Damn Yankees – Uprising

DAMN YANKEES
UPRISING LIVE!
Released 1992 (Warner Bros.), 2007 (Rhino)

DVD Track List:
01. Damn Yankees
02. Uprising
03. High Enough
04. Don’t Tread On Me
05. Where You Goin’ Now
06. Fifteen Minutes Of Fame
07. Come Again
08. Coming Of Age
09. Renegade
10. Cat Scratch Fever
11. Rock In America

Band:
Jack Blades – vocals and bass
Ted Nugent – guitar and vocals
Tommy Shaw – guitar and vocals
Michael Cartellone – drums

Review:
Rarely do ‘supergroups’ live up to their hype, but the Damn Yankees were one of the few to reach the top of the charts. During the intro of this DVD guitarist/singer Ted Nugent refers to the band as “maximum shitkicker American rock and roll boys”, which may be disputed by those that only heard Damn Yankees‘ mellow hit singles.

  The biggest problem with this live DVD (which is entwined with interviews and other footage) is the sound. The band is tight, and “High Enough” sounds as crisp here as it does on CD, but for the most part the vocals and the bass are too low in the mix. You’d think that such a well produced (on album) group would have every instrument and sound get equal billing. But all too often Ted‘s solos seem to be drowning everything else out.

  Thankfully Ted Nugent once again proves that his fingers are as fast as his mouth and is hell-bent on the stealing the show – and the remaining members seem comfortable with that. I suppose Tommy Shaw and Jack Blades were secure enough in their abilities not to turn the show into a battle of egos and instead appear to be enjoying the entire experience.

  The Damn Yankees were an odd mixture. No one would have thought that Ted Nugent‘s outrageous arena rock would have mixed with Night Ranger‘s mellow leanings and even less so with whatever Styx played. Maybe it was these polar opposites that helped make the Damn Yankees so successful, and so short-lived. This DVD captures a fun and energetic 1992 show (Jack Blades‘ showmanship really impressed me) at Denver’s Rocky Mountain Jam, I just wish the final mix was better.

  www.rhino.com

Reviewed by Skid for Sleaze Roxx, April 2007.

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