Mecca (Joe Vana) - 20 Years

[Stefan]

 

From Frontiers:

Frontiers Records is proud to present “20 Years”, a collection assembling the works of Mecca, the classic AOR band started by vocalist Joe Vana. The band's three studio releases, "Mecca", "Undeniable", and "III" are all included on "20 Years", which will be released on February 18, 2022. 

When he was only 13 years old, Joe Vana’s life was forever changed through a chance meeting with Survivor’s Jim Peterik.  Jim taught him everything he knew about music and the music business. But, it wasn’t until he was 28 years old that he discovered his voice, which is when he became Peterik’s in-house demo singer for many years. Joe and Jim eventually created a band called Project Voyager, which ultimately morphed into Mecca.  In  2002, Mecca released their debut self-titled album, which featured David Hungate (ex-Toto) on bass, Shannon Forrest on drums, Fergie Frederiksen (ex-Toto) and Joe on vocals, Mike Aquino on guitars and Jimmy Nichols on keyboards. “Mecca” created a sonic treasure that was more than well-received by the Melodic Rock/AOR community.

Fans had a nine year wait for the follow-up album, but it was worth it. Titled “Undeniable” (2011), it saw Vana working with Swedish guitarist Christian Wolff and producer/songwriter/guitarist Tommy Denander. The results were again breathtaking, an album which perfectly melded the outstanding high-tech AOR approach of Mr. Mister’s “Welcome to the Real World” to the sheer commercial brilliance of Toto’s “The Seventh One”.

In 2016, the “III” album finally saw the light of day, a record that would have topped AOR charts back in the glory days of the genre. The list of players involved is impressive: Shannon Forrest (Toto), Tim Akers (Richard Marx, Amy Grant), David Hungate (ex-Toto), and Joe's son Joey on guitar. In Toto's Steve Lukather words: "Killer new music! Great songs! Great playing from everyone ... and Joe's vocals are better than ever! Smooth, real and soulful. I love the 'surprise modulations' that are now his style which make this a great listen for fans of his and the entire genre of melodic rock music. Creative arrangements throughout and I love the synth/keyboard work. David Hungate is amazing as is Shannon Forrest on drums and production. Great sounds and killer guitars all over it! Can't say which track is my fave yet, cause I love all of them. Summing it up in 3 words: Well f***ing done!” Whether for the uninitiated or for those who are due to revisit Mecca, “20 Years” is for you!

CD1:
1.    Velocitized
2.    Without You
3.    Can’t Stop Love
4.    Silence Of The Heart
5.    You Still Shock Me
6.    Mecca
7.    Wishing Well
8.    Close That Gap
9.    Blinded By Emotion
10.    Falling Down
11.    Miss-Chevious (Bonus Track)

CD2:
1.    Perfect World
2.    Closing Time
3.    Ten Lifetimes
4.    Life’s Too Short
5.    I Know
6.    Did It For Love
7.    From The Start
8.    Deceptive Cadence
9.    W2W
10.    Undeniable
11.    As I Walk Alone
12.    How Many Times (Bonus Track)

CD3:
13.    Take My Hand
14.    Unknown
15.    Alone
16.    Gone
17.    Cry
18.    A Kiss On The Wind
19.    Let It Go
20.    Believe

 

MUSICIANS:

Mecca:

Joe Vana: Lead vocals

Fergie Frederiksen: Lead vocals

Mike Aquino: Guitars

David Hungate: Bass 

Shannon Forest: Drums & Percussion

Jimmy Nichols: Keyboards

 

Undeniable:

Joe “JV” Vana: Lead Vocals

Joey Vana: Guitars

Brian Moritz: Guitars, Keyboards

Mark Alano: Guitars

Paul Pisciotto: Keyboards

Wally Hustin: Bass

Rick Vitek:Drums

Tony Levin: Bass

Pat Mastellotto: Drums

 

III:

Joe Vana: Lead Vocals

Joey Vana: Guitars

Mark Baldwin: Guitars

Tim Akers: Keyboards

David Browning: Keyboards

David Hungate: Bass 

Shannon Forrest: Drums 

Erik Darken: Percussion