in the future?

"Yeah, Danny and I have talked about doing something together for years. You never know, before we both hang it up, we'll have to make at least one album together. Ted and I were really close to making a Ted Poley solo album, but we had run into a lot of smoke blowing by a certain label and decided to scrap the idea. Ted's an awesome guy, and I'm glad to see him do well in D2 again. He deserves it."

Finally, feel free to say a few words to all your fans out here in Europe.

"Thanks for all the support over the years, I really appreciate it and love you dearly for it!"